Expert Spotlight: Interview with Petar Dimitrov, General Manager Freight Transport at Logicorp

At Transmetrics, we believe the best insights in logistics come from the people living it every day – the operators, decision-makers, and leaders navigating an industry that never slows down. That is why we are launching Expert Spotlight, a new series of conversations with some of the most experienced and forward-thinking minds in the field.

For our first edition, we are delighted to sit down with Petar Dimitrov, General Manager Freight Transport at Logicorp, part of the Unimasters Group. Petar brings a rare combination of corporate discipline and entrepreneurial grit, and he has the kind of story that makes everything he says worth listening to.

Petar is a logistics leader with over 15 years of experience – from senior roles at multinational companies like Shell to building his own business and leading innovative transport operations. He is known for his unconventional thinking, hands-on leadership style, and a genuine passion for pushing the industry forward through digitalization and innovation.

What are the biggest changes you are seeing in logistics right now?

If I had to put it in one word: pace.

Logistics has always been dynamic, but the speed at which things are changing right now is unbelievable. In the last five years, we have been through COVID, the post-pandemic period, the war in Ukraine, the war in Iran, and on top of all that, a wave of European regulations tied to emissions and road taxation.

Take ETS2, for example – the EU directive that directly affects transport companies and will be felt very strongly. The goal of the European Commission is clear: to have as few trucks on the highways as possible. Road tolls for older trucks keep increasing to push investment toward newer, cleaner fleets.

And there are further emission reduction targets on the horizon – transport companies are expected to cut emissions by 35%, then 45%, then 65% by 2040. We are all already behind, and the companies that start adapting now will be the ones still standing when these targets become mandatory.

The upside is that regulation tends to level the playing field. There has always been a gap between operators who invest properly – in compliant fleets, in people, in infrastructure – and those who cut corners. Digitalization and tighter enforcement are closing that gap. It will be painful for some, but for the companies doing things right, it is long overdue.

Which decisions have become harder to make in today’s market?

Big companies used to build 50-year strategies. Today, nobody can build even a solid 5-year plan anymore – not just because of upcoming regulations, but because predicting what will happen next has become nearly impossible. Let me give you a concrete example.

We are currently testing an electric truck. And if the conditions were right, we would seriously consider expanding in that direction. The economics are not simple – an electric truck costs as much as three diesel ones, and the charging infrastructure across most of Europe is still catching up with the ambition. But waiting for perfect conditions is not a strategy. We want to build the knowledge, understand the operational reality, and prepare ourselves before the market forces everyone to move.

That is really the mindset shift that separates companies today. The horizon is unclear for everyone – subsidies vary by country, regulations are moving fast, and the technology is still maturing. The leaders who will come out ahead are not the ones who waited for certainty. They are the ones who made calculated bets early and learned from them. If you wait for the perfect moment, it never comes.

Speaking of resilient companies, what is the main thing that separates them from the rest?

People. I have always said that the most important asset in any company is the people. In transport, trucks do not build companies – people do. Especially drivers. You can buy new equipment, software, or AI tools, but loyal and experienced people are becoming harder and harder to replace. In difficult moments, technology helps, but it is the people who save operations. A strong team, people you can count on – only they can make you truly productive and push you forward.

But beyond people, it is adaptability. Right now, you cannot predict what will happen next week, let alone next year. The companies that survive and grow are the ones that stop waiting for things to normalize and instead adapt to reality as it is. New technologies are the tool, but adaptability is the mindset.

Where do teams still lose the most time or margin in daily operations?

Here we are in very familiar territory. The problems are old ones – poor organization, weak planning, and lack of communication between teams. In intermodal transport, this becomes even more visible.

Many people think intermodal is simply putting trailers on trains, but the reality is much more complex. You need synchronization between road transport, rail operators, terminals, drivers, customers, and real-time operational decisions across multiple countries. One delay or one missing piece of communication can affect the entire chain. These challenges have always existed, but when margins get thinner and pressure mounts, they become critical.

The only way out is having the right team that can compensate for those weaknesses. If you do not have that team, even the best technology in the world will not save you.

What does good operational leadership look like in logistics today?

I have never told my people to go ahead while I stay behind – I am always in front of them. They see that I am in action. They know that if they have a problem and come to me, they will get a response. Maybe I cannot always fix it immediately, but they know I am not indifferent.

The other key thing is consistency. If we have committed to a direction, we do not give up easily. We make a decision, and we go – until we see clear signs that something truly is not working. From the story of the bitter cup – the business failure, letting go of over 80 people – I learned that the perfect moment to start something never exists. If you wait for it, it never comes. You decide, you move, and you do not stop until you achieve it.

When hiring, I no longer look only at experience. I look for fire in the eyes. Every day in logistics is different. If you love routine and paperwork, this is simply not for you.

How has the role of data changed in decision-making?

Data is critically important – but it can also seriously mislead you. If you read it incorrectly or collect it for a month without proper analysis, you can end up making management decisions that have nothing to do with reality. And the higher up you are in management, the less time you have to dig into the details, which makes this even more dangerous.

Clients today expect immediate information and transparency. But the reality in logistics is that one delayed train, one terminal issue, or one communication gap can immediately create operational pressure across several countries.

The expectations are becoming higher every year – to know where a shipment is at any given moment. That is great, but the real question is whether someone is actually monitoring that data and whether it is leading to concrete actions. The whole process becomes transparent, and there is no hiding behind excuses anymore. We are building that transparency now, and we know it is essential.

I have seen large companies spend enormous sums on software solutions that do not communicate with each other. The result is always the same: a lack of transparency and confusion. Technology is means, not an end. Fix your processes first – then technology can amplify them.

What should companies keep in mind when adopting new technology?

Technology does not organize your business. It supports it. You need to sort out your internal processes first – only then can technology speed them up and improve them. If you implement a new TMS system into chaos, you just get faster chaos. AI will not replace logistics people. What it will do is expose weak processes faster than ever before. Companies with strong operational discipline will become significantly stronger. Companies without structure will simply create faster chaos.

There is a saying every operations director knows: bad in, bad out. That applies to every system. If you feed in incorrect data or broken processes, you get bad outputs. I have seen it happen at the largest companies in the world. Processes first, then technology.

What have you learned from your experience working with technology partners?

Three or four years ago, if you were looking for a TMS for a transport company, you had maybe two or three options. Today, if you search, you will find 150,000 solutions, all promising AI and everything you could imagine.

The problem is that most of these solution providers do not understand logistics. And that is the critical point: the partner has to understand your business. If they do not, they at least need to listen to you and learn from you. That is what I value about Transmetrics – they build their product according to the actual needs of their partners. They ask, they listen, and they act on it.

The process matters too. You know who is responsible for what, and you know what comes next. You expect some growing pains when a new product launches – but with Transmetrics, you know they will be addressed. I will give you a concrete example: we have a point of contact who sends structured emails, clearly outlining who is responsible for each item, following up, and pushing things forward. That kind of accountability is rare, and it is exactly what a mature partner looks like.

We are also seeing the opposite in the market right now. Countless generic AI companies are making big promises and then taking two or three years to deliver anything, because they do not understand the business they are trying to serve.

What advice would you give to other leaders in logistics today?

Stop waiting for things to normalize. This is normal. The crises, the regulations, the uncertainty – this is the context we work in now. The sooner you accept that, the easier it becomes to operate.

If you have decided to change something, do it now. Not after stabilization, not after the next elections, not when the market recovers. Now. Because tomorrow will be more complicated, not less.

Looking ahead, what will distinguish successful logistics companies in the coming years?

The future is not in one type of transport – electric, diesel, CNG, intermodal, rail, or air. The future is in the combination. The companies that will succeed are those that intelligently blend all modes of transport and services together. The smarter you combine them, the stronger you are.

At Logicorp, we are already moving in that direction. We have intermodal transport, we are building domestic transport, a segment that is very underdeveloped in Bulgaria, and we are digitizing our processes. Our motto is Connecting Modes Smartly. That is what will make the difference.

As for AI – yes, it is powerful, and it will help us. But there is no way it replaces people. Logistics will always need people. The hype is a little overblown, honestly. What matters is how you use it – as a tool in the hands of good people. And no matter what technology arrives, there will always be logistics, and there will always be people doing it.

Technology will continue to change logistics. AI will continue to evolve. Regulations will continue to pressure the industry. But at 3 AM, when a shipment is blocked somewhere in Europe and a customer is waiting for answers, it is still people who solve the problem. And I do not believe that will ever change.