Daseke Appoints Jason Bates as Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer

ADDISON, Texas, April 23, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Daseke, Inc. (NASDAQ: DSKE) (“Daseke” or the “Company”), the largest flatbed and specialized transportation and logistics solutions company in North America, announced today that it has named Jason Bates as the Company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Bates will be fully transitioned into his new role by April 27^th, and will be responsible for managing all treasury, accounting, tax, investor relations, financial planning and analysis, and capital market activities, and be charged with managing the Company’s balance sheet and improving its corporate finance capabilities. Additionally, Mr. Bates’s significant experience will meaningfully contribute to Daseke’s ongoing operational and cost improvement plans.

Chris Easter, Chief Executive Officer of Daseke, said, “We are excited to welcome Jason to Daseke. Jason brings both transformational transportation experience, as well as a strong track record with one of the largest and most sophisticated companies in our industry. His extensive corporate finance experience will be an invaluable asset to both our finance team and to the Daseke executive leadership team. We look forward to his contributions as we continue to transform our operating platform and leverage our strong niche leadership position in the flatbed and specialized transportation market.”

Mr. Bates added, “I am excited to be joining the team at Daseke, which is not only a highly respected niche market leader, but a Company that is repositioning itself to be a best in class organization through operational excellence. I intend to bring a data-oriented, process improvement mindset which should complement the great work the Daseke team has already implemented over the last nine months. Further, I will prioritize continued deleveraging and balance sheet improvement efforts, while also applying my industry background and knowledge to assist the company in optimizing the business and growing its returns. I am encouraged by the progress achieved to date and look forward to supporting and supplementing Daseke’s growing momentum.”

Mr. Bates brings over 17 years of direct trucking industry experience, and 10 years of financial executive experience to Daseke’s leadership team. Bates joins Daseke from USA Truck, a North American truckload carrier and logistics brokerage provider, where he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since 2017. Prior to joining USA Truck, Mr. Bates served as Vice President of Finance and Investor Relations Officer at Swift Transportation Company, holding a variety of finance, treasury and accounting roles with increasing scope and responsibility since joining the company in 2003. Mr. Bates began his career in corporate finance at Honeywell International, in the Aerospace Division. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business from Brigham Young University and an MBA from Arizona State University.

In connection with his appointment as Chief Financial Officer of the Company, Mr. Bates was granted the following: (i) options to purchase 223,600 shares of the Company’s common stock, with an exercise price of $1.38 per share (the closing price of the Company’s common stock on April 20, 2020, the execution date of Mr. Bates’ employment agreement), which are scheduled to vest in three equal annual installments, subject to Mr. Bates’s continued employment; (ii) 388,500 performance stock units that are eligible to vest at the end of three-year performance period subject to the achievement of specified stock price hurdles and Mr. Bates’s continued employment, and (iii) options to purchase an additional 186,300 shares of the Company’s common stock, with an exercise price of $1.38 per share, which are scheduled to vest in three equal annual installments, subject to Mr. Bates’s continued employment. Mr. Bates’s inducement grants provide for varying levels of accelerated vesting upon the occurrence of specified employment termination and change in control events, and the inducement grants are intended to satisfy the applicable exception under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c).

About Daseke, Inc.

Daseke, Inc. is the largest flatbed and specialized transportation and logistics company in North America. Daseke offers comprehensive, best-in-class services to many of the world’s most respected industrial shippers through experienced people, a fleet of more than 5,500 tractors and 12,000 flatbed and specialized trailers. For more information, please visit .

Forward‐Looking Statements

This news release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “continue,” “estimate,” “project,” “believe,” “plan,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “forecast,” “seek,” “target,” “predict,” and “potential,” the negative of these terms, or other comparable terminology. Projected financial information, including our guidance outlook, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may also include statements about the Company’s goals, including its restructuring actions and cost reduction initiatives; the Company’s financial strategy, liquidity and capital required for its business strategy and plans; the Company’s competition and government regulations; general economic conditions; and the Company’s future operating results.

These forward-looking statements are based on information available as of the date of this release, and current expectations, forecasts and assumptions. While management believes that these forward-looking statements are reasonable as and when made, there can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that the Company anticipates. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company’s views as of any subsequent date, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties (many of which are beyond our control) that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, general economic and business risks, driver shortages and increases in driver compensation or owner-operator contracted rates, loss of senior management or key operating personnel, the failure of any restructuring actions and cost reduction initiatives that the Company undertake to meet the expected results, our ability to realize intended benefits from its recent or future acquisitions, seasonality and the impact of weather and other catastrophic events, fluctuations in the price or availability of diesel fuel, increased prices for, or decreases in the availability of, new revenue equipment and decreases in the value of used revenue equipment, the Company’s ability to generate sufficient cash to service all of the Company’s indebtedness, restrictions in its existing and future debt agreements, increases in interest rates, changes in existing laws or regulations, including environmental and worker health safety laws and regulations and those relating to tax rates or taxes in general, the impact of governmental regulations and other governmental actions related to the Company and its operations, litigation and governmental proceedings, and insurance and claims expenses. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. For additional information regarding known material factors that could cause our actual results to differ from those expressed in forward-looking statements, please see Daseke’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, available at , including Daseke’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K, and subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, particularly the section titled “Risk Factors”.

Investor Relations:

Alpha IR Group

Joseph Caminiti or Chris Hodges

312-445-2870