John and Wendy Nasser are not a couple you'd expect to start a taxicab company.
He is a high-end technology careerist with an international background; she is a certified public accountant with a Boston accountancy firm.
But the owners of the new Gloucester Taxi & Livery Company had one huge advantage going into their ambitious start-up.
In a business where "knowing the lay of the land" is crucial, these Gloucester natives knew their city.
"We were born and raised here," says John Nasser. "We understand what makes its heart beat."
Among the things that make this city's heart beat are the tightly-knit bonds of deep-rooted relationships that span lifetimes.
One night, a couple of Nasser's oldest friends — "guys I played ball with back at Gloucester High School," he says — called from out of the blue and asked if they could "throw out an idea."
"These guys had been driving with Lighthouse for years" says Nasser, referring to one of the city's livery companies. "When Atlantic closed (from regular taxi service), they realized the field was wide open for a new competitor to fill that vacancy, and saw it as the opportunity of a lifetime."
They weren't the only ones. Eventually six other Lighthouse employees — seasoned dispatchers as well as drivers with proven track records — would be joined by a former Atlantic driver to form a start-up team.
"They were very clear about what they wanted," says Nasser. "They wanted to be part of something they could create themselves, to take all their learning and use it to build a better brand of service for Gloucester.
"They needed someone to invest in their dream," says Nasser.
Wendy Nasser has a CPA's professional caution about all things financial. The couple sat down, looked into the city's taxi market, estimated the total annual gross take — and liked what they came up with.
They sat down again and looked into the start-up costs. The biggest expense — the high cost of initial insurance — could be offset by the tax advantages of a start-up.
"The rest we could deal with as managing partners," says Nasser. "It was about more than money for the team, too. And that really won us over.
"They're savvy about the city's economy and its need to develop tourism," he says of his team. "They talked about learning the city's history, so they could serve as unofficial tour guides and goodwill ambassadors.
"That's why our fleet color is maroon — it's Gloucester High School's color," he noted. "We all wore it when we played for GHS, and now our kids do. Our 13-year-old daughter, Kayla, plays basketball, and I used her team uniform to choose the paint match on our cars."
The company's fleet includes five cars — three sedans, one van, and one livery car — in the start-up fleet.
In the weeks since its been in operation, Gloucester Taxi & Livery's cars have picked up passengers at an encouraging pace. It's also picked up contracts with Pathways and SeniorCare.
Operating out of 281 Main St., its core business comes from train commuters, the elderly, business travelers, and — even in the dead of winter — tourists, including lots of airport runs using the van and livery car.
The best days for business are the worst weatherwise, Nasser says, because people don't walk in bad weather, so last week's wind was a windfall for the team, who'd gone weeks without pay during the transition leading to official launch of operations.
"I'd offered to help every one of them — cash, no-strings attached — and every one of them turned me down," says Nasser. "Then, in last week's storms, I noticed extra earnings were shared automatically.
"That's a Gloucester thing, that spirit of generosity," he says. "It's who we are and what our company's about."
It's also why there was never any question about what the company logo would be: Gloucester's iconic "Man at the Wheel."
"Once it was on our cars," says Nasser, "we called everyone together, and then there was nothing left to do but say, 'Gentlemen, start your engines.'"
Joann MacKenzie may be contacted at 978-283-7000, x3457, or jmackenzie@gloucestertimes.com
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