BY ROB SMENTEK
Premiere Transportation President David Brown with (L to R) Chauffeurs Ed Daley, Rick Edwards, Dennis Burton, Keisean Allen, Robert Edmiston, and Tyrone Young
With 2025 marking Premiere Transportation’s milestone 35th anniversary, President David Brown credits his Albany-based company’s ability to transition with the times for its success. Whether that means adopting contemporary vehicles to their fleet or implementing fresh and innovative technology, Premiere has stayed one step ahead.
“One of our saving graces was that we’ve always embraced change,” says Brown. “I saw that the writing was on the wall when it came to limousines. We currently have no stretches; we only have one limo van and one limo bus. In fact, I’ve told people from the beginning that we were never a limousine business; we’re a service provider to anybody who needs ground transportation.”
Despite Brown’s current reluctance at utilizing stretch limousines, it was that very vehicle that attracted him to the industry back in the 1980s. The mix of luxury and glamour of the then-popular stretch Lincoln Town Cars called to the young college student.
Brown with wife, Manager of Business Development Danielle Brown “Back in 1986, I was a college kid, out of work, and looking for something to do. My mother said, ‘hey, you know what would be a good idea? I saw a stretch limousine the other night, and being a chauffeur would be a great idea for you.’ And I couldn’t have agreed with her more.”
With only three or four limousine operators in the area, Brown was able to hustle and apply to each one of them. Surprisingly, none of the companies had openings, and Brown’s young age (20) precluded him from a chauffeur role.
“However, I got a call back a few days later from one of the companies, and they said, ‘we don’t need a chauffeur, but would you be willing to be a car washer?’ And I said, ‘absolutely,’” says Brown. “It was a mom-and-pop operation with five or six vehicles. I started washing cars, and then answered the phones, took reservations, and helped with the books—eventually getting to drive a bit. And the next summer, I came back and washed cars and chauffeured.”
Brown looking over 35 years of Premiere-related memorabilia After Brown finished college and his military obligation—he’s a US Army veteran—he received a call asking if he wanted to take over the car service. Thus, Premiere Transportation was born.
“I had just gotten out of the Army, and within three or four months I was managing the whole company and things transitioned quickly. In 1990, they asked if I would be interested in buying them out. With a little help from a partner, Denise Crisafulli, who helped me immensely, we got things rolling. Since then, we’ve done nothing but make acquisitions and grow and grow and grow. We’re the furthest thing from a mom-and-pop operation.” says Brown.
With a fleet that includes sedans, SUVs, minibuses, and motorcoaches, it’s not uncommon to see the Premiere branding throughout Upstate New York.
“The Albany and Upstate market is very interesting, and it’s changed over the years. There’s always been a bus market here, but I used to have to sub it out. Like many operators around the country, as we transitioned from retail to corporate, we had to get new vehicles to serve the new client base: more sedans, more SUVs, more buses,” he says.
Universities, colleges, and schools also began to provide growing income in Premiere’s market as well.
Brown overseeing the expansion of Premiere’s campus “That’s been steady work, around the clock. For instance, we’d pick up a local team and take them for a two-day stay in Rochester or Buffalo. The Albany/Schenectady/Troy area has a lot of universities and colleges, so we targeted them and have done really well. And that’s Monday through Sunday work. Back in the day, when we did social/retail work it was Friday night to Sunday afternoon. Occasionally we’d have an airport job here and there, but it was no way to grow the company. To really grow, you need to utilize your vehicles 100%. And that full-time utilization has really put us on top.”
With Albany as the capital of New York, Brown says they have clients who come in and out of the area. Furthermore, the company is also DOD certified, which allows them to do a great deal of movement for the military. In short, keeping busy is not a challenge for Premiere.
Brown (left) and Safe Care Mobility Services Manager Anthony Morigerato “We have this thing called the Saratoga Race Course. We’re fortunate that July through Labor Day, people flock in from all over to go to the track for the seasonal horse races, so whereas some people see their corporate work slow in the summer, we’re the place the corporate world vacations to. There’s a lot going on,” says Brown. The company has also grown through M&A.
“Through acquisitions, we’ve actually gotten considerably bigger. Most recently, we bought a shuttle bus company in the Troy, N.Y.-area called Northeast Shuttle. That was a great deal because we shared schools and universities together, so it was a no-brainer,” says Brown.
In 2024, Brown opened an office in Syracuse because he—and his affiliate partners—saw a need for ground transportation in that market, which is about 150 miles away from Premiere’s Albany headquarters.
L to R: Operations Manager Steve Brady with Chauffeurs Tyrone Young and Ed Daley “We opened our office in Syracuse because we felt that it was a transportation desert. We had affiliates begging us to go into work there. We also discovered that there’s a multi-billion-dollar technology company there, and we do a lot of work for Syracuse University. We only have seven vehicles at this time at that location, but we’re growing exponentially,” says Brown.
In addition to acquiring businesses and expanding their regional market, Brown says they also have an ambulette company, Safe Care Mobility Services, which provides nonemergency medical transportation for doctor’s appointments, day programs, dialysis patients, and the like. But to operate this constantly growing machine, Premiere needs a substantial facility. Brown calls the company’s headquarters a “campus.”
“In Albany, our campus consists of two large warehouses that are connected. We also bought the warehouse next door, and we’re in the middle of having that renovated to house buses and office space. When all is said and done, we’ll have about 80,000 square feet of warehouse and office space. We are on fire.”
Premiere’s campus currently hosts 130 employees, ranging from part-time chauffeurs to full-time back-office staff and mechanics. Interestingly, while many companies have shifted to casual work environments, Brown insists on a dress code that somewhat mirrors their corporate clientele.
Vice President of Operations David Torra (left) and Brown “We do have a dress code, but Thursdays and Fridays are dress-down days, where the staff can wear jeans and a Premiere golf shirt, he says.”
Brown is a firm believer in a healthy company culture. As the figurehead for a consistently expanding operation, he maintains that Premiere has an open-door policy.
“At Premiere, everybody must be able to talk to everyone here. We can’t let problems fester. If you see a problem, let’s get together and talk it out. Don’t put off tomorrow what you can do today. Our culture revolves around being able to talk to people and get things settled out,” he says.
As Premiere continues to grow and adapt within the luxury ground transportation industry, Brown says it is integral to be on top of current technology.
Chief Dispatcher Tommy Dawkins “We change with the times, and especially with technology. Our website just went through a big change, which makes this our third update in the last 10 years—just to keep up. And it helps my customers too. Our new website has a chatbot if you want to discuss pricing. So, ultimately, if people want to call us about hiring a vehicle, most of their questions are answered. Where people used to come in and want to check out each vehicle, they can now click on our fleet and see what the outside looks like, what the inside looks like, and all the amenities that are supplied. Updating the website also increases our SEO, not just for Albany but also our Syracuse location,” he says.
Furthermore, Brown raves about the benefits of operating on the Samsara fleet management software platform.
“We use Samsara in all our vehicles, which is a beautiful system that does everything,” says Brown.
Brown states that both corporate customers and his valued affiliates love seeing the move in real-time via the app. Furthermore, the platform increases safety by notifying the chauffeur—and back office—when distracted driving occurs.
In addition to being a successful and respected operator and entrepreneur, Brown is an industry advocate serving on the board of directors of the Limousine-Bus-Taxi Operators of Upstate New York (LBTOUNY) and holding a vital role on the New York State Stretch Limousine Passenger Safety Task Force, which was established in 2018.
Chauffeurs Rick Edwards (left) and Keisean Allen at the Albany Capital Center “In the wake of crash in Schoharie that killed 20 people, part of the legislation that came out wasn’t just on specifications (e.g. seat belts), it also mandated a task force to provide more guidance on safety. The membership of the group was largely state employees or in the government sector, except for me and Ed Stoppelmann from Red Oak Transportation. From the beginning, it was a stacked deck—a true uphill battle. The Task Force didn’t know about limousine certification. They had no idea about the process,” says Brown.
Eventually, the pair of operators compromised with the Task Force in sunsetting stretch limousines (i.e., modified cars that hold 10 or more people) after 10 years.
“Unfortunately, for a lot of small operators, this legislation has been devastating. These folks just want to take a clean, well-maintained car out on the weekends for proms and weddings, but the regulations have been brutal. As many know, a lot of companies throughout the US follow what happens in New York and California. We’re still fighting the good fight, though,” explains Brown.
Furthermore, Brown is a board member of the Bus Association of New York State.
“I saw a lot of the laws that were brandished on the limousine industry cut over to the bus side, so I felt that I had to step in there,” he says.
One thing that Brown says he has learned from his years as an operator is that the luxury transportation industry is built on passion.
“Someone that comes in with a laissez-faire attitude simply doesn’t have the blood to be in the transportation industry. You have to live and breathe it. May 1 marked my 35th year as a business owner, and I feel that I am as energetic as I was back then. I don’t have a choice,” he says.
Brown sees that passion in his staff, particularly super stars like Office Administrator Phoenix Sze, who’s been with the company close to two decades; his wife, Director of Business Development Danielle Brown; Chauffeur Ed Daley, who’s been with the company since day one; and Brown’s prior partner Crisafulli, who had the knack for customer service.
And with his staff, Brown’s goal is to provide the wow factor for his clients and customers.
Whether you’re the biggest company or you’re a two-or-three-man operation, you simply need to provide that ‘Wow Factor’,” says Brown. “The vehicle must be spotless with a chauffeur who looks and acts the part. The bigger you get, there’s no excuse to rest on your laurels. Sure, it becomes more challenging with size, but at the end of the day your customer is the most important asset.” [CD0925]
