The Casamassima family story is one of legacy, labor, and leadership — a multi-generational tale of ingenuity and grit, powered by wheels, built on ice, and always moving forward.
It all began in the late 1800s, when Matteo Casamassima left Bari, Italy, and arrived in New York City with little more than strength and vision. He quickly established Casamassima ICE, a business that became synonymous with ice in New York City, delivering exclusively to the city’s bars, restaurants, hotels, bakeries, butcher shops, and markets.
Though coal and wood were essential parts of the operation, ice was our identity — the backbone of food preservation, beverage service, and daily life before refrigeration. We delivered:
- Block ice for cold storage
- Crushed and tub ice for produce and seafood
- And eventually, ice cubes — clean, uniform, and in high demand by NYC’s commercial clients
From the very beginning, the Casamassima approach was different. While others invested in expensive equipment, we built smarter. Our first ice wagons were pulled by surplus horses — retired draft and police animals, strong and experienced, repurposed to serve the business economically and reliably. That foundational mindset — to use what others overlook and turn it into something dependable — would carry through every generation.
We didn’t just deliver ice — we innovated. The Casamassima family designed and installed ice cube hoppers directly into our trucks. These custom systems allowed us to deliver fresh cubes en route, improving efficiency, cleanliness, and consistency — a breakthrough that set our service apart in pre-refrigeration New York.
Matteo’s six sons joined him in the business. The youngest, Manny Casamassima, brought an outside-the-box innovator’s approach and a natural drive to improve. He helped the company transition from wagons to war surplus trucks, customized for the tough NYC delivery routes. But Manny saw change coming — and prepared the family to evolve.
As refrigeration became more widespread and America’s suburbs boomed, Manny left the family business and founded Westbury Transport, launching a new company focused on the home delivery of furniture for returning GI soldiers and their families. He began with a surplus truck chassis and personally designed custom furniture delivery bodies that incorporated the innovations he had developed over his many years of hands-on work. His designs emphasized durability, space efficiency, and ease of loading — and many of his innovations were eventually adopted by others in the industry, influencing standards well beyond his own fleet.
The next generation took that foundation and built it into something even greater.
Matthew Casamassima, Manny’s son, joined the family business after gaining valuable experience at UPS, where he honed his skills in routing, logistics, and operational systems. When he returned, he applied those lessons to scale Westbury Transport into a 100+ truck, multi-state 3PL operation, offering warehousing, last-mile delivery, and custom freight solutions.
Westbury Transport delivered to some of the most complex and high-demand locations in the region, including:
- The original World Trade Center
- Roosevelt Field Mall
- Macy’s Herald Square
To serve these clients, the Casamassimas built custom trailers capable of navigating NYC tunnels with height and clearance restrictions, redesigned interiors for safe freight containment, and modified equipment to reduce turnaround times. Roofs were cut. Axles were removed. Systems were reinvented. Every delivery was a precision solution, built from the ground up.
True to Casamassima philosophy, while others bought new, we sourced used and rebuilt smarter — giving us the ability to pay our workers more, deliver faster, and still lead in profitability.
Then came the fourth generation.
Manny Casamassima Jr. joined the business, bringing with him not only a lifelong passion for all things on wheels, but also a strong background in finance and operations. With experience in analyzing costs, managing vendor relationships, and streamlining logistics workflows, he helped sharpen the company’s edge in a competitive market. Working alongside his father, he helped secure major department store accounts and played a key role in expanding into yard tractor and yard management services.
To reflect its expanded capabilities and new logistics offerings, Westbury Transport officially became NuWest Logistics in 2005 — marking a new era in the company’s evolution as a full-service logistics and transportation provider.
Once again, the Casamassimas brought excellence to an often-ignored niche, using trucks, data-driven processes, and hands-on oversight to drive measurable value for clients.
The company also expanded into refrigerated delivery, launching a tractor-trailer division for temperature-controlled freight. One of our proudest partnerships? Tropicana Products Inc., trusting the Casamassimas to deliver perishable goods with consistency and care.
Best Buses For Sale – A New Chapter, Same Casamassima DNA
Best Buses For Sale is our family’s newest business iteration — a natural evolution that brings together everything we know and love: logistics, vehicle reconditioning, and serving a market we believe has been underserved for far too long.
We observed a clear opportunity for an ethical, professional, family-run company to step into the used shuttle bus space — and we went all in. Our experience in sourcing, modifying, and optimizing commercial vehicles gave us an edge, and our reputation for service gave us momentum.
We’re bringing to this industry the same dedication that built our legacy. And along the way, we’re having fun, meeting great people, and building lasting professional relationships with customers and partners who value quality, honesty, and follow-through.
With over a century of experience in transportation, our process is second to none:
- Smart sourcing from trusted networks and municipalities
- Efficient transport using our own logistical planning
- Full-scale reconditioning — mechanical, cosmetic, and interior
- Customization for accessibility, non-CDL operation, commercial transit, and mobile business use
Whether you’re operating a shuttle service, transporting passengers, launching a mobile office, or building a one-of-a-kind vehicle-based business — our buses are built to work, built to last, and built with purpose.
🧊 We were built on ice.
🛠 We advanced through innovation.
🚚 We led through logistics.
📊 We optimized through operations.
⚙️ And today, we deliver with reconditioned vehicles that move businesses forward.
We are the Casamassimas.
From surplus horses and ice routes in New York City to high-performance shuttle buses nationwide — our wheels haven’t stopped turning.
And they never will.