Economic Turmoil - LIMO BAILOUT PACKAGE!

Ya know, I can't help to be amazed at the condition of our local, national and global economies. What the heck is going on? Our business was steadily increasing by a steady 20% clip year over year until late 2008 when it seemed like the bottom just fell out from under our feet.

So this month, we're being creative and offering a VERY special limited time offer that can ONLY be found if you are reading this blog OR we sent you an email offer recently. JULY LIMO BAILOUT PACKAGE!! All you need to do is CLICK HERE to see the offer...if you're not already subscribed to our email newsletters, you can sign up easily on our website or by clicking on a link inside the offer!
Also, make sure to become a FAN at our FACEBOOK page and follow us on TWITTER by clicking on the "share" link below!

Proms and limos!

Prom season for the limousine industry is like Christmas to the retail industry. HUGE profits which in some cases make up as much 40% of a limousine operators annual income. One of the main reason for this boils down the age-old supply and demand dynamic. There are simply too many proms and not enough limos! People are willing to pay more when the demand is high the supply is low. Also, the kids all pitch in their share of the cost thus making it affordable for the entire group when otherwise the cost would be prohibitive. Therefore, limo operators often raise there prices during prom season and they raise the minimum charter time from an industry standard of 4hrs to 6 or even 8hrs!

Ever wonder why there are so many of those massive Hummer or other SUV limos that carry up to 20 people or the big limo busses that carry up to 30 people? Its really very simple...the more people you can get to pay their share...the more money you make. 10 people paying $99ea nets a limo operator $999 for the night. But 32 people paying $99ea nets the limo operator $3166! Just ONE charter makes the lease payment on the party bus!! Prom season starts around the 3rd or 4th week of March...is in FULL SWING in May and last until the 1st or 2nd week of June. If the party bus gets just 2 jobs a week in May, it will generate almost $32,000 in revenue!
While all of this sounds like limo companies are making a killing, the reality is...many have fallen behind on there lease payments or were unable to pay for basic fleet maintenance much less any major repair. For this reason, we rescued 39 prom teens last Saturday night who were abandoned by the companies who they made reservations with. Some companies told the kids the limo "broke down" and in some cases this may be true. But more often then not, the limo operator gets a last minute offer from someone else who's willing to pay more and the kids wind up getting dumped. I see it happen EVERY single year. Is that morally and ethically wrong? Of course it is! But we all know what types of decision people make when there's the almight dollar at stake.

I've been tempted to accept more money from a wealthy last minute parent whose kid waited too long to start calling for a limo. But never once have I ever abandoned a charter. We've also never had a limo "break down" but that's because our limos are newer and we maintain our fleet regularly. We also take care of repairs immediately. Do we charge a little bit more then our competitors? Yes...but is saving a $100 worth the pain and disappointment of sitting on the side of the highway in prom dresses and tuxes for 2hrs waiting for a back up ride, only to arrive at the prom as its winding down? This is a terrible memory that will last forever for these kids who will one day be getting married and will need a limo for the bachelor or bachelorette party, for the wedding or a corporate event or an anniversary!

The HOLIDAYS are UPON US!

Greetings everyone! Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving weekend. Many of you know how I love to cook and so I did. Roasted turkey AND slow roasted prime rib this year for 16 people! Talk about WORK! But it was fun and everything came out perfectly. The real secret to getting the meat right is a thermometer! Mine is remote controlled with with a pager so I can be outside when that VERY expensive prime rib hits a perfect 120 degrees for medium rare!

So today I spent a total of about 6hrs creating my latest email newsletter. The database has grown to over 2700 email addresses since I started the business! I'm really NOT a graphic designer so thanks to ConstantContact.com with and thier easy to use templates. They've also loaded up a ton of very nice stock images which adds even more pizzaz to the newsletter. I will be adding this latest newsletter to the newletter archive link on http://www.bayarearacinglimos.com/ as soon as I can remember how do it!

I have to say...with the news today that the U.S. is definitely in an "official" recession, I just wanted to throw something at the TV! I have worked SO hard and have sacrificed SO much these past 3yrs to start and grow Racing Limos and then to have to deal with the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression! I have investors in the business who are family and VERY dear friends and have become just like family so its not just myself I worry about on a daily basis. There will be many who just throw up their hands and say "to hell with it"! But I won't! I sharpened my pencil...reduced my pricing on just about every type of charter and spent the entire day working on marketing special deals and pricing for the month of December. We will make it through these tough times and we will come out the other end healthy and whole!

Another thing on my mind today is...people who just don't appreciate the value of the services we provide. Most of the people who charter our limos are folks we don't know. Because of the nature of our equipment (10+ passenger limos)...most clients are chartering a limo for a special occasion. A birthday or an anniversary or something that only occurs rarely. Since most don't ride in limos regularly, they often tend to over-do the partying. They drink WAY more than thier normal capacity and lose all respect not only for themselves but for everybody and everything around them.

This past week, a guy charters our flagship limo...the black Dodge Charger w/Lambo Doors. The event is his wife's birthday and they go to a club in the city. Within an hour or so of arriving at the club, the driver is called to come around and pick them up. When he arrives, the husband is pummeling one of the other passengers on the sidewalk. After calming down for a few minutes, they get in the limo and on the way home, he starts to hit his wife. Yes...he's hitting his wife while the others are trying to hold him back. My driver Paulie has had enough and pulls over, ordering the group out near a train station so they can at least make thier way home. They refuse, he calls the police and now we've to a massive scene on the side of the road. The cops order Paulie to drive the drunk group the rest of the way home after they've broken over 6 glasses and someone throws up in both the champagne buckets and all over the carpeting. Did I charge more per our contract you ask? Of course I did but it just doesn't make up for the fact that these people have NO class whatsoever. I just have no way to weed out people like this. No, this doesn't happen often but when it does it sure is disappointing.

So...despite the "recession" and occasional drunks who manage to charter our limos, we roll on down the highway!

From PROM SEASON to WEDDING SEASON!

Greetings everyone! So it's been awhile since my last post...and...we've grown YET AGAIN! That's right, we increased the size of our fleet by adding yet another limo! And THIS time, we've completely out-done ourselves! First, before I even TRY to describe the latest addition...why dontcha click on the link below and view the YouTube video of the interior!



Ok...so how does one describe THAT!? Its a beautiful BRAND NEW 2008 Chrysler 300c with a CUSTOM PEARL WHITE paint job and WHITE VINYL TOP! This limo was originally designed by the builder to be thier "showcar. They only produced ONE MODEL like this one so its the ONLY ONE LIKE IT IN THE WORLD!! Can you tell how excited I am about this one!? We will have photos on the web site next week (hopefully) and I have plans to improve the video by shooting a new one and posting it on YouTube. We will feature the YouTube video on the web site as well! Meanwhile, its available for charters NOW and will definitely be our "SHOW CASE" limo for years to come!

Well, we've had a RECORD Prom season this year as we move into the Wedding Season! We've enjoyed a nearly 20% increase in bookings over the same period last year and I'm really proud of my drivers Karen, Thaddeus, Tim, Pauli and James! Long hours and hustling to maintain our 10-15min early policy has been the norm these past two months. Many times they've really had to work hard when we've booked double runs in a day. Clients don't realize what we have to go through to clean up/fuel/re-stock and make it on time to a 2nd charter in the same day!

With 6 limos in the fleet now, I've had to get behind the wheel most weekends but I expect to hire another part-time driver soon. Also, we're actively looking for an ideal spot to re-locate. I hope to stay close to home in Pittsburg and will be meeting with city officials next week in an effort find a great location. It seems almost surreal to me that we've outgrown ourselves so quickly (barely 2 years) and during a downed economy! Housing prices slumping, skyrocketing fuel prices, food costs way up...and yet my business is growing! I guess we're doing SOMETHING right!?

Please take just a couple more minutes to view the following web sites...As many of you know, we are the "Official Limousine Provider" for Infineon Raceway for the 2008 season! We worked out some GREAT limo/ticket packages with them!!!
http://www.infineonraceway.com/documents/BayAreaRacingLimos.pdf

An AWESOME new business and my new friends Jim and Loretta Buck! I've been to this facility already and had a GREAT TIME! Gather a group of friends and we'll take you in a Racing Limo!
http://www.umigoracing.com/

We are working with KSFO AM560 Talk Radio again! Our Valentine's Day promotion...VIP dinner/limo to our favorite Italian restaurant Fior d' Italia (http://www.fior.com/) was so successful this year, they called us to work with them at the Russian River Passport event (http://www.russianriverpassport.com/sponsors.html). If you love wine...this is definitely an extraordinary wine lover's weekend for sure!

Until next time....

PROM SEASON!! YIKES!

CADILLAC ESCALADE EXT Super-Stretch! (18 Passenger)

Proms, proms and MORE proms! Proms and Senior Balls from late March thru June are DOMINATING our fleet right now! This is by far the biggest (and most profitable) time of the year in the limousine/livery industry. It's all about SUPPLY & DEMAND...there are simply TOO many events and not enough limos.

While many companies RAISE their rates and INCREASE thier minimum hours to EIGHT, we implemented a DISCOUNT for the kids and in most cases eliminate our standard 7% fuel surcharge. One of the reasons for this is...typically, the Prom kids ride for barely an hour to and from their event. The limos actually sit with the engine off for about 80% of the charter! Yes, we could maximize our profits by increasing our rates and minimum hours and yes, we ARE in business to be profitable. But at the end of the day, one must look at oneself in the mirror and be PROUD of one's accomplishments. This doesn't always relate to just one thing...MONEY! Soooo...we give the kids a bit of a break and still remain profitable.

So, the schedule here at Bay Area Racing Limos, Inc has been CRAZY. I've been working SEVEN days a week and have had to get behind the wheel for awhile. Reason...we added TWO MORE LIMOS to our fleet in the last THIRTY days and had to scramble to add drivers! We purchased a WHITE DODGE CHARGER 10 PAK w/LAMBO DOORS! 20" black/chrome wheels, 1200 watt custom sound system w/five flat screens! Also added to the fleet...a WHITE CADILLACE ESCALADE EXT (truck) 18pak with LAMBO DOORS! 22" custom wheels, 1200 watt sound system and ostrich skin seats! Should have photos on the site soon. We've been lax with web site updates since our previous web site admin ABANDONED us but we've got someone NEW recently and I'm looking forward to a new and improved web site soon!!

So...back to the hectic schedule. But you are now up to date...stay tuned!!

Operator of YEAR!

I'm thrilled to announce that Bay Area Racing Limos, Inc has been awarded the 2007 - 2008 Operator of the Year by our national franchise headquarters, Racing Limos, Inc in Naples, Florida! There are nearly 60 Racing Limos Franchisees across the nation so it certainly is a HUGE honor! The trophy was awarded to me by Racing Limos, Inc CEO Bryan Pease at the annual franchisee conference at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in February.

In addition to receiving the Operator of the Year trophy, we were also awarded prizes for Best Marketing Idea and Best Web Site! Wow...now I know what it's like to sweep an awards ceremony!

I must give thanks to a few people (wait...where's my notes!?) as our success has had some help! First, thanks to my mom, Sandi. It was her initial investment that started the company 2 years ago. She's also been there to help along the way and continues to be supportive when the going gets tough. Thanks to my solid rock...my girlfriend Caryn who's never once waivered her support while I was answering the phones all day and than out driving clients till the wee hours! I'm still a slave to the phone but rarely am behind the wheel nowadays. Thanks to my daughter Mandi, who was our Chief Detailer at one time. Its not a fun job cleaning up after people who've been partying all night long! She's moved and longer with us and we miss her!

Thank you to my buddy Jeff Ghilarducci! Jeff helped me drive home THREE limos we purchased in other states. Our very first limo, the 2004 #34 Pontiac Grand Prix Stretch (no longer owned) we drove all the way from southern Florida and the 2006 #49 Dodge Charger Stretch which we drove back from Phoenix, Az. The 2007 Black Charger w/Lambo Doors we drove home from Cincinnati, Ohio. Lotsa laughs on the road as we drew attention where ever we went!

Thanks to Driver Thaddeus Banks whose forever positive jovial attitude and professionalism has made many of our clients very happy! Also, cudos go out to Driver Karen Gaskin who had for years dreamed of driving a limo. She continues to do a great job and the clients all just LOVE her! She's SO good with the kids that she's become our resident "Kids Party" Driver! Thanks to Driver James Dean who's definitely Mr. Consistent around here. Always available for that last minute job and those dreaded 4am airport runs!

So, stay tuned for more stuff! I've got a bunch of pokers in the fire and will keep ya'll updated!!

My first post

Thanks for visiting my blog! As Owner-President of Bay Area Racing Limos, Inc., it will it will be exciting for me to keep my clients, friends and family "tuned" into the company as I strive to grow it! I look forward to an ongoing dialogue with readers of my blog and wish to extend an "open-door" policy to all! Ideas, suggestions, opinions are whole-heartedly excepted! The only requirement I must impose is that we keep things in positive light! While constructive criticism is mostly a GOOD thing, negativity simply wastes energy!
Soooo...stay TUNED!
Curt