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St. Claire, Quebec — Prevost is pleased to announce important organizational changes designed to further enhance customer relationships and expand the brand.
Brad Wiese joins the team as vice president, North American new coach sales, bringing more than 25 years’ experience in managing sales teams to the role. New coach regional sales managers and sales directors will report to Wiese.
“We are excited about Brad coming in to lead our sales team,” says Prevost General Manager Francois Tremblay. “His excellent business acumen and entrepreneurial spirit are going to be great assets in our partnerships with our customers.”
Jean Berube will hold the position of senior director, strategic planning & brand management. Berube has more than 23 years’ experience in the development of corporate strategies and business plans.
“Jean is another excellent addition to Prevost,” Tremblay states. “His expertise in the development and introduction of new products will be essential in the plans we have for our product offerings in the coming years.”
Prevost veteran Jack Forbes takes his experience and customer relationship management skills to a new role where he will be responsible for corporate accounts and continuing to manage public sector sales.
“We believe these changes will allow us to be more responsive to our customers’ needs, which is always our first and most important priority,” states Tremblay.
In other news, the Prevost Factory Training program was held late last year in Quebec and included 44 technicians from over 26 different companies throughout the United States and Canada. The training program is a 5-day training course where technicians can choose from a variety of training classes including: Allison Transmission, Pneumatic Braking Systems, Volvo Drive Train, Prevost Electrical, Prevost HVAC systems, and Pneumatic Accessories.
The highlights of the program in Quebec are the factory tour where technicians are able to see where Prevost coaches are manufactured and the tour of the Prevost Museum. These behind the scenes tours are unique in allowing those who work closely with Prevost coaches to see firsthand the parts they routinely work on— before becoming part of the finished bus.
“While all of our training courses are focused on helping our customers immediately benefit from what they’ve learned, the tour of the factory where Prevost’s are manufactured really shows the product from the ground up,” said Director of Aftermarket Training, North America Robert Hitt. This training marked the 19th year of hosting customers at the Prevost factory in Ste-Claire.
Marc Reilly of Great Canadian Coach said of the training program, “we are part of a community. If I have a problem or need advice, I know there is a whole network of people I’ve met here at the Prevost training to help me out.”
Prevost’s goal of these training programs is for technicians to obtain an extensive amount of product knowledge so they may quickly and accurately answer customer questions and make any necessary repairs to get customers’ coaches back on the road in a timely manner.
Marathon Coach Service Manager Chris Welch said of the training program, “I’ve known the folks who do the trainings for a long time and I trust them. The training is outstanding. I’ve never felt like I am on my own with Prevost because I have great relationships with them both here and throughout the country.”
The Prevost Technical Institute (PTI) training team is the strongest training team in the industry with a combined 302 years of bus experience and numerous experts on all Prevost models and the Volvo 9700. PTI also supports Parts, Distribution and the many needs of Prevost’s ever-expanding network
Visit prevostcar.com for more information.
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Hayward, Calif. — The Greater California Livery Association (GCLA) reports a solid turnout for its first meeting of the year, held January 28 at the Northern California MCI Sales & Service Center. The evening meeting was sponsored by BMW, as well as Century Business Solutions, Chosen Payments, and MCCOY Auto Brokers.
The evening meeting delivered an array of educational opportunities, from a tour of MCI’s Hayward facility to state- and association-specific updates to a lecture on how labor laws affect the chauffeured ground transportation industry.
An up-close look at MCI’s motorcoach service center allowed the group to get a peek at the builder’s luxury coaches and learn more about the company itself before everyone reconvened for dinner.
After opening remarks from GCLA President Mo Garkani of The COTS Group, attendees also heard from the association’s lobbyist Gregg Cook of Government Affairs Consulting and Legislative Co-Chair David Kinney of API Global Transportation. The two provided updates from California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) as well as reminded everyone of the importance of participating in and supporting GCLA’s Day on the Hill in Sacramento, which is scheduled for March 11 this year.
With the passage of Assembly Bill 5 (AB5)—itself a testament to the statewide reform that’s possible when the industry uses its voice and unifies behind a dedicated cause—underscoring the need for additional conversations about labor laws and practices, GCLA hosted a lawyer-facilitated discussion about not only AB5 but also wage and hour, gratuities, and workers’ compensation. Joseph Lordan of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith was on hand to lend his clarifying remarks to the various topics.
GCLA’s next event will be its March 11 Day on the Hill in Sacramento. All California operators are invited to walk the halls to advocate for the state’s luxury ground transportation industry.
Visit gcla.org for more information.
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Princeton, N.J. — On January 29, the Limousine Association of New Jersey (LANJ) kicked off the new year with a meeting at NJHA Conference & Event Center. CD President & Publisher Chris Weiss and Business Development Manager Jeff Ranking were among the 70 members and guests who came from all across the country for the luncheon meeting.
LANJ President Jason Sharenow of Broadway Elite Worldwide started off the meeting by welcoming the attendees, and ratifying the 2020 officers and Board of Directors.
President: Jason Sharenow of Broadway Elite Worldwide
First Vice President: Tim Rose of T. Rose Ventures
Second Vice President: Jeff Brodsly of Chosen Payments
Secretary: Karen Gajda of Country Club Transportation
Treasurer: Barry Trabb of Complete Fleet Livery Sales
Directors: Anthony Azara of Avalon Chauffeured Services, Shady Azer of Concorde Worldwide, Jeff Brodsly of Chosen Payments, Pete Corelli of Lakeview Custom Coach, Johnny Donohue of the Philadelphia Regional Limousine Association (honorary), Sam Emam of BBZ Limousine & Livery Service, Jay Erlich of Europe Limousine Service, Bill Faeth of Limo University, Karen Gajda of Country Club Transportation, Howard Gogel of My Limousine Service, Joe Gulino of Gem Limousine Worldwide, Mike Marroccoli of The Capacity Group, John Maziarz of Arrive in Style Transportation, Brian O’Neill of Grech Motors, Tim Rose of T. Rose Ventures, David Seelinger of Empire CLS, Jason Sharenow of Broadway Elite Worldwide, Christian Stochholm of New Jersey Limo Finder, Barry Trabb of Complete Fleet Livery Sales, Chris Weiss of Chauffeur Driven, and Jonathan Wilner of A. Harrington Limousine Service.
New Board members include Jay Erlich, Bill Faeth, and Mike Marrocoli, the latter being spontaneously nominated and approved during the meeting.
After the Board announcement, Sharenow welcomed a series of speakers to the meeting. First, Jessica Maarek of Red Root Marketing and Suzanne Bugge of A Focused Advantage took the stage to speaking about the Be Driven Safely campaign, which is designed to educate consumers and travelers about the risks involved when using ridesharing apps and services. Maarek and Brugge also shared valuable online and social media-driven marketing strategies with the membership. Next, Frank Villares from Options Plus discussed the supplemental health insurance offered by his company, and the benefit to association members who already have primary health care coverage. A client of Options Plus, Sharehow advocated their services and shared how he personally saved a great deal of money with their services. Finally, Weiss was welcomed to the podium to speak about February’s CD/NLA Show in Las Vegas. He touched upon the education and networking options available, as well as the value prop of what’s included with each registration—namely, the extensive food and drink provided to attendees.
Visit lanj.org for more information.
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