Malaybalay City, Bukidnon, Philippines — After more than 17 years as an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW), Arnold F. Dela Cruz returned home with a dream shared by millions of Filipinos abroad: to build something sustainable for his family and his country.

That dream was disrupted in 2020, when Arnold was laid off during the global crisis. Refusing to give up, he invested his life savings to start T&Z Trucking Services, launching operations with a single 10-wheeler Wing Van truck.

Through persistence and grit, T&Z secured a logistics contract with a third-party provider serving Nestlé, operating continuously for over three years. Yet behind the steady trips was a harsh industry reality that many truck operators silently endure.

Trucks moved loaded one way—and returned empty the other.

Finding reliable backloads was inefficient and largely manual. At the same time, backload owners struggled to locate available trucks. The result was a systemic mismatch that led to wasted fuel, lost income, and shrinking margins for both sides.

By 2025, sustained operational losses forced Arnold to close T&Z Trucking Services—one of the most difficult decisions of his life.

But the experience planted a deeper resolve.

Turning Lived Pain into a Platform

Rather than walk away, Arnold asked a critical question: 

What if the problem wasn't the operators—but the system itself?

As early as 2022, he began developing the concept for TrakZ Mobile App , grounded not in theory but in lived experience. Using Value Proposition Canvas and Business Model Canvas, he mapped the pain points of truck operators, drivers, and backload owners—validated through direct conversations across the logistics community.

The insight was clear: 

inefficient matching leads to empty trucks—and empty trucks lead to loss.

TrakZ was envisioned as a systematic, technology-enabled matching platform designed to reduce empty return trips, improve utilization, and create fairer opportunities across the logistics value chain.

Momentum Through Incubation

Development faced early financial constraints, temporarily slowing progress. The breakthrough came in Q4 of 2025, when Arnold joined SparkTrack Incubation under CDO Bites, and was later selected for the Firestarter Incubation Program, receiving six months of intensive startup support.

That momentum transformed TrakZ from concept to reality.

TrakZ Today

Now in its seed stage, TrakZ Mobile App is live and actively onboarding registered truck drivers for pilot testing . The company has taken key steps toward scale and credibility:

• Registered with DTI and secured local business permits

• Applied for intellectual property protection (IPO)

• Initiated collaboration with the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce

Looking ahead, TrakZ plans to expand partnerships with:

• R10 United Truckers Association (RUTA)

• MSMEs across Northern Mindanao

A Mission Built on the Road

TrakZ is more than a logistics app. It is built by someone who has stood on both sides of the problem—as an operator, a founder, and a Filipino who understands loss and resilience.

"TrakZ was born from empty trucks, wasted fuel, and hard lessons—but it's driven by the belief that every trip should matter," said Arnold F. Dela Cruz, Founder of TrakZ.

As pilot testing continues, TrakZ aims to help ensure that no truck runs empty—and no opportunity is left behind.