BY ROB SMENTEK
Cover Art: L to R: A1A Global Ground Managing Director Rick Versace Jr., President & CEO Rick Versace Sr., General Manager James Parkes, and Director of Operations Keith Soraci at The Boca Raton resort. Photography by Chris Weiss. For A1A Global Ground President & CEO Rick Versace, the luxury ground transportation industry is in his blood. “My great-grandfather had a horse and buggy business in Naples, Italy. I think it’s incredible that we’re four generations in it—particularly that my son’s now involved. And who knows what the future will bring. It literally is in my blood,” says Versace.
And with transportation coursing through his veins, the operator and industry advocate shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, Versace once left the industry, only to find it calling back to him as he made a new home in South Florida.
“It’s funny, once you’re in this business, even when you want to get out, you find yourself back in it. When I moved to Florida from New York, I didn’t think that I was going to get back into luxury ground transportation,” admits Versace. “I had done it in New York for a number of years and I sold my business there. I never anticipated getting back into transportation because, let’s face it, it’s a lot: it’s 24 hours a day, it doesn’t stop, you have people driving your vehicles. So, when I moved to Boca Raton, I tried a couple of other things and none of them seemed to be as interesting, or as lucrative, as the ground transportation business. I essentially came back home.”
Over the years, A1A Global Ground has become one of the most respected names in the industry. And while they’ve become identified for delivering exceptional service to their clients and affiliates, A1A is also recognized as an innovator for their unconventional and trailblazing business model.
L to R: A1A Global Ground Director of Operations Keith Soraci, President & CEO Rick Versace Sr., Senior Manager, Accounting Peggy Versace, and Managing Director Rick Versace Jr. “The major difference between what we do and what a lot of companies do is that we’re a franchise business,” reveals Versace. “When you look at any of the most familiar businesses in America today, whether it’s Ace Hardware, Burger King, or Dunkin Donuts, they’re all franchises. And when you’re looking to expand your business and do it in a way that keeps ownership at the local level, I think franchising is probably the smartest way to do that.” What truly separates A1A from the many companies that utilize the independent operator model is that every one of their chauffeurs is an owner with a stake in the organization. While unconventional, this business plan made clear sense in various ways.
“We kind of got into the idea of franchising in response to being worried about IRS issues. In the South, and in Florida, in particular, most operators use independent contractors, whether they’re driving your car or not. When we looked at the issue and saw so many companies that found themselves in hot water tax-wise, we decided to find a solution that would stand up,” says Versace. “The National Limousine Association referred me to the top labor lawyer in the country, who took about six months and came back to me and said, ‘The only way that I see you protecting yourself from any liability is being a franchise organization.’ He examined cases all over the United States and found that the only ones that were protected were franchises. So, I said, ‘Yeah, I’m going to do it.’”
Though creating that type of model required investing a great deal of time, resources, and aggravation—not to mention registration at a federal level—Versace immediately saw amazing, and unpredictable, results.
L to R: General Manager James Parkes, Single Vehicle Franchisee Manager Tom Fazio Jr., Dispatch Supervisor Steve Richardson, and Keith Soraci “We started the process in Florida, and an interesting thing happened: When we converted the drivers to franchisees, our business immediately doubled! This happened because the chauffeurs now had an ownership stake in the business. With each one of our drivers holding a local A1A franchise, they were excited about the work. Whereas before, when you needed drivers to work an extra day or cover a special job, they couldn’t because they had to do this or that. Now, as franchisees, they are raring to go. They’ll even come in on their days off to cover clients who are important to them,” he says. Versace says that he ultimately saw that the key to getting people motivated was to let them have ownership in what they are doing. With his chauffeurs responding to the new plan, he says it turned things around for A1A.
“Once we built our model here, we started offering that model to other companies in other areas. The biggest way we’re doing that is by conversion franchising. These are companies that are already in the luxury ground transportation business, and they’ve reached a certain level that they can’t seem to get above. Or they’re operators that want to get more business and want to be part of a larger organization. We give that opportunity to them and allow them to buy an A1A franchise in their area,” says Versace.
As such, A1A Global Ground has assembled a national team of salespeople, affiliate department, and a digital marketing agency.
The A1A Global Ground Team “These are the things you need to grow your company to the next level. When an operator buys an A1A franchise, they get access to all of that. We do everything in our power to help them grow,” says Versace. According to Versace, becoming an A1A franchise is ultimately an easy—and fulfilling—process.
“For the most part, it’s cookie cutter,” he says. “We show you what to do: We give you the tools, the operations, and the manual—and then you follow it. And although there are certain things that you’re required to do that are part of the franchise agreement, there are other areas with leeway, which might depend upon local ordinances or procedures you’re required to follow in your market. But through the years, we’ve built up a series of successful processes and instead of people having to reinvent the wheel, they can just lock into us, buy a franchise, and be part of something much bigger, while at the same time retaining ownership in their company—and it works.”
Versace says that being a franchise company is very rewarding in that it helps people in a different way.
“I’ve always been an association guy,” he says. “When I was in New York, I was president of the Livery Owners Coalition; when I got to Florida, I became the president of the Florida Limousine Association; and ultimately, I got on the board of the National Limousine Association. I’ve always believed that we’re stronger together; there’s more power in numbers. When you all work together for the same goal, better things happen. And that’s the same thing with franchising. If you put a number of companies together, and they are all working toward the same thing with similar rules that they’re playing by, the benefits are exponential. That’s what we’re working on. Every franchisee pays a certain amount of their gross revenue to the franchise organization every month. That money gets reinvested in marketing and sales to make the company grow even larger. It’s a great way of helping other operators become even more successful than they are now.”
Today, the A1A brand has extended as far as Salt Lake City, Utah, with veteran company ALC Limo becoming the newest member of the A1A network. And because Versace says that he and his valued team have worked hard for 35 years at making A1A a name that means something, there is a high bar for potential franchisees.
“A1A symbolizes quality and high service. We’re not selling franchises to just anybody. We don’t want to ruin the brand. Not everyone gets to be called A1A, only the best operators. It’s a never-ending process of trying to get better ... and that’s what we’re hoping to do.”
A1A Global Ground chauffeurs Versace says that A1A and its franchisees put a high emphasis on quality assurance, making sure every detail is done exactly as the client wants. “Our tagline is: It’s not a ride, it’s an experience. And we really try to embody that. We have big quarterly franchisee meetings in a hotel where we get everyone together. We’ll go over what we’re doing with marketing and we’ll bring our sales team in, but more than anything else we try to impart to them is that people want an experience. Whether it’s a business trip or a vacation, you’re the first and last point they’re going to see. If you can make that small part of the trip more memorable, by supplying amenities in the car or making sure you’re 15 minutes early, people love that stuff. The devil is in the details.”
A1A Global Ground has been rewarded for their white-glove service, and they’ve been recognized for everything from sales to customer service experiences. A1A chauffeurs have been awarded Best Ground Transportation Driver by Broward County several times, and last year, the International Association of Transportation Regulators selected an A1A chauffeur for best ground transportation driver from a worldwide pool.
“For me, that was very rewarding and humbling,” confesses Versace. “Our Facebook page has more than 30,000 legitimate likes, and we’re very good about getting ratings for our rides. Most are 5-star, but if there’s anything less than that, I’ll reach out personally to find out what went wrong and how can we do it better, so in the future we can deliver more experiential service to our clients.”
Rick and Peggy Versace But providing consistently excellent service requires a remarkable team, and Versace says he has the best of the best at A1A. “My wife, Peggy, is vital to the enterprise; she handles all the accounting and sees that the money gets collected. She’s the heart of the operation because without her nothing moves forward,” he says.
Versace is also quick to recognize his managing director, who also happens to represent the aforementioned fourth generation in the transportation sector.
“I think Rick Jr. is probably one of the most important people on our team,” he says. “Rick is really good at marketing and sales. When he graduated from college, he was hired by Goldmann Sachs and had a great job there in New York. After about two years, he said, ‘Dad, I want to help you build A1A to the next level.’ When he came back is when we started to develop the franchising thing and growing the organization—really changing from being a local player to a national and internationally recognized company. He has a lot of great insights into what makes things work better. Again, It’s in the blood.”
Director of Operations Keith Soraci isn’t just known by the company’s clients, he’s also one of the most familiar faces in the industry.
The Versaces with their grandkids “Keith is like the mayor of the limo world,” laughs Versace. “He’s always happy; he always has something positive to say. He makes you feel good when you see him. He has a special gift. Keith started out as an affiliate manager, but he stepped up, and now kind of runs everything. When there’s a problem, he’s there to make sure it’s taken care of. He makes sure the departments are running as they should. We have a great team.” Although Versace sees challenges on the horizon, whether it’s tariffs on vehicles, parts, and other imported goods or the escalating insurance rates, he believes the industry is solid.
“In the long run, the outlook is really strong for business and the country,” he says. “Change is always a little difficult to swallow, but I think we’re going to be recipients of good things to come. More people are traveling; people are going back to the office. That’s positive for our industry.”
Most importantly, perhaps, Versace believes that the industry has done a remarkable job of differentiating itself.
“If you remember, we thought the TNCs were going to put us out of business, and that’s not what happened at all. In fact, it helped our industry because it got people thinking about ground transportation, and they wanted a better product. And we were able to supply that. Now we have autonomous vehicles on the horizon. People are going to want a better product and personal touch. People are going to want that concierge service that our industry provides.” [CD0425]