On Thursday, December 8, the recently revitalized Florida Limousine Association (FLA) held their inaugural Leadership Summit at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando. The all-day affair offered the 100 members, vendors, and guests from across the country the opportunity to network and discuss issues relevant to the state.
Florida Leadership Summit Panelists Tom Holden, Brooks Bullington of Bullington Insurance Group, and Tim Rose of Dolphin Transportation Specialists
“Because we brought all the local associations under one umbrella this year, the FLA Board of Directors thought it was important that we bring all the leaders from those associations across the state together to share ideas and talk about things that are important to all of us,” says FLA President Rick Versace of A1A Global Ground.
Currently, the largest issue facing state operators is that every jurisdiction in Florida has its own licensing scheme.
“A lot of times you need to have inspection on your vehicle in each county. You have to pay fees in each county. It makes it very difficult for companies to do business in the state. The biggest focus that we’re going to address this year is state-wide reciprocity, which basically means if your licensed in your home jurisdiction, you don’t need to have licensing in any other county that you do business in,” says Versace.
L to R: Carolina and Ray Garcia of Prestige Limousines, Larry Greene of Emerald Coast Luxury Transportation, FLA President Rick Versace of A1A Global Ground, and Lenin Fraga and Yuri Velasquez of American Transportation
During Versace’s keynote during the State of the State presentation, he confirmed the intention of the National Limousine Association (NLA) to rebrand and embrace the word “limo” within the industry. This was met with thunderous applause by those in attendance at the Summit.
“We want people to know that ‘limo’ means you’re reliable, it means luxury, it means something positive. Something we’re going to do with the FLA is show that limo means something,” says Versace.
Versace then welcomed Chauffeur Driven President Chris Weiss to speak a bit about the upcoming 2023 CD/NLA Show in Vegas on March 5-8. Weiss confirmed that the CD/NLA Education Committee is hard at work at developing a timely educational slate and shared a bit about the enthusiasm he’s seeing from the industry regarding the March event. Weiss raffled a pass to the show, which was won by Keith Soraci of A1A Global Ground.
L to R: CD/NLA Show Pass Winner Keith Soraci of A1A Global Ground, CD President Chris Weiss, and FLA President Rick Versace of A1A Global Ground
The event also accommodated a panel discussion that addressed other timely issues. Tim Rose of Dolphin Transportation spoke about pricing; Industry advisor Tom Holden spoke about Florida DOT regulations; and Brooks Bullington of Bullington Insurance Group offered his perspective about the insurance industry.
Versace says that the FLA Board of Directors is currently working on the development of a group captive insurance company for the association members.
“Markets in Florida are contracting and it’s very difficult to find companies that will provide coverage,” he says. “The captive will be owned by the members with stable coverage.”
Following a three-course meal, the FLA held an award ceremony to highlight industry best practices. Awards were given for Patron of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Inspiration Leader Award, Operator of the Year (1-10 vehicles), Operator of the Year (11-20 vehicles), Operator of the Year (21+ vehicles), and Chauffeur of the Year.
The Royal Transportation Group Family (L to R): Tommy Wright, Joey Wright, Liz Richmond, and FLA 1st Vice President Cliff Wright
“I was blessed to have been named the Inspirational Leader of the Year for the State of Florida,” says Versace.” I was even more thrilled that two of my chauffeurs tied for Chauffeur of the Year. I think that’s more important than anything else because our chauffeurs are the most important element in this business. They’re the ones who provide the service and do what needs to be done on a day-to-day basis. Having that distinction was very meaningful to me.”
Versace and the FLA Board of Directors were excited with the reception of the Leadership Summit.
“People loved it and can’t wait to see what we have in store for the future. There’s a lot of good things that we’re working on for the future, and the power of associations coming together under one roof is going to make a big difference in 2023.”
Visit floridalimousine.com for more information.
[12.20.22]