To have a limo company you need to have a limo!
So we actually started thinking about doing this limo company in November of 2006. It's only just now that we decided to create a blog about it. Since I want to make sure that all the info is here we'll start with what we were doing back then.
I use limos quite a bit. I end up renting them several times a year. Being a user of them and a fan of large vehicles my operations manager and I started looking at if we could actually purchase a car. I run a few successful companies in the video game industry. So we have a bit of start up capital for us to consider a limo company. My idea of a great limo is the biggest one I can find. So we set out on a quest to find the biggest and the most impressive.
We started by Googling for limos for sale. It's actually not a very big market. So it's hard to find good stuff. Then we found at a limo company in Denver the biggest and baddest limo we had ever seen. It's called simply "The Mammoth". We found the company that makes them. We decided that this would be our first car.
So we did some research. Talked with the manufacturer. It's $165,000 for one of these in the configuration we wanted. So we worked on our options for purchase. We looked at leasing. But financially that does not work out to be a good option. We looked at financing it. After finance charges the total cost is $235,000. That's better than leasing but still not a good option. So we looked to see if we could pull the money from one of our other companies. We could but it would be a hardship on the other companies. So that's not a very good idea either.
So we mulled over the ideas though the month of December. The plan was going to be to save up for it but I personally had issues with the timeline. It was going to take us until Summer before we could get one. that's to long if i have a goal to have another company opening this year and be successful by the end of the year. So not knowing exactly what we were going to do we set stuff aside for the holidays.
After the holidays I stumbled across a very nice Hummer H1 22 passenger limo.
The price was right for being able to buy it outright or finance it on a short term loan. I contacted the seller. He's a multiple business owner like myself. Except he is doing law school at the same time. So he decided to give up his limo business even though he was sold out every Friday and Saturday night at $185 per hour on his limo. I agreed to purchase the car after a mechanical review. He agreed and I sent him $1000 paypal to hold it.
This last week he got the car into the local Hummer dealership. They reviewed the car and gave it a clean bill of health. So this Sunday we fly out to pay the balance on the car and pick it up. Here's where the adventure begins!
Now that we have a car it's time to figure out what we need to do to comply with all of the states and federal laws. This turned out to not be an easy task. But I think we got it all done. Let me briefly touch on all of the stuff we had to do. You have to apply for a USDOT number and a motor carrier number. We also had to get insurance. It's required to have $5,000,000 in liability. Ouch. Then there is also a person that is required to get involved. They are called a process agent. They are used to verify insurance with the state and to be the front man for claims. I'm not sure why we need them. But it's the law that we use one for each state we operate in.
So ..... Speaking of Insurance. It's very hard to get insurance as a new company. The first 6 companies we applied with turned us down. Today is the last business day before I leave to pick up the car. So my insurance agent ended up writing a temp policy for us just so that we can get the car back to Oregon. Hopefully by the time I get back we will have a commercial policy in place.
So this Sunday I'm flying out to South Carolina to pick up the car. My father (Who's also one of my best friends) asked if he could come along to keep me company. I thought that was a great idea. You have to have a CDL to drive the car and he does not have one. So he won't be able to help with driving. So Sunday we will pick up the car and start our journey driving it back to Portland Oregon. We are giving ourselves 10 days to get back home. Along the way I plan to see several of the volunteers that help in our forums for our other companies. I'll also stop and see a few people that I'm doing some joint ventures with. It should be a fun trip. I'll have Internet access on the tip. I'll be sure to post some pictures and thoughts.
I use limos quite a bit. I end up renting them several times a year. Being a user of them and a fan of large vehicles my operations manager and I started looking at if we could actually purchase a car. I run a few successful companies in the video game industry. So we have a bit of start up capital for us to consider a limo company. My idea of a great limo is the biggest one I can find. So we set out on a quest to find the biggest and the most impressive.
We started by Googling for limos for sale. It's actually not a very big market. So it's hard to find good stuff. Then we found at a limo company in Denver the biggest and baddest limo we had ever seen. It's called simply "The Mammoth". We found the company that makes them. We decided that this would be our first car.
So we did some research. Talked with the manufacturer. It's $165,000 for one of these in the configuration we wanted. So we worked on our options for purchase. We looked at leasing. But financially that does not work out to be a good option. We looked at financing it. After finance charges the total cost is $235,000. That's better than leasing but still not a good option. So we looked to see if we could pull the money from one of our other companies. We could but it would be a hardship on the other companies. So that's not a very good idea either.
So we mulled over the ideas though the month of December. The plan was going to be to save up for it but I personally had issues with the timeline. It was going to take us until Summer before we could get one. that's to long if i have a goal to have another company opening this year and be successful by the end of the year. So not knowing exactly what we were going to do we set stuff aside for the holidays.
After the holidays I stumbled across a very nice Hummer H1 22 passenger limo.
The price was right for being able to buy it outright or finance it on a short term loan. I contacted the seller. He's a multiple business owner like myself. Except he is doing law school at the same time. So he decided to give up his limo business even though he was sold out every Friday and Saturday night at $185 per hour on his limo. I agreed to purchase the car after a mechanical review. He agreed and I sent him $1000 paypal to hold it.This last week he got the car into the local Hummer dealership. They reviewed the car and gave it a clean bill of health. So this Sunday we fly out to pay the balance on the car and pick it up. Here's where the adventure begins!
Now that we have a car it's time to figure out what we need to do to comply with all of the states and federal laws. This turned out to not be an easy task. But I think we got it all done. Let me briefly touch on all of the stuff we had to do. You have to apply for a USDOT number and a motor carrier number. We also had to get insurance. It's required to have $5,000,000 in liability. Ouch. Then there is also a person that is required to get involved. They are called a process agent. They are used to verify insurance with the state and to be the front man for claims. I'm not sure why we need them. But it's the law that we use one for each state we operate in.
So ..... Speaking of Insurance. It's very hard to get insurance as a new company. The first 6 companies we applied with turned us down. Today is the last business day before I leave to pick up the car. So my insurance agent ended up writing a temp policy for us just so that we can get the car back to Oregon. Hopefully by the time I get back we will have a commercial policy in place.
So this Sunday I'm flying out to South Carolina to pick up the car. My father (Who's also one of my best friends) asked if he could come along to keep me company. I thought that was a great idea. You have to have a CDL to drive the car and he does not have one. So he won't be able to help with driving. So Sunday we will pick up the car and start our journey driving it back to Portland Oregon. We are giving ourselves 10 days to get back home. Along the way I plan to see several of the volunteers that help in our forums for our other companies. I'll also stop and see a few people that I'm doing some joint ventures with. It should be a fun trip. I'll have Internet access on the tip. I'll be sure to post some pictures and thoughts.
posted by Markee Dragon | 2:38 PM
2 Comments:
I think your company will have success as Limousine hire companies feel that the demand and growth of this business have risen over the last decade. They feel that inexpensive eminence always attracts patrons. Limousine rental services have become popular since people are able to enjoy the feeling of being in a very luxurious vehicle, enjoying the condiments provided in and out of the car as well as the warm friendliness of courteous chauffeurs. It is perfect for any occasion and although you do have to pay huge costs for the service, it is still the convenient and stylish way to go for weddings, important business meetings and dates.
Ideally, when starting a new limousine hire company it is best to start with at least 2 vehicles. Having 2 vehicles means that 1 limo can always be on the road and as a worse case you can offer your customers an alternative. I think the Chrysler 300 (or Lincoln Town Car) and the Hummer H2 are the 2 essential cars to go for because this is what the majority of your customers will be asking for.
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