MLOA Holds Annual Meeting in D.C.

Washington, D.C. — The Minority Limousine Operators of America (MLOA) met up for its annual in-person meeting in a packed room during the 2016 CD Show in our nation’s capital on October 11.

MLOA President Maurice Brewster of Mosaic Global Transportation MLOA President Maurice Brewster of Mosaic Global Transportation introduced his fellow board members—First Vice President Darrell Anderson of A-National Limousine, Second Vice President Reggie Tymus of Capital City Limousine, Treasurer Travis Latham of Fellowship Fleet, and Secretary Regina Goff of A Goff Limousine & Bus Company—before recapping highlights from the association’s five-year history.

Brewster also discussed how the association aims to empower its members through education, including its upcoming eight-part webinar, which is a free series designed to helps MLOA members with topics such as chauffeur training, strategic sales skills, building a successful company, affiliate development, corporate marketing, insurance and risk management, and drafting business plans. MLOA’s new Director of Sales and Marketing, CD’s own Philip Jagiela, also reiterated his commitment to delivering the kind of educational offerings that the membership base is clamoring for.

The meeting’s Keynote Speaker Sharon Pinder of the Capital Region Minority Supplier Development Council The meeting’s Keynote Speaker Sharon Pinder then took to the podium. As President & CEO of the Capital Region Minority Supplier Development Council, she emphasized the importance of Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) certification—and the importance of organizations like the MLOA, which she likened to her father’s barber shop for its place in facilitating necessary conversations with peers who understand the unique struggles of running a minority-owned business.

“Owning a business is like walking into the abyss,” she said, adding that having a community around you makes the trek into the unknown far less daunting and much more of a unified experience.

Members of the MLOA Board of Directors (L to R): Secretary Regina Goff of A Goff Limousine & Bus Company, Treasurer Travis Latham of Fellowship Fleet, and First Vice President Darrell Anderson of A-National Limousine Pinder also explained that minority-owned businesses are one of the fastest-growing entrepreneurial sectors—especially those owned by black women—and that it’s fostered a climate where corporations’ diversity suppliers are especially keen on working with MBE-certified businesses, much to MLOA members’ potential advantage.

“Certification is a license to hunt for new business,” Pinder advised the audience.

The MLOA will have its next conference call on November 30.

Visit mlooa.org for more information.

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