In 2005, at age 41, Ken Lucci decided to retire—a milestone most Americans won’t achieve until they are well into their sixties. Lucci had flourished in two careers, one in private security and another as the owner of a medical alarm company. But retirement wasn’t quite all it was cracked up to be and Lucci found he needed purpose. Today, he is president and CEO of Ambassador Limousine, based in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. Now entering its fifth year in business, the company is poised to break $5 million in sales for 2012 and with Lucci at the helm, its journey to this point has been both methodical and aggressive.

The Boston native—who transplanted to Florida in 1996—had always had a business consulting relationship with the Steinbrenner family. (Yes, the same family that owns the New York Yankees.) Lucci was providing security consulting, risk mitigation, and transportation services for some of the family members, and while working with them during spring training in Florida he realized there was a need for New York-caliber, high-end car service. He took the suggestion of someone in the Yankees organization to purchase a couple of SUVs and start a company, but with no experience in the hospitality industry, he needed a lesson or two.

A member of the Yankees suggested that Lucci should train in the hotel business to learn how to serve guests. They arranged for him to work behind the concierge desk at a hotel in New York, which Lucci says “almost talked him out of the business” because of how hectic the market is. His crash course in hospitality included training at the acclaimed Ritz-Carlton Leadership Center where he learned from the best. When he returned to Florida, Lucci founded Ambassador Limousine in May 2007, putting his first licensed and permitted vehicles on the road in July 2007. He left retirement in his rearview mirror and hasn’t looked back since.

“We deliver a level of service that has made hotels comfortable doing business with us.” – Ken Lucci

Ambassador started with two Cadillac sedans, two Escalades ESVs, and one used limousine that Lucci bought on eBay. Its sixth vehicle was a 16-passenger stretch Escalade, purchased in December 2007. In those first six months, Ambassador’s revenue was upwards of $400,000. Today, Lucci has a fleet of 54 vehicles and has closed his fourth year in business with $4.3 million in revenue and $1.6 million pre-sold for 2012.

Some might call Lucci a maverick. He marches to the beat of his own drum. At a time when most chauffeured transportation services want to seem more global, Lucci capitalizes on all of the opportunities his local market has to offer. In Florida, where it’s commonplace to use independent contractors, Ambassador’s chauffeurs are all employees. And where most operators stray away from weddings, Lucci welcomes them with open arms—and several classic Rolls-Royces.

“We’re kind of the anti-establishment of limousine companies in Florida,” Lucci says. “I’m in the hospitality, transportation, and logistics business. From day one we saw we needed to do the opposite of what was being done and differentiate our service.” Some of those choices included investing in Cadillac products—for which Lucci has had an affinity since he was 17—using Escalades instead of Hummers, and dressing chauffeurs in black suits and gold ties instead of tropical shirts. Considering Ambassador’s exponential growth in just 5 years, there’s certainly something to be said for this maverick mentality.

For one, Lucci admits that it is the fact that he is in a number three market that he is able to operate the way he does. He calls Tampa Bay a “big little town” that is tight-knit and where a person’s reputation means everything. The three counties of Tampa Bay—Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Pasco—are the homes to a diverse 2.5 million people. Lucci says the area is the best of everything: a thriving downtown, world-class eateries and art galleries—including the Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersburg—and the world’s best beaches stretching the West Coast of the state along the Gulf of Mexico. “You can have anything you want here—except good Chinese food!” says Lucci.

The number one industry here is tourism, with technology, banking, and some manufacturing secondary. In fact, it’s the tourism and resort industry that Ambassador has gone after aggressively. In 2008, Ambassador secured an exclusive contract with a major new resort called the SandPearl and was the first to do so, according to Lucci. Ambassador had been providing car service for this property until Lucci learned that some of his competitors were being called by the hotel to do night-on-the-town rides. “I asked to be taken off their list of service providers,” says Lucci. “I explained to the general manager that we have the ability to do all of that work, so instead of having several companies on the hotel’s list, I suggested that it should just be Ambassador. They signed an exclusive contract with Ambassador almost immediately.” Lucci took a risk that paid off. That account brought Ambassador $350,000 worth of revenue in 2008.

“Lucci runs an extremely diverse fleet and subscribes to the philosophy that nearly every vehicle must do double duty and meet two distinct market needs.”

Since then, Ambassasor has secured contracts with some of the premier resorts in the Tampa area, including: Saddlebrook Resort & Spa, a premier golf and tennis resort; and the Renaissance Vinoy—the oldest resort in St. Petersburg. Contracts with the Hilton Carillon Park, SpringHill Suites, and Ramada Inn round out the list of properties. Resort work comprises approximately 30 percent of Ambassador’s business. “We deliver a level of service that has made hotels comfortable doing business with us,” says Lucci. “We won’t do work if we’re not under written agreement with them.”

Lucci prefers partnerships. He plays an active role in handling the transportation solutions for these properties. At one property, he provides cards that are slipped under the guests’ doors reminding them to book their car service before midnight when checking out the following day. At Saddlebrook, the biggest golf resort in the area, Lucci attends Friday afternoon “wine summits” where he interfaces directly with management and sales staff to discuss upcoming groups or events. When he approached the Vinoy 3 years ago, he knew that his fleet of classic vehicles would be good for weddings at the property. When the opportunity was opened up to for an RFP, Ambassador not only got the wedding work, but all of the business of this five-star resort. Many of the hotels have what Lucci calls fixed property vehicles (FPVs) on-site at all times, replacing the need for taxis and airport shuttles. Guests instead travel in Mercedes-Benz Sprinters with Wi-Fi, an LCD screen, and a brochure tailored to the corresponding hotel.

Thanks to Lucci’s Yankee connection, he ventured into providing transportation for the team during its spring training sessions. Ambassador is the official provider of both the Yankees’ and Philadelphia Phillies’ Florida operations and a preferred provider for the Tampa Bay Rays. The company also handles motorcoach transportation for most of the NHL’s teams that play against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He is working on offering special packages that would partner his hotel contracts with these sports teams. For instance Ambassador has created spring training packages to Yankee and Phillies fans up North that would provide a hotel stay at one of Ambassador’s partner hotels and transportation to the fields where the teams play and practice. It’s just another way Lucci is capitalizing on the opportunities that the Tampa area affords his company.

Quality equipment to service these resort and sports contracts was a necessity, and Lucci came about most of his burgeoning fleet traditionally, but also through acquisitions, which were fostered through one of his mentors, Tom Mazza. Lucci brought Mazza on in a consulting role in 2008 and the two hit it off. After that first resort contract, Lucci invested in vehicles, especially buses. With the 2009 Super Bowl being held in Tampa, there was even more of a need for the vehicles, and after that major event, Ambassador was at about 24 vehicles in less than 2 years in business. Mazza’s suggestion was to scale back the fleet or purchase another limousine company. “Scaling back was not an option,” says Lucci. “This is how we ended up coming to terms and buying Julie’s Limousine in July 2009.”

Lucci integrated all of Julie’s vehicles, bumping his fleet up to 34, and moved his office to that facility. He kept a majority of Julie’s staff and they adapted to the Ambassador methodology, including the chauffeurs who were independent contractors but became employees. In 2010, Ambassador acquired the assets of All Star Limousine, taking over its staff as well. Lucci ran the Julie’s brand as a separate entity for about a year, gradually integrating its clients completely into Ambassador.

“I would not [navigate] the transportation industry without an outside consultant along the way,” says Lucci, referring to Mazza. “We remain close and he was without question the voice of reason. When I came up with wacky ideas he always brought me back down to earth.”

Lucci runs an extremely diverse fleet and subscribes to the philosophy that nearly every vehicle must do double duty and meet two distinct market needs. Ambassador has six-passenger limousines (five) that are used for picking up resort guests at the airport, as well as night-out vehicles. There are four 10-passenger Cadillac limousines and two Lincoln 10-passenger stretches (one white and one black); the Cadillacs are presidential style high-tops with five doors—a feature Lucci says is a great selling point especially for his senior clients and brides for the ample head room. There are two super stretches, one Hummer (from an acquisition) and an Escalade; six Mercedes-Benz Sprinters—four with limousine interiors (which Lucci refers to as a Mercedes limo cruiser)—that seat between 8 and 12 passengers; 8 minibuses, 4 motorcoaches, and a 28-passenger limobus that Lucci calls a rolling board room.

It’s the classics though that really get Lucci excited. He has a background in collecting antique cars, and says this end of the business is not for the faint of heart. “They can be a maintenance nightmare unless you know what you’re doing, but I love them,” he says. Ambassador has a Rolls-Royce Phantom, two Silver Clouds (one of which came from the All Star acquisition), and he just bought a vintage 1934 Packard Landualette limousine. Ambassador has specially trained chauffeurs for these vehicles, but it’s well worth it for the wedding business, Lucci says.

Weddings make up about 20 percent of Ambassador’s business. The company has been recognized by PerfectWeddingGuide.com, TheKnot.com, and WeddingWire.com for its superior service. “Nobody does it the way we do,” says Lucci. “The first 30 weddings we had I did myself because I wanted to learn what was important to the bride, her mother, and father. We designed a custom wedding transportation planner and we tell each bride that we’ll handle every aspect of her guests’ transportation. It’s one less thing for her to worry about.”

Ambassador wouldn’t be recognized for its level of service unless it was doing something right, and Lucci feels that it all stems from his company’s core values, which in turn attract reliable and valuable employees. Chauffeurs are the front line, and Lucci chose to use the employee model. “When I was coming into this business and my attorney told me that I couldn’t even mandate training if I use ICs, I said, ‘Forget it, I’m out,’” he says. “If I can’t legally tell my chauffeurs to come in for a special meeting before a group event, how can I explain that to a client? It’s just not the right way to do things in my opinion.” Lucci takes this seriously, saying his chauffeurs sign performance agreements when hired and follow a strict written code of conduct to deliver the level of service we demand.

Lucci employs 68 chauffeurs and has almost zero turnover. “It became a situation where people kind of flocked to us because they saw what accounts we had. They knew we were the real deal.” Lucci says that, when interviewing for chauffeurs, Ambassador avoids people have inherited bad habits. At Ambassador, trips are called “driving details.” If a potential chauffeur refers to a client as a “fare” Lucci immediately knows that he has a taxi mentality. “We have guests in these vehicles, not fares,” he says. Most of his chauffeurs come from law enforcement or are former military. Lucci prefers their clean cut look and “yes sir, no sir” conduct.

With employee chauffeurs, Lucci is able to bring them in for meetings, go over briefings before groups, and also do post-mortems after the event to see what went well or what didn’t. His high expectations make it hard for him to release control when it comes to affiliate work. Mazza even jokingly calls Lucci “Mr. Local.” Ambassador certainly accepts work from most of the major networks in the country, but when it comes to relinquishing control of his own clients, he simply fears delivery issues. “I can’t sleep worrying about whether a company in Los Angeles is going to deliver the service we expect,” he says. “We have two cherished affiliates in our market that we do business with and it’s mostly all airport. If we have a wedding or group event and we need affiliate help, it’ll be for one car and we’re the company supervising.” Again Lucci points out that there is plenty of business for him in the local market to keep him satisfied.

“Lucci says 2011 was Ambassador’s education year in social media…the next frontier is tablet technology, which he wants to deploy into airport vehicles.”

Lucci puts a lot of faith in his staff and does utilize mystery shoppers throughout the month, garnering feedback all the way from reservation through the trip. He gathers chauffeur evaluations and comments from clients via e-mail, usually sent on a Monday morning to the weekend driving details. He relates a bit of his philosophy to that of one of his mentors, George Steinbrenner. Lucci says, “Steinbrenner preached: ‘When you’re playing with the best team in baseball, you don’t do anything to tarnish that brand on or off the field.’ It’s the same way at Ambassador. I’m doing everything I can to build a winning organization, but when it comes down to it, it’s more about the people around me.”

Ambassador has a 24-hour Trip Communications Center, formerly known as dispatch. This center is run by Operations Manager Ray Poirier whom Lucci says has a logistics mindset of getting things where they need to be when they need to be there. He oversees a team of five dispatchers and interfaces with chauffeurs, mechanics, and detailers. Shelly Taylor is reservations manager and works with three others. Taylor has been with Ambassador since 2008, and Lucci says the company’s philosophy begins with her.

Chief Chauffeur Jim Erb came from Julie’s Limousine, and what Lucci initially liked most about him was that, when another chauffeur was bellyaching after the acquisition, Erb piped up and told him to just focus on doing his job. Lucci says Erb had previously owned his own limousine company up North and is one of the most knowledgeable in terms of the industry. Ambassador also has site directors at its resort properties. Ross Rayner oversees the Vinoy and Erin Santiago handles the Saddlebrook Resort, and she also works as the administrative manager.

Lucci has one person appointed to his top 100 accounts. Key Accounts Manager Donna Royster came from All Star and is assigned solely to those clients. “I think every company should have one person dedicated to your top accounts,” says Lucci. “Donna has a great grasp on customer service and those clients know to call her when they need anything.”

In 2010 Lucci made a strategic decision to step away from the sales aspect of Ambassador so he could focus more on operations, fleet decisions, potential acquisitions, and long-term goals. Vice President Kraig Obarski is the newest addition to Ambassador. Obarski comes from the sports advertising and sponsorship arena and runs the company when Lucci is away. Obarski is the face of the company, according to Lucci, because he is involved in the business community and sits on the boards of the local chapter of Meeting Professionals International and the Chamber of Commerce.

Lucci does say he is a hands-on owner and is in the office seven days a week. “I never realized it would be this way, but it’s a commitment I’ve made,” he says. During the week his days begin between 9 and 10 a.m. and end around 8 p.m. On the weekends he tinkers with the vehicles or fixes something he notices. “On Saturdays I inspect every vehicle before it goes out,” he says. “I’m very meticulous when it comes to my detailers, while with everyone else I kind of just walk through and ask if there are any issues. I don’t stand behind dispatchers or mess with the schedule—that’s what they do. I have my own ways of making sure the customer is satisfied.”

Despite this side of him, Lucci knows how to delegate. “I recently went to California for one month on an emergency consulting job and told my team they were on their own,” says Lucci. “I checked into our software to look at the schedules, but I only called to check in once or twice a week. They rose to the occasion. They know my philosophy so I have to empower them to make the day-to-day decisions.”

He recognizes his employees with a Chauffeur of the Month Award and bonuses for good customer comments. He is also instituting a barbeque lunch on the last Friday of every month. During the holidays he caters a luncheon party, and throughout the year, every employee can reserve a limousine for free for their birthdays.

With a trustworthy staff leading the charge, Lucci is able to investigate other areas of the business to improve, namely in the technology and marketing areas. He says 2011 was Ambassador’s education year in social media and he believes he spent good money to get going in the right direction on Facebook and Twitter. The next frontier is tablet technology, which he wants to deploy into airport vehicles to help Ambassador become paperless. “We have several of them out now with computer savvy chauffeurs, which is the biggest stumbling block,” Lucci says. “Our hope is to be able to put customized presentations on the tablets that will welcome our guests and provide suggestions on what to do while in town.” He hopes that technology will also be able to connect the resorts to Ambassador’s communications center. “The idea is we’re not just a limousine company; we are the resort’s transportation department,” he says. “We want to be a transportation liaison where a guest can access a laptop at the resort and book a vehicle without needing a middle man, relieving the concierge or front desk person from that responsibility and streamlining the process.”

In terms of the Ambassador website, Lucci says to watch closely as it is currently being revamped. One year ago he began an SEO campaign to get him above the fold on Google and with that accomplished, the re-tooled website will be more educational for clients. It will also feed right into Lucci’s marketing partnerships, which have paid off immensely for Ambassador. “I would say we spent triple the amount on our marketing budget in the recession than we spent in the first year of business,” he says. “We worked on new collateral with Arthur Messina of Create-A-Card. He was instrumental in helping us accomplish our goals.”

Lucci uses his connections in the community to create partnerships. When the biggest jewelry store in Tampa Bay was having a Black Friday sales event, Lucci asked the owner if he could park his Rolls-Royce out front. Since the store was running a special on engagement rings, it fit, and Lucci threw in a $100 voucher off Rolls-Royce service. The only thing he asked in return was to have some time speaking at the store’s event. Lucci booked two weddings that day. At another event, this time for a Halloween party at one of his resorts, Lucci placed two sedans outside of the venue in case guests became inebriated, and on top of that, he put his vintage Packard limousine directly in the ballroom (with a skeleton sitting inside)—adding to the Halloween vibe. “There are more pictures of that limousine on Facebook than anything I’ve seen. And all I wanted was a list of the event’s attendees. It was an innovative way to get the contacts of 300 of the top businesspeople in Tampa.”

Lucci is a passionate businessman, now in his third career. But he has a special passion beyond that: charity. “Our name is our brand and the brand is the character of our company. When people hear the name Ambassador they think: involved in the community. Our charitable giving defines my company,” says Lucci. He even took it upon himself to launch the Tampa Bay Charity Register online, which had folded due to the economy. He is involved with the Abilities Foundation, an organization that helps disabled Floridians obtain jobs and affordable housing, as well as the Pinellas Education Foundation, which provides educational opportunities for students and educators.

Lucci’s hallmark charity for 2011 was Hands Across the Bay, which raised money that would be distributed to charitable organizations in Tampa, Clearwater, and St. Pete. The major fundraiser was its “Dancing with the Stars” event, and Lucci took home the top prize for Best Male Dancer. He took 25 lessons and danced the tango, and while the award is great, he says what’s even better is that he raised $12,000 out of the $61,000 total from the event. “It was an out-of-the-box experience that a typical entrepreneur might not be interested in,” Lucci says. “But it was a great event. I met business contacts and even had employees cheering me on in the audience.”

Lucci also makes returning combat veterans a priority. For years he has given a $20 bill to soldiers in uniform that he sees at the airport, telling them to buy lunch on him and thanking them for their service. When an employee witnessed Lucci’s act of kindness, he told Lucci that these veterans’ families often want to hire a limousine to bring them home from the airport but never have the money. Lucci jumped on this opportunity and worked with local VFW posts to arrange rides for returning military combat troops. He had a former six-door funeral vehicle transformed into a six-passenger limousine that is driven by VFW volunteers and stocked with a gift bag from local merchants with coupons or gift certificates. He also has a parade vehicle in his fleet—it features an open top in the passenger area with a hidden convertible top and a rear seat that rises up 12 inches.

If Lucci has any time left in the day, one wonders what he fills it with. Dancing is a newly acquired hobby that he finds helps to keep him in shape. Lucci is an avid reader who loves his dog Bentley (who comes to work daily and is the “Chief Morale Officer”). Lucci likes biking and kayaking, and spoiling his nieces and nephews. He loves wine, but says he’s not a snob; he just likes to drink it.

With 2012 underway, Lucci is anticipating big things for Ambassador. The 2012 Republican National Convention will be held in Tampa and Ambassador has already contracted with the major corporate sponsor of the event. What about 2013 and beyond? Lucci foresees Ambassador expanding along the West Coast of Florida, potentially opening branches in Naples and Sarasota. “I like the West Coast,” he says. “It’s easier to be a big guy in a third tier market, but it’s not without sacrifice. I want to get to $15 million in revenue and the only way I can do that is with more fleet and more geography.” Lucci knows he has to continue operating the business to the expectations of his guests. Every day is a focus on how much revenue he needs just to put the key in the office door in the morning.

“This company’s success has nothing to do with me or my charisma, because I have none,” Lucci laughs. “It has everything to do with raising the bar on fleet quality and the customer service experience we offer—that’s what we did to grow this much in our first 5 years. The next 5 will be about outdoing ourselves—and I think that is a tougher job. LD01/12