Boston Chauffeur—the company founded by CEO Mark Kini—recently delivered an unusually fun airport pickup for a couple flying in from Dallas: a fully Halloween-themed ride. The couple was heading to renowned “spooky town” Salem, Mass., the self-proclaimed “Witch City” thanks to the eponymous 17th century trials, during the peak October tourism season and were hoping to start the vibe right off the plane.
Chauffeur/Pirate Rick McCariston (right) with his passengers
Kini admits that when the request first came in, he initially brushed it off thinking that the clients weren’t serious.
“I was actually on another meeting when the Slack message popped up from my CSR, Emily,” Kini says. “My honest first reaction was this was an annoyance.”
When the clients immediately said yes and signed the contract with an additional fee, Kini realized that they’re not only serious, but they value experience.
Boston Chauffeur then engaged several employees by sending staff members to local Halloween stores with a $200 budget and pulling items from their own Halloween stash. The SUV was outfitted with crime-scene tape across the rear seating area, fake blood, “bloody” handprints on the interior glass, and a ceiling-mounted gremlin figure. The assignment was given to one of the company’s most outgoing chauffeurs: Rick McCariston, a 30-year retired police officer with pirate-actor energy—and the costume to match.
“Everything aligned,” says Kini. “If we had paired this with an introverted chauffeur, it wouldn’t have had the same magic. It had to be the right type of personality.”
While the traveling couple was over the moon—or should we say, over the broom?—with the outcome, the reaction from the public surprised everyone. According to McCariston, others approached the vehicle at the airport and joked that they wished they were riding in that car.
The in-house reaction was also uplifting.
“It brought out this big positive energy we don’t see enough anymore,” Kini says. “It turned into this morale boost—it was fun for our internal team. I honestly didn’t expect that part.”
Although these themed rides are not part of Boston Chauffeur’s everyday business, Kini says his team is willing to think outside the box for their clients and may even consider doing specialty “ghost mobile” rides next Halloween if there is interest.
“This request reminded us: don’t assume what a customer will or won’t spend money on,” he says.
Visit bostonchauffeur.com for more information.
[11.04.25]
