Adam Claytor ’04
Founder & CEO, Coltrane Logistics • Columbus, OH
Wellington exposed you to entrepreneurs at a young age. What did that actually look like, and what did it do for you?
Wellington gave me access to enterprise-level entrepreneurship before I even had a framework for it. Business owners came through the school and talked about their lives with a candor that no classroom could manufacture. Their stories — filled with passion and resilience, the risks they’d taken, the things they’d built — illuminated what entrepreneurship actually looks like in a way that no textbook ever could. You can’t be what you can’t see. Wellington helped me see it.
Those interactions also opened doors. The connections I formed during that time — a network of professionals eager to share their knowledge and support the next generation — proved invaluable as I built my own path. That’s exactly why I’m so invested in JagsConnect now. I want the next generation of Jaguars to have what I had.
You took an unusual path after Wellington — choosing to apprentice under experienced CEOs rather than pursue an MBA. How did that shape you?
It was one of the most important decisions of my career. Working at Muirfield Village Golf Club — Jack Nicklaus’s course — was where it really started. Under the guidance of General Manager Nicklaus LaRocca and Head Pro Larry Dornisch — whose sons Peter and Andrew are both Wellington alumni — I witnessed a relentless pursuit of excellence that shaped my understanding of what world-class service actually means. It wasn’t about transactions. It was about relationships and standards that never slip.
From Muirfield, I was recruited to work in a private equity-owned manufacturing company, where a successful business owner let me make mistakes and learn from them. That shortened my learning curve enormously. Those experiences eventually led me to TAG Holdings in Detroit, where I was doing mergers and acquisitions work and making board-level decisions that would have seemed daunting without the foundation I’d built.
What an apprenticeship gave me that an MBA couldn’t was real-time exposure to the full complexity of owning, operating, buying, and selling a business. Tailored feedback on my specific challenges. The chance to observe different leadership styles in actual, high-stakes situations. I developed skills — negotiation, conflict resolution, strategic thinking — through direct involvement, not case studies.
You were also a student-athlete and a PGA Tour caddie. What did those experiences teach you that translated into running a business?
Being a student-athlete in an academically rigorous major like economics and management taught me discipline and time management in ways that nothing else could. Early morning practices, late-night study sessions, weekend tournaments — you learn to prioritize fast, or you don’t survive.
Caddying on the PGA Tour took that further. In that role, you learn how to extract the best from the people around you — it requires a deep understanding of personality dynamics, almost like being a psychologist. Every course is a puzzle: wind, terrain, and the mental state of the player you’re supporting. That analytical mindset became second nature to me in business. And resilience — in golf and in business, not every shot goes as planned. The ability to stay focused, learn from setbacks, and move on to the next challenge is everything.
Tell me about Coltrane Logistics and what makes it different.
What truly separates Coltrane is our unwavering commitment to service and integrity. That dedication transforms relationships with customers, evolving them from vendors into trusted partners. In an industry that often treats relationships as transactions, we treat transactions as relationships.
One night that crystallized everything for me: a late Friday, an automotive OEM facing a crisis. A critical component was delayed. If parts didn’t arrive by Saturday morning, a production line would shut down for the long weekend — costing the client hundreds of thousands of dollars. They’d reached out to several larger competitors. With the holiday weekend coming, most were unavailable or unresponsive. We weren’t. Our team coordinated across our network, located the parts, arranged expedited shipping, and kept the client updated at every step. Parts were on the dock Saturday morning. The line ran.
That’s not a story I tell because it was exceptional. It’s a story I tell because it’s representative of how we operate every day.
You’ve also had a long commitment to community service. Where does that come from?
My heart has always been in community service. I spent three years as Program Coordinator for the First Tee of Columbus, where we use golf to inspire young people. Now I’m a volunteer assistant golf coach at Ginn Academy in Cleveland — Ted Ginn Sr.’s program, which has a legendary football pipeline to Ohio State. My goal is to help build the golf program into something equally powerful, while continuing to grow Coltrane across Columbus, Cleveland, and Detroit.
In the end, it all traces back to Wellington — where I discovered not just who I could be, but who I wanted to become. I carry that with me every day, and it’s exactly why I show up for JagsConnect. Paying it forward isn’t optional for me. It’s the whole point.
What advice would you give Wellington students considering entrepreneurship or business leadership?
Seek mentors whose journeys you admire. Don’t shy away from unglamorous roles — doing the jobs nobody wants provides insights you can’t get any other way. Act with integrity and set the standard for those around you. And know that you don’t necessarily have to be a founder to make an impact. There are many paths: acquisitions, operations, and leadership within established organizations. Become a student of business in all its forms and keep learning at every stage.