Keep on truckin’

One of Australia’s most successful trucking companies, Brown and Hurley, celebrates 80 years this year.

Story John Dunn  Photos Hurley / Marcel Voestermans.

In the Hall of Fame at the National Road Transport’s Museum in Alice Springs, Brown and Hurley is described as “one of the most successful trucking partnerships in Australia’s road transport history”. The citation says founders Jack Hurley and Alan Brown were “a unique team, proof that the Australian dream is still achievable”, adding, “not bad for a couple of army mechanics”.

The road transport industry is in awe of the company that now has 21 dealerships spread over NSW and Queensland and more than 650 employees. Prime Mover Magazine says Brown and Hurley is a “testament to hard work, dedication and pursuit of excellence in the road transport industry.” Big Rigs describes it as an “enduring legacy” and notes that while it has sold everything from chainsaws to tractors, it now concentrates on trucks and averages selling more than 1,000 Kenworths a year. The company has sold more than 20,000 Kenworths over its lifetime. That’s a big number, but it certainly wasn’t always like that.