Conference Program

 



Danny Bacher, Topper Limousine, Inc.
Danny Bacher graduated from Towson University with a degree in international business. After starting his career in the real estate industry, he decided to return to his family business, Topper Limousine, the company his father founded in 1996. He has since assumed the role of chief executive officer.


Bryan Baker (Dr. Limo), Affordable Elegance Limousine Service

Bryan Baker, also known as Dr. Limo, is the owner of Affordable Elegance Limousine Service in Tanner, Ala. He has been a National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certified Master Technician for 16 years and has devoted his expertise to limousines for the past 13 years. Currently he services his own fleet of 12 vehicles and the limousines of six nearby competitors. Baker frequently writes for LCT Magazine on maintenance and fuel mileage topics.


Thom Dupper, LimoWebWiz
Thom Dupper is the founder of LimoWebWiz, a web marketing company based in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. Dupper founded three communications companies during the past 20 years: Image Technologies, Kinetoscope and Site Dynamics. He holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in mass communications and co-wrote "The Human Side of Intranets: Content, Style, and Politics" in 1998.


Elliot Eichenholz, Fleet Account Executive, General Motors Corporation

Elliott Eichenholz, who has been with General Motors Corporation for 33 years, is the fleet account executive for the New England region including the tri-state New York area. His prior assignments include 13 years as district sales manager and regional product distributor with Cadillac Motor Car Division in New York City and New England. Eichenholz graduated from Baruch College - The City University of New York with a B.B.A. degree.



Bill Faeth, Silver Oak Limousine
Bill Faeth is a former golf professional and restaurant owner who has grown Silver Oak Limousine of Nashville to a fleet of 20 vehicles and sales of over $1 million in 18 months. With an aggressive marketing plan, a team of experienced employees, and a fresh approach to the livery industry, he has secured some of the largest corporate clients in Nashville while building an extensive national affiliate network.


Richard Kane, International Limousine Service
Richard Kane is the president of the National Limousine Association and president and chief executive officer of International Limousine Service in Washington, D.C. His company has a fleet of 120 vehicles and a staff of 200 employees. In addition to his NLA leadership role, Kane is very active in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area luxury ground chauffeured transportation industry and serves as a board member of the Washington Metropolitan Limousine Association.



Barry Lefkowitz, Management & Government Resources
Barry Lefkowitz is the director of government affairs for the National Limousine Association and the president of his own firm Management & Government Resources. His background includes more than three decades of government, economic development, media and educational experience at the federal, state and local levels. Lefkowitz also is the author of "Lobbying and Influence: A Legislative Reference."


Steven Levin, Sterling Rose Limousines

Steve Levin and his wife Heidi are owners of Sterling Rose Limousines in Temecula, California and serve the Southwest Riverside and San Diego Counties. While the company has focused on the retail market, recent expansion has been implemented to the corporate and hotel markets. Sterling Rose was named LCT Operator of the Year in the medium category (13 vehicles are in the fleet) in March 2008.


Don Libby, Regal Limousine Service

Don Libby has been involved in the limousine industry for the past 15 years. He has worked in every facet of the ground transportation industry including chauffeuring, customer service and operations management. Currently he is director of operations at Regal Limousine Service in North Hampton, N.H., where he oversees the day-to-day operations of 45 vehicles, 85 employees and three locations. He is also responsible for the company's IT department, Web development, and Internet marketing. Before being employed at Regal, Libby worked for ten years as the general manager of Feliciano Limousine in Rochester, N.H. and helped the company expand its fleet from six to 14 vehicles before his departure in 2004.


Bob Mackasek, CEO, Valera Global

Bob joined Valera Global in 2000 and has served as the company's CEO since 2005. As CEO, Bob is tasked with providing the strategic direction for the entire organization, as well as creating the specific policies and procedures required for its implementation. Bob is also a member of the company's Board of Directors and acts as their liaison in corporate affairs. Before joining Valera Global, Bob maintained a private law practice specializing in transportation. For nearly two decades, he represented major fleets in the New York City area in their daily corporate, regulatory and personnel matters. Prior to that, Bob was First Deputy Commissioner of the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission where he was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the agency.



Craig McCutcheon, Rosedale Livery Limited

Craig McCutcheon is president of Rosedale Livery Limited, a limousine business founded by his father in 1981. The company operates 80 vehicles and employs 30 full time staff members and approximately 110 chauffeurs. McCutcheon is currently in his second three-year term on the NLA Board of Directors; he is the first Canadian to serve in this capacity. In addition, he holds the position of president of the Ontario Limousine Owners Association (OLOA).


Brad T. Moss, The Burke Group

Bradley Moss is the Eastern United States president of The Burke Group, a labor relations management consulting firm headquartered in Malibu, Calif. Prior to joining the firm nine years ago, he focused his career in operations for several major companies within the hospitality industry. He is an experienced trainer to U.S. management employees on the National Labor Relations Act as well as to U.K. employees on their Employee Relations Act of 1999. His experience is diverse and includes industries such as aerospace, healthcare, publishing, telecommunications, food service, hotel/restaurant, airlines, utilities, manufacturing and many others. Moss holds a B.A. in Business Administration from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.


Mark Munoz, Boston Coach

With more than 25 years of management, operations and customer service experience in the worldwide transportation-logistics business, Mark Munoz is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of BostonCoach while also managing strategic growth initiatives. A skilled executive, he brought years of domain expertise coupled with large-scale business management. Before he joined BostonCoach, Munoz served as senior vice president of northeast operations for DHL, where he oversaw 4,000 employees and 50 locations and held roles as vice president of operations strategy and technical support; regional service director; area service manager; service center manager; and customer service supervisor. Before joining DHL, Munoz spent seven years with Burlington Air Express (now BAX Global) as an export manager and account executive.


Bob Negen
Bob Negen founded the Mackinaw Kite Co., a small chain of specialty toy and kite stores, in 1981 when he was only 23 years old. Negen spent the next twenty years learning how to be a successful small businessperson. In 1999 he and his wife Susan founded WhizBang! Training to help independent business people thrive in today's super-competitive market. Negen is a nationally recognized speaker, regular contributor to several national trade magazines and is a regular guest on Jim Blasingame's syndicated radio show "The Small Business Advocate." He and his wife are authors of the best-selling book titled "Marketing Your Retail Store In The Internet Age."

Arrangements for the appearance of Bob Negen made through BigSpeak, Inc., Santa Barbara, CA. www.BigSpeak.com


Jeff Nyikos, Leros Point to Point
Jeff Nyikos is the chief operating officer of Leros Point to Point which now has four regional offices and is headquartered in Hawthorne, N.Y. Nykios headed up the company team that created Leros' worldwide network that provides transportation services to its clients in over 550 cities. In 2007 Westchester Magazine named Leros Point to Point the best limousine service in the county.


Joseph T. O'Leary, Sovereign Bank

Joseph T. O'Leary Jr. is the Senior Vice President and Regional Executive of the Bank's Greater Boston Middle Market Banking and Professional Services, New England. Mr. O'Leary also serves on the Advisory Board of several private equity firms. He is the Chairman – Private Sector and CEO of the 495/Metro West Corridor Partnership, and also serves on the Executive Board of Associated Industries of Massachusetts.


Rick Ott
Rick Ott is an author, actor, graphic artist, radio personality, and stock market analyst. His books, including "Raise Your Prices, Attract More Business and Creating Demand," are published in several languages around the world. He has appeared in television shows on the Discovery and History channels, in commercials, and movies (all minor roles, he says). He also spent years in the radio industry, and is currently heard on the syndicated Personal Achievement Show.

Arrangements for the appearance of Rick Ott made through BigSpeak, Inc., Santa Barbara, CA. www.BigSpeak.com


Louie Perry, Cornerstone Government Affairs
Louie Perry is a founder and vice president of Cornerstone Government Affairs, the Washington, D.C.-based lobbying firm engaged earlier this year by the National Limousine Association to help secure amendment to the Real Interstate Driver Equity (RIDE) Act. He brings more than 18 years of political experience to his role including several U.S. Congressional staff positions.


Frank Pirrone, Leros Point to Point

Frank Pirrone joined the Leros Point to Point operations team as chief information officer four years ago.

He brought more than ten years IT experience with him, having worked previously in this capacity in academia and financial institutions.


Stephen Qua, Company Car and Limousine
Stephen Qua founded Company Car & Limousine with three cars and applied for NLA membership on the same day in 1994. Since then his organization has grown to ten times its first year's revenue, been named 2002 LCT Operator of the Year finalist and chosen 2003 LCT Operator of the Year.


Christopher S. Quinn, Corporate Transportation Solutions
As a captain with a Sacramento, Calif. Regional Fire Department, Christopher Quinn is prepared to manage multiple operations that require oversight of personnel, ground, and air assets during emergency events and training. His working knowledge of the incident command system has allowed him to bring a systematic approach to the management of the day-to-day operations of Corporate Transportation Solutions, the limousine company he founded with his wife Shannon in 2002. In the last six years Quinn has grown CTS from a two-car operation to finalist status in the mid-size fleet category for the LCT Operator of the Year award program in 2008.


Michael Renehan, Allaire Limousine, Inc.

Michael Renehan established Allaire Limousine Service in 1976. He serves on the board of directors of the National Limousine Service (current term expires in 2009) and the board of directors of the Limousine Associations of New Jersey. He has worked with LANJ to eliminate state sales tax on all limousine purchases and attended state senate hearings pertaining to workers compensation, sales tax on limousine services, New Jersey limousine law and the ongoing captive insurance program. Renehan also has worked on behalf of the NLA and the industry on the federal level where he has participated in the annual “Day on the Hill” regarding passage of HR2546 and the current gas-guzzler elimination bill.


Jeff Rose, Attitude New York, Inc.
Jeff Rose is president and CEO of Attitude New York. He got his start in the industry driving yellow cabs in New York City while pursuing an acting career. After studying under Dav El "University" founder David Klein, he started his own company in 1986 with one car. Jeff was among the first to ever launch a limousine service with a sedan instead of a stretch limousine. Today Attitude New York caters to New York's most demanding clientele with 36 vehicles and a staff of 70. Rose sits on the board of the New York Limousine Association and the LCT Editorial Advisory Board.


Andrew P. Ross, Gettry Marcus Stern & Lehrer, CPA, P.C.

Andrew P. Ross is a manager at Gettry Marcus Stern & Lehrer, CPA, P.C. and a member of the firm's business valuation and litigation support group and quality control committee. He is a certified public accountant with a professional financial specialist certification. With 25 years of experience, Mr. Ross provides audit, tax and litigation services to his clients, many of whom are in the service, manufacturing and wholesale industries.


Matt Silver, Ultimate Class Limousine and Transport
Matt Silver is the founder and president of Ultimate Class Limousine located in Hicksville, NY. He started the company in 1988 from the basement in his home and, since then, has grown the enterprise into a thriving company with a fleet that includes sedans, stretches, vans, mini-buses and buses.

Scott Solombrino, Dav El Chauffeured Transportation
Scott Solombrino is the president and CEO of Dav El Chauffeured Transportation Network, one of the world's largest privately held luxury chauffeured ground transportation companies.  In 1978 he founded the Massachusetts Limousine Owners Association and six years later helped start the National Limousine Association.  Since then he has served four consecutive terms as its president and many years (including the current one) as a member of its board.  Solombrino also is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Business Travel Association and was named president of the NBTA Allied Leadership Council in 2005.


Ron Sorci, Aventura Worldwide Transportation
Ron Sorci is the chief financial officer of Aventura Worldwide Transportation, a 90-vehicle organization headquartered in Miami. He launched his career in the ground transportation industry in 1969 when he worked for Fugazy International while attending college. He became CFO of Fugazy in 1972 and, later that decade, fulfilled the same role for Carey International. Subsequently he owned and operated his own company RPS Executive Limousines, Ltd. After selling RPS in 1996, Sorci served as president of U.S. Transportation Systems, Inc. and then president of Precept Transportation before joining Aventura several years ago.


Michael Southwick, LTI Worldwide Limousine

Michael Southwick is the founder and president of LTI Worldwide Limousine in Everett, Mass. He started his business 20 years ago with one limousine and now runs a fleet of 70 vehicles and employs more that 200 staff. Southwick has built a strong network of affiliates and believes that he offers his clients the finest chauffeured services anywhere in the world.


H.A. Thompson, Rose Chauffeured Transportation
Toward the end of a long radio broadcasting career, H.A.Thompson started Rose Chauffeured Transportation in 1985 with his two sons Andy and Jeff. When he actually did retire from media, he turned his focus full time on the limousine business. Thompson started the company with just one vehicle and now hails as the leading corporate ground transportation service in Charlotte, N.C. with annual revenue of more than $5 million.


Kristen Vasserot, QLS Limousine

Kristen Vasserot has been the owner of QLS Limousine in Foxboro, MA, along with her husband Pascal, since 2001. Within her first year of opening QLS, she joined the New England Limousine Association (NELA) Board of Directors as a director and has been second vice president since June 2007. During her tenure, she has served on many committees, including newsletter, NELA Show and Expo, Massport and membership. Vasserot has been working closely with LCT Eastern Conference Show Committee since the event was launched four years ago.