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Plainview, N.Y. — After rescheduling its January meeting on account of a blizzard that swept the Northeast region, the Long Island Limousine Association (LILA) met up February 3 at Race Palace.
The meeting, which saw a turnout of more than 50 people, was sponsored by Peter Hayes and Gin Kato of Bird Bus Sales, Mike Marroccoli of Capacity Coverage, and Doreen Marino of Forest Hills Financial.
Topics included a mix of industry and association-specific information, with guest speakers Marroccoli discussing insurance and Marino talking about retirement planning and exit strategies, while changes to the LILA website were discussed among members. Marroccoli’s presentation about insurance costs led the association to both discuss and put together a training program for members’ chauffeurs.
“Mike Marroccoli was telling us that these insurance carriers are really determining whether you stay in business or not,” said LILA President Robert Cunningham of Platinum Limousine. “I had a meeting with some members of the association, and I said that maybe we should come back with a driver training program because the chauffeurs, if they’re not trained properly, can put you right out of business if, God forbid, they get into a bad accident and somebody gets hurt.”
According to LILA Director Bill Goerl of Clique Limousines, the association is also re-examining how it will handle its mid-winter meetings in the future “because it’s just so hard to get people out in this weather.”
LILA’s next meeting will be March 31.
Visit nslali.com for more information.
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San Francisco — Gateway Global, an established Northern California-based company, recently announced the addition of Caroline Cua to the Gateway team. She joins the company as vice president of client experience. Most recently the company also announced the addition of Gina Amato-Bonelli, finance administrator, who joined to fill the shoes of longtime (and retiring) Corporate Administrator Rich Azzolino.
Cua began her career as a sales and marketing director for an assisted living community for older adults. She says that she found particular success facilitating multiple connections between organizations, building deeper personal and business relationships in the process.
This led to her next position with Silverride, a transportation company aimed at helping seniors maintain active and independent lifestyles after their driving retirement, which she joined in 2007. In her role, she provided assisted transportation, engaged drivers/companions, and offered concierge services for individual and group events. Cua, vice president of client experience, crossed paths with Gateway Global in 2010, developing a partnership to encourage group outings for senior clients and managing larger events.
“Caroline’s high standards of integrity and first-class service set business and ethical standards for the industry. With Caroline’s outside experience it allows her to bring new ideas to the table with a fresh perspective,” says Sam Amato, president of Gateway.
Visit gatewayglobalsf.com for more information.
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Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales (left) with Kristen Carroll of The LMC Group and Paul Thompson of Accent New Mexico
Santa Fe, N.M. — The LMC Group’s kick-off session for the new livery and chauffeured car CEO Benchmarking Group was graciously hosted and welcomed by Paul Thompson of Accent New Mexico and Santa Fe Valet & Limousine, as well as by Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales. At the historic and serene Inn & Spa at Loretto, CEOs converged from locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. The intense two-day session was led by Kristen Carroll, founder of The LMC Group.
At 7,000 feet above sea level, Santa Fe is not only the nation’s oldest state capital but also the highest. The city, rich with beauty, art, culture, and cuisine, was a great source of inspiration to the group of CEOs. Many of the participants were in Santa Fe for the first time.
As host of the event, Thompson took the opportunity to educate his fellow operators on the exceptional business he has established in this magical city. Santa Fe is a global destination, and his business is made up largely of tours, high-end boutique services, private valet services, in addition to the traditional airport and limousine service that keeps his local companies quite busy.
It is no mystery why Thompson’s Accent New Mexico and Santa Fe Valet & Limousine have quickly grown into the most sought-after chauffeured car and event transportation services company in Northern New Mexico, says Carroll. Providing service to both Santa Fe airport and Albuquerque, Thompson is uniquely positioned to diversify his service offerings, flexing resources throughout the vast waves of demand and need in this extremely well-traveled destination, according to Carroll.
Building on an impressive career in hospitality and a diverse portfolio of many successful small businesses, Thompson founded Santa Fe Valet & Limousine in 2007. Quickly, he identified the opportunity to widen his offerings, providing large group event logistics and ground transportation management, accommodating groups with up to 600 members and more. He added several buses, vans, and executive shuttles to his fleet, along with Town Cars, limousines, and specialty vehicles. Heavily invested in new equipment, Accent New Mexico now boasts the largest, most diverse livery fleet in the state, according to Carroll.
His impact in the community was ever apparent as he hosted The LMC Group’s inaugural benchmarking session. In addition to our visit with Mayor Gonzales, Randy Randall, Executive Director of TOURISM Santa Fe, met with the group to share his perspective on the role of chauffeured car and ground transportation within the events and tourism industries.
“Santa Fe was a beautiful and stunning backdrop as the location of our kick-off event, and we are so thankful to the City of Santa Fe, Mayor Gonzales, Director Randall, and Paul Thompson, for their gracious welcome. We accomplished much and left with inspiration that will last us weeks and months to come,” says Carroll.
Visit liverymanagement.com for more information.
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