Is Your Cold Chain Provider Triaging Today's Problems or Preventing Them in the First Place?

Your business doesn’t stop because of bad weather, shifting tariffs or port delays. So, your logistics provider shouldn’t either. At Lineage, we believe that great customer care means having a partner who knows your business, moves fast and never leaves you guessing. It means having a partner who doesn’t just react to disruptions but anticipates and plans for them.

Today’s cold chain challenges can’t be solved by good intentions or empty promises; they’re solved by people.

It’s not enough for your logistics partner to offer "support" as a value-added benefit. Customer care can be a true strategic differentiator, especially in our industry. When your supply chain is on the line and food needs to reach its destination, the things that matter most are connecting the dots and who can make it happen.

The myth of "better service" from smaller providers

Some providers claim to be more nimble, more personal, more responsive.

But when pressure hits, those claims can break down. Smaller providers often mean limited teams, hours and coverage. When your support team consists of just a few people in a handful of buildings, promises of 24/7 coverage and customized care don’t always hold up.

Meanwhile, Lineage has a different model of service: one that blends size with speed, personalization with expertise. We support global customers with local teams, embedded expertise and the ability to flex resources quickly when disruption strikes.

Beyond the core customer care functions, Lineage connects the full cold chain with offerings like:

• Cold storage facilities in key markets across the globe
• Transportation coordination, including temperature-controlled truck and rail
• Port-centric warehousing and bonded solutions
• Integrated systems like Lineage Link® for real-time visibility and order tracking

A service model built to evolve

At Lineage, our approach to supporting our customers is always evolving and improving, because the supply chain demands it. We are committed to continuous improvement and investing in new tools, enhanced training and integrated systems that help you stay ahead of whatever comes next.

Customer care is embedded in the business and equipped with the insight, structure and flexibility to respond with confidence.

The result?

• Unified systems, processes and training across our locations
• Increased team capacity so we can focus on solving, not escalating
• A broader service structure that adds speed without sacrificing relationships

This model helps provide that whether you’re coordinating a cross-border move, managing seasonal spikes or facing an unexpected disruption, Lineage is ready with the right tools, the right insights and the ability to act fast.

Customer care that's empowered to act

When something goes wrong in the cold chain, some providers escalate. Others delay. A few just disappear.

At Lineage, we empower our teams to act. Our goal is to make sure they aren’t bogged down by complicated and time-consuming bureaucracy. They don’t pass the issue down the line. They take ownership and solve the problem.

Case in point: Weathering the Storm

In 2024, a bomb cyclone knocked out power across the Pacific Northwest, including at a customer’s flagship U.S. store, just two weeks from its grand opening. With over $350,000 in temperature-sensitive inventory at risk, the call to Lineage came at 10:30 PM. By 3:00 AM, our trucks were on-site. Within 36 hours, 10+ loads were secured in a nearby cold storage warehouse. When power came back, the store was restocked in under 12 hours.

No loss. No delay. Just a grand opening, saved by speed and service.

That’s not luck. That’s what happens when your logistics partner is already planning for the unpredictable, and ready to respond at a moment’s notice.

Prepared before the problem

Good service answers the phone. Great service anticipates the call.

At Lineage, proactive thinking is built into every step, including our customer care model.  We help customers get ahead of seasonal spikes, regulatory shifts and disruption before they become a crisis.

Case in point: The Race Against Tariffs

When a Canadian frozen food manufacturer needed to move product across the border ahead of looming tariffs, Lineage acted fast. We secured space in a strategically located facility, coordinated cross-border transport and onboarded the customer into our Warehouse Management System, all within days. Inventory moved without delay, shelves stayed stocked and added costs were avoided.

That’s the power of having a cold chain partner who’s already in position and already thinking ahead.

Service that works like a partner

Customer care shouldn’t mean cookie-cutter emails and endless hold music. In the cold chain, it’s about having a partner who knows your business inside and out and is ready to act when it matters most.

Lineage’s service is defined by what matters most: getting the job done right, no matter the pressure. With teams that move fast, tools that keep you informed and infrastructure that flexes with your needs, we make customer care a strength at every step.

At Lineage, customer care means:

• A team who doesn’t disappear after onboarding
• Infrastructure that flexes and scales with your needs
• Fast, personal response, backed by 25,000+ trained problem solvers across the globe
• Built-in expertise, not stop-gap add-ons

Because when the pressure hits, what matters is who picks up the phone, and what they do next.