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XL Express mourns passing of Bob Mallory

Bob Mallory, the founder of Queensland’s transport company XL Express, has lost his long-term battle with cancer.

The 71-year-old creator of the parcel distribution company passed away yesterday, leaving behind his wife, Dee, and three children.

By Ruza Zivkusic-Aftasi | August 24, 2012

Bob Mallory, the
founder of Queensland’s transport company XL Express, has lost his long-term battle with cancer.

The 71-year-old creator of the parcel distribution company passed away yesterday, leaving behind his wife, Dee, and three children.

His son and the company’s Managing Director, Colin Mallory, says Bob Mallory was a man of his word and respected by many in the transport industry.

The family-owned business was established in 1990 by Bob Mallory after a short stint in retirement.

His love for the industry began earlier when he created Mallory Transport in the 1960s – a local parcel delivery company servicing Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

The business morphed into Sonic Transport in 1975, with services expanding into Redcliffe, the Sunshine Coast and Toowoomba.

The company grew as Bob acquired Able Transport in the late 1970s, changing the name to Sonic Able Transport.

He sold the business in 1986 to Mayne Nickless, retiring shortly after.

With transport running strongly in his blood, Bob returned to the industry upon launching XL Express in 1990 together with his family and two brothers after recognising a need for break bulk services in Queensland.

“XL Express was founded on the basis of running break bulk in consolidation, which is a concept he tried to get off the ground in the early 1980s,” Colin Mallory says.

“When all his clients started to decentralise in Melbourne and Sydney, he realised with his local business that life was going to change quite significantly as a result of all those warehouses shutting down and moving, so he was trying to bring to the market break bulk.

“The business is today because of Bob – because of the way he has put together his ideas, concepts and the following of his people, it’s the foundation of our business.

“I don’t think there’d be anyone that would be able to have taken the business to where we are today without his leadership, direction, passion and drive.”

There are over 200 people working for the company, including 300 subcontractors, operating across 13 national depots.

The company services up to 200 customers and has 300 delivery trucks.

“Bob was the type of the guy when you walk into a room you could feel him,” Colin Mallory says.

“We will continue to develop and grow the business in a similar fashion to the way Bob created the foundation of our business.”

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