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L to R: Nation’s Bus CEO Chip Osborne with L.A. West’s Founder Vern Kauffman, Business Manager Paula Sterling, and Vice President of Sales Kevin Kropf as the first Sprinter comes off the builder’s production line
Statesville, N.C. — Luxury coach builder L.A. West has announced that the first vehicle has rolled off their assembly line since their brand was relaunched this year. The custom Mercedes-Benz Sprinter was delivered to Nations Bus Sales’ Florida Dealership in St Augustine. The company’s CEO, Chip Osborne, was present for the vehicle’s unveiling.
“When we were approached with the plans for Vern and his team to acquire the McSweeney luxury ground transportation segment, we were delighted,” says Osborne. “The transition has been seamless from both a dealership and end-user standpoint. I was a part of the trajectory that Vern and his team started with McSweeney, and have no doubt that it will continue under the LA West badge.”
“Nation’s Bus has been our number one dealer in volume, so it seemed appropriate that they would get that first vehicle, says LA West Founder Vern Kauffman. “We appreciated that Chip Osborne took the time out of his busy schedule to be there when the Sprinter came off the production line. We see this vehicle as a natural continuation of the McSweeney Brand.”
Founder Vern Kauffman (left) gives Chip Osborne of Nation’s Bus a tour of L.A. West’s new production facility
When McSweeney Designs left the luxury ground transportation industry to focus on its core market in performance trucks, Kauffman acquired the inventory, equipment, engineering rights, and warranties from the company. He then revived the L.A. West brand that was dormant since he sold the company to a VC firm in 2005. Kauffman then relocated the McSweeney Designs operation from Birmingham, Ala. to Statesville, N.C.
“We are fortunate to have key production and management personnel from McSweeney that are commuting from Birmingham on a weekly basis,” says Kauffman. “This has helped immensely in accelerating our launch. It saved a great deal of time with training and product development, which would have been a time-consuming process.”
Those making the drive to join Kauffman at L.A. West are Mark Isbell, purchasing manager; Dennis Treadwell, production manager; and Pete Price, line foreman; and Kevin Kropf, vice president of sales, who is a stakeholder in the company.
The L.A. West team celebrates the first Sprinter to roll off their new production line.
According to Kauffman, L.A. West’s reboot of the company has put them in an enviable position not common for most new companies entering the industry. “Normally, the biggest challenge is having an adequate sales distribution channel. In this situation, our immediate challenge was getting production set up and underway,” he says. “From a sales standpoint, there’s been 100 percent conversion rate in terms of dealers that represented the McSweeney Brand. In fact, many are expanding their commitment to the LA West brand. We have a nice backlog of orders in terms of sales. It’s a bit of a role reversal in terms of what one might expect from the industry.”
In the coming weeks, L.A. West will be introducing a Ford Transit with a European portal door. Kauffman says that the vehicle is the final stages of the engineering phase and will be introduced in June.
“This is a unit that is brand new to us, and brand new to the industry.”
Visit lawestcoaches.com for more information.
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Mary Johnson is Director of Affiliate Relations for three companies
Payson, Ariz — Familiar industry face Mary Johnson is forging a new path for affiliate managers in the industry by now serving as the director of affiliate relations for three companies.
In addition to her role with Alliance Limousine New York, Johnson will now be representing Grossmann Limousine Service in Zurich, Switzerland, as well Asia Limo headquartered in China—making her the first affiliate manager to simultaneously handle three companies across three continents.
The idea first sprung from necessity: Far-flung geography often makes it difficult for U.S. operators to find a convenient time that works for not only them but also their affiliates abroad, and having the Arizona-based Johnson handling the affiliate calls for both a European and Asian company handily sidesteps that issue. It also breaches the cultural and language barriers that some American companies face while discussing minute but crucial details with their international affiliates.
“When I sat down with Frank Castro of Alliance in January, I brought up the idea of a shared affiliate director position,” Johnson said. “I asked that I be given six months to on-board Alliance and work exclusively with them to vet new affiliates and solidify older relationships for the company. My plan was to reach out to TJ Kao of Asia Limo as well as Joerg Grossmann with Grossmann Limousine (with whom I had already established relationships with) to on-board them by year’s end. Not only do all three companies share business, but separately they each do a great deal of inbound/outbound work. Having a boots-on-the-ground affiliate director stateside to manage these relationships will be a huge benefit and cost-saving measure.”
With a new direction also comes new challenges, and Johnson credits industry peers and veterans for helping her ensure that she correctly navigated every step of the way.
“I reached out to people who’ve seen it all, like George Jacobs at Windy City, to make sure that everything I was attempting to do was respectful to these three companies,” she explains.
Johnson relishes the new course her career is taking, and aims to draw upon her years of industry relationships and connections to best serve all three companies—as well as their many affiliates all over the world.
“I feel this is a revolutionary idea that will enable multiple industry professionals to share one asset without the concern of conflicts of interests or additional overhead costs of a new staff member,” she said. “I am elated to still be a member of this ever-changing industry, and to be able to fully utilize my talents and relationships to further these companies growth.”
She can be reached at Mary@AlliancelimoNY.com, Mary@Asialimo.com, and Mary.Johnson@Grossmann.limo accordingly.
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Windsor, Conn. — DriverSchedule.com, a software provider for the chauffeured ground transportation industry, has recently launched an app for IOS and Android mobile devices. The platform is designed to help companies manage employee availability and scheduling, and includes a complete back office HR suite solution for seamlessly managing all company employees.
CEO Michael Lindsey
“Giving customers an app to support the driver functions expands the versatility of the program and widens our appeal,” says CEO Michael Lindsey.
The new app. allows drivers to see and manage their work schedule, clock in and out, request time off, report vehicle issues, see uploaded documents, and send messages to individuals at the company.
The Driver Schedule program was first developed for the chauffeured car and charter bus industries, but additional features have grown the company’s client base to include companies whose work includes gas and oil delivery, catering and food delivery, and appliance delivery, as well as auto dealerships and electrical, plumbing and HVAC contractors.
Visit driverschedule.com for more information.
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