Unlike other types of businesses, starting a taxi company requires a certain degree of life experience. Besides the usual financial and legal concerns that you have to handle in order to open the business itself, there are other, more relative, intuitive skills that you need in order to make it profitable. As a patron, you have to know your city of choice very well, from the streets, surroundings and local laws. Moreover, for your taxi company to be profitable, you have to bring in loads of business. For that, you need to hire street smart drivers that know the city by heart, and finding them is not that easy.
In other words, there are many factors to decide on before going for it. Here are a few pro’s and con’s of starting a taxi business.
Pro’s
One of the first advantages a taxi company could have in opposition to other types of establishments is that, if handled and kick started properly, the investment pays for itself almost immediately. A bar will close down due to lack of clientele or because their regulars move to other neighborhoods; a local shop will be overshadowed by a nearby supermarket in sheer number of sales and discounts. But, when it comes to taxis, as long as the business does not operate in a small town, almost everyone will need their services at least once in their lifetimes. Everybody wants to leave their cars at home once in a while to grab a few pints at the pub, and the taxis will always be there to bring them home safely. Sometimes, you will not get to work on time with the bus. Or maybe you just do not feel like going somewhere by foot or driving.
Another advantage is the job security. In most countries, taxi drivers unionize and usually look out for each other, and the same principle applies to the business owners. You will have a certain degree of authority in the city you operate, so your business will be, in theory, safe from exterior threats.
Con’s
Unfortunately, things can go in the opposite direction as well. Operating a taxi company is a stressful activity, and if you are not the business savvy type of person, things can go really bad really fast. Handling the business side of the company is one thing, choosing the right employees is another. You have to make sure that your employees, especially the drivers, are honest and respectful to potential clients, otherwise you will receive tons of complaints and word usually spreads around pretty fast. You do not want to be ‘’that’’ taxi company that people ask for as a last resort, when others are fully booked.
Choosing the right operators is another important aspect if you want to bring in business. Operators are the lynchpins of your taxi company – the orders go through them, and are then passed on to the drivers. In theory, anybody can handle a few calls at a time, but usually a skilled operator will have to take multiple consecutive orders. If he or she is not skilled enough, they could mess up the addresses.
These are a few pro’s and con’s of starting a taxi company. If you have the skills and business savvy for it, opening a taxi business could prove to be a profitable initiative.