In reiterating my thanks
to those who gave me their support at the AGM, I would also like to apologise to those of
you that found me a little subdued and not very talkative. Unfortunately it was my first
day up having been off ill for the previous two weeks and I was still a little
disorientated. In one respect it did me a favour, particularly when I was verbally
attacked, because feeling somewhat knackered it prevented me from retaliating and dragging
myself down to the denigrators disgusting level. In the 13 years that I have attended our
AGM as a Board Member, including those when I have come under immense fire from sections
of the hall (justifiably) over charges, procedures or lack of work, I have never
encountered such foul personal abuse or heard such obscene language, least of all from
someone who considered himself worthy of representing you as a board member.
Personally it didn’t bother me because I find such ignorance difficult
to take seriously, what does bother me however, is how such a very small group can be
allowed to dictate and sour what should have been a very constructive meeting.
The Strength of Democracy?
The Dial-a-Cab AGM is attended by far more members than any of the other circuits and it is the ideal opportunity to discuss positive issues concerning, for example, the future of the Society, the trade, our services, incentives, technology and you the members etc. We made well over a one million pound surplus this year and yet from the tone of that small section of the meeting, you would have thought it was a one million pound loss. Year after year I hear more and more drivers threatening not to attend future meetings because they say they are fed up with the same small group of political activists being allowed to hijack the meeting. It has often been said that our biggest strength (democracy) is also our biggest weakness. There is nothing to stop non-political members voicing their views. It is understandable that first time speakers find it a little daunting addressing a large audience and unfortunately, because of that, their views invariably go unheard. To those threatening not to attend, don’t be despondent or put off by a few militants who have no purpose in life other than to cause dissension. It is your circuit and the will of the majority will win the day, because the one area where the voice of sensible members of Dial-a-Cab is heard, albeit silently, is with their vote, as was proved at this years AGM. Because for all the stage managed aggression by the perpetrators, the votes cast said it all.
Westminster Taxicard
On a more enlightening note; all of you would have heard by now the news that we have retained the Westminster Taxicard account for a further 5 years. It is a terrific achievement, rewarded by the enormous amount of work put in by everybody associated with this account including you the drivers, to whom I extend my sincere thanks. We were up against stiff competition from our two main rivals - particularly as the charge structure we submitted this time was considerably different from previous years. Needless to say, the managing of the account and the question of service was a considerable factor and the positive reports received from the Taxicard users played a significant role in our favour. However, as with any tender, clauses are inserted giving the supplier the option to terminate the contract at any time should we fail to meet our commitment. We have set ourselves very high standards with the
service we supply Westminster City Council and I’m sure all of you will make a concerted effort to ensure we maintain that level of service.
Keith Cain
On a personal note; you would have probably read elsewhere in this issue details concerning board member duties. Keith Cain, having started his duties on the Board with me in Sales and later taking on the role of Treasurer before returning to Sales when the Treasurers position was discontinued, is leaving my department yet again to take on another demanding role -being responsible for the Control Centre. It will be the first time someone from Sales with the knowledge of client problems has taken on this position, a move which I believe makes a lot of sense and I wish Keith every success. With regards Keith’s future association with Sales, obviously he will retain links with certain clients and assist with presentations, however the day to day responsibility of Sales at board level will revert back to myself together with marketing.
Price War?
Exactly what our strategy will be for the new year is yet to be decided. Obviously a number of factors will be dictated by the opposition. Rumour has it that one of our main competitors are increasing their sales force (at present it is six) with a view to generating an aggressive sales campaign. In the past when we have lost clients during such campaigns, particularly on cost which should never happen, the excuse from the opposition has been; the salesman being new to the trade didn’t know it was our client. This feeble excuse will no longer be tolerated in future and the moment we lose just one client by undercutting our charges or we have one client threatened by lower charges, we will retaliate big time and I mean big time. With the surplus we made last year and with no massive expenditure on new GPS systems, we have a major advantage if it comes to a price war. If this happens, and I sincerely hope it doesn’t, our entire circuit will need to close ranks and we will be looking for all your support.
As I explained at the AGM, we made no attempt last year to take on any new large clients, we chose instead to consolidate. The sales department including Brian, Keith and myself spent a lot of time meeting with our senior clients in an attempt to cement the account for the future.
We made a lot of progress, part of which was laying the foundation for the £8 and £12 minimums. We tried to convince the other two circuits to follow suit, but for reasons known only to themselves, they refused. Next year, with the indications of a mini recession, our minimums will be the most likely area to be attacked, also fixed prices, gratuity and waiting time.
I personally believe we can retain all our charges, but only by offering something in return and that something applies not just to defending our charges, but also against the threat of the licensing of minicabs. We see article after article in the trade press voicing concerns about the likely loss of business to the new
licensed private hire. Yet I have seen not one word about what the trade can do or should do to assist the future of the trade apart from lynching the Transport Minister and burning down the Carriage Office.
Minicab licensing
Several months ago, Brian and I had a meeting with a large American bank whose future usage of taxis could possibly be the largest in London. During the meeting, the director of services made a very discerning statement. He said that if he could find a minicab company that was capable of supplying them a service instead of licensed cabs, he would give them the contract, because in his opinion licensed cabs drivers are arrogant, rude, unhelpful, unreliable, selective, scruffy and think the world owes them a living. To say it took us by surprise was an understatement. Fortunately for the cab trade there is no minicab company big enough to take on their account in total - at least not yet.
Those of you that have been on Dial-a-Cab for several years will know my feelings about the need to change the cloth cap and muffler image of the cab trade. This attitude has never been more prevalent than now.
Speculate to accumulate is a common phrase. For any business to prosper or go one up on the opposition, it has to invest in ideas, technology, gimmicks, expansion, advertising and marketing etc etc, most of which involves finance and in many cases big bucks. Very rarely can any investment be made to improving business without little or no finance. Except, that is, the cab trade. It beggars belief at times why so few in our trade want to do anything to improve their image or future business. In fact it is invariably the opposite. We hear stories daily of scruffy, unshaven drivers being abusive to passengers when asked the most simplest of requests, that of assisting with luggage. I’ve always been of the opinion that ‘appearance equates attitude’. If you look good you feel good and when you feel good you act good, and when you act good people feel the same towards you. I defy any man who doesn’t feel exceptionally good when dressed in a dinner suit with his lady on his arm, going out somewhere special for the evening.
Smartness
The same applies when a passenger comments on not only how smart you look, but how clean the cab is.
I’m convinced that if every cab on our circuit was guaranteed to be clean inside and out, each one carrying a standard DaC logo and every driver wore a shirt a tie and was polite, courteous and helpful - such as with luggage or an umbrella when raining - we could get so much publicity that work would be coming at you from all directions. If you had a small business and it needed that simple investment, you wouldn’t hesitate. The problem it seems, is that the majority of cab drivers do not regard having a cab as being a business. To those of you that think this way, particularly the younger members whose future lay in the cab trade, you have maybe two years to woo back those people who have rejected our trade in preference to minicabs, if you wait until minicabs get a legitimate foothold into your core business, it could well be too late.
Allen Togwell
