DJS INTERNATIONAL SERVICES - Key Persons
Over the last 48 years, Darrell has earned a reputation as a small business pioneer and one of the nation's most respected customs brokers. After joining his father's firm in the mid-1960s, Darrell launched his own company in 1985. And under his leadership, DJS has grown into one of the Southwest's leading international freight forwarding, customs brokerage and NVOCC firms.
Darrell is a licensed Customhouse Broker and holds the Certified Customs Specialist (CCS) designation. He has been an active member of the National Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) for many years, serving on several key committees, as well as holding positions of Secretary, Vice President, President and Chairman of the Board. He is also U.S. Managing Director of The International Federation of Customs Brokers Association. Darrell has been at the forefront of many industry changes and is highly regarded as a tireless and trusted advocate for the customs brokerage and importing communities.
Darrell J. Sekin, Jr. worked at Sekin & Co. for 20 years, learning the finer points of the trade and developing his business acumen under his father's leadership.
After Joe sold Sekin & Co. in 1983, Darrell and his wife Marty launched DJS International in 1985. Many of the same business principles cultivated at Joe's firm-a strong commitment to customer service and a focus on technology and innovation-have remained the cornerstone of DJS.
Still privately owned, this high-performance corporation has turned the idea of a traditional family business on its head. Darrell's brother Paul joined DJS in 1991. Joe continues to serve on the company's Board of Directors. A third generation followed when Darrell's daughter Melissa and her husband David Meyer joined a few years later. They now stand at the helm, proudly leading DJS into the future.
The Sekin-Meyer family is active in leadership of the National Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association (NCBFAA), North Texas Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association (NTCBFFA), World Net Associates (WNA), Transportation Club of Dallas/Fort Worth, and a number of other industry and civic organizations.
David began earning his stripes at DJS in 1997, while completing his degree and a successful college baseball career at TCU. Under Darrell's coaching, he became a key player in international business. He brought a new game plan to the DJS management team, and a new son-in-law to the family when he married Darrell's daughter Melissa in 1998.
Since that time, David has added a depth of knowledge to DJS that has served clients well. He is a licensed Customhouse Broker and holds the CCS designation. David became COO of DJS in 2005, and President in 2015, and his visionary leadership continues to drive the growth of DJS. He also remains actively involved with NCBFAA, currently serving as the Area 7 Representative of the Customs Committee.
In 2003, Jessica's brother-in-law David asked her to help out for a few days while an office manager was on sick leave. That turned into a few years of learning the ins and outs of exports at DJS. And in 2006, she boldly ventured into the world of inbound logistics with just one other sidekick. Today, Jessica is Director of Logistics at DJS, leading a team of eight.
Team members and clients alike appreciate her persistent commitment to excellence. Jessica takes on every problem encountered as a challenge, and makes a science out of solving it. She is the DJS guru of operational process improvement and efficiency, report writing, and business intelligence. All of which means if there's a better way to handle any process or program, Jessica is destined to find it.
Kevin's connection to the Sekin family began long before he took a position at DJS. His great-grandfather, a well-respected freight forwarder, was a mentor to Joe Sekin in the 1950s, and Kevin's father was President of Sekin & Co. in the 1970s. Eventually, Kevin joined the industry working for the I.C.E. Co., opening their L.A. branch office in 1988. He returned to Dallas in 1998, and reunited with the Sekins at DJS in 2010.
Kevin is a licensed Customhouse Broker and holds both the CCS and CES designations. Additional certifications include IATA-FIATA, ICAO/IATA DG and IMDG DG. He has held various officer positions of Global Logistics Associates, and has served on the North Texas Customs Brokers & Freight Forwarders Association board as Treasurer, Vice President and President-a role he will hold until 2017. He has also served on the Export Compliance Sub-Committee of NCBFAA.
With her red hair and warm smile, Marty has a natural ability to cut to the core of complex problems and discover simple, sensible solutions. As one of the founding principals of DJS, she has done just that. While husband Darrell expertly managed and built the operational side of the business, Marty oversaw everything else, laying the foundation for the administrative, personnel, benefits, accounting, and financial structure of the company.
A licensed Customhouse Broker herself, Marty has been involved in many aspects of the customs industry for the last 30 years. She continues to wear several advisory hats at DJS, serving as Secretary of the DJS Board of Directors and as advisor to daughter Melissa. In her spare time, Marty enjoys volunteering with the DFW USO, serving the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces and their families.
This third generation Sekin grew up in her grandfather's and her father's companies, acquiring a strong sense of the industry long before she chose to make it her career. After earning a master's degree in speech-language pathology at TCU, Melissa returned to the family business in 2001, and following in her mother's footsteps, became the finance and administrative complement to husband David's operational savvy.
Melissa also holds the CCS designation, having been one of the first students in the nation to successfully complete the NCBFAA's Certified Specialist Course in its inaugural year in 2006. Today, she runs a tight ship as CFO of DJS, and continues to oversee accounting and HR. Aside from raising two smart and talented children with her husband David, she also sings in her church choir at home and abroad.
Friendly, honest and sincere, Paul joined his brother Darrell at DJS in 1991. He launched and continued to manage the company's export division for several years. Next, he focused on building a solid sales and marketing strategy for DJS. Now he quotes and coordinates all modes of inbound and outbound shipments, negotiates carrier rates and uses his vast regulatory knowledge to provide valuable solutions for his customers.
A devoted relationship builder, Paul stays involved in industry associations. Since 2006, he has served on the Board of Directors of the Transportation Club of Dallas/Fort Worth, serving as President for the 2008-2009 term. He also served as President of our international network of agents, WorldNet Associates, from 2002-2004, and again for the 2014-2016 term. Paul continues to cultivate partnerships with international agents worldwide, expanding the global reach of DJS.
If you turned back the clock 30 years or so you'd find Wayne sporting some interesting hairstyles, working at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). That's where this ambitious learner started his career as a messenger for a customs broker. Just two short years later, he delivered a passing score on the broker exam and became a licensed Customhouse Broker.
Not one to rest on his laurels, Wayne later accepted an offer to run the LAX branch office for a reputable New York broker. In 1998, opportunity knocked again and Wayne answered, moving his wife and three young children to Texas where he became Director of Imports at DJS. To this day, our import team stays entertained by his quirky sense of humor, and top-notch under his guidance.