Rose Chauffeured Transportation Celebrates 30th Anniversary

Posted On: 03/19/2015

From operating a single Rolls Royce in 1985 under the name Rolls Limousine Ltd, Rose’s leaders have grown the company an average of 10% each year for three decades. Today, Rose Chauffeured Transportation operates 95 vehicles, employs more than 130, and in 2014 surpassed $10 million in revenue.

H. A. THOMPSON @ BofA STDM w BUSSES - J1“We took it from nothing,” says H.A. Thompson, Rose’s primary founder, who operated the company’s first vehicle out of his driveway with his two sons. “Now we provide a living for a over a hundred families.” He cites a culture of hospitality as one of the keys to Rose’s success.

“Hospitality is the thrill you get from making the customer happy,” he says. “There’s an art to seeing a need before it happens, and delivering on it. That’s what the business is about—it’s not about the cars.”

Andy Thompson, H.A.’s son who drove the vehicles on the weekends in the early years and is now Vice President of Sales and partial owner, says their success is also due to setting goals. “When I was 16, we had a goal of $500 a week,” he says. “Every year we’d set a new goal.”

Another key, H.A. adds, is changing with the times. The company’s first passengers, on March 23, 1985, were Jerry and Debbie Keck who were married at the top of Charlotte’s first roller coaster, Thunder Road. Four years later, Rose purchased a limousine to broaden the appeal of their service, and changed the company name to Rose Limo. As the business grew, Rose added a few sedans for rides to the airport. In 1995, they purchased a mini-bus for small groups.

In 2002, they hired Director of Operations, Tom Holden, to grow the company beyond its small family-run roots. “We wouldn’t be where we are today without him,” says Andy. In 2008, they added a motor coach to the fleet, and in 2012 changed the company name to Rose Chauffeured Transportation.

Today Rose runs two core branches of business: In-town and airport transportation for individuals via sedan and SUV, and shuttles and group transportation via mini-bus and motor coach. Rose owns a total of 18 motor coaches, 14 mini-buses, 16 sedans, 6 SUVs, and 4 executive vans, plus runs 37 vehicles owned by their drivers, who are licensed, insured, and contracted with Rose under the brand RCT, which operates out of the Westin in downtown Charlotte. The company has ongoing transportation contracts with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district, all of Charlotte’s major sports teams, and many of Charlotte’s best-known corporations.

Over the years, Rose and its leadership have earned many awards in Charlotte, the region, and nationally, including the recently announced prestigious Charter Bus Operator of the Year 2015 award from LCT Magazine.

Holden, who has helped the company grow from $1 million in revenue in 2002 to $10 million in 2014, emphasizes that the company’s commitment to innovation hasn’t changed in 30 years. He oversaw the recent launch of Rose’s new app, RideRose, which allows passengers to access RCT chauffeurs on demand from their mobile devices. Now he’s moved on to launching Rose’s second app, RoseCharters, which allows groups and their families to track the location of their vehicles in real time.

“People expect the convenience of accessing a car from their mobile devices,” says Andy, who agrees that apps will play a big part in Rose’s future.

v“I expect to see this company grow to $15 million in the next three years,” says Holden. At 30 years old, Rose has no more intention of slowing down than its founder does at 81. “I’m having too much fun to quit,” says H.A.

About Rose Chauffeured Transportation
Rose Chauffeured Transportation is a leading ground transportation provider in the Southeastern United States, headquartered in Charlotte, NC. With more than 130 employees and nearly 100 vehicles, Rose provides the highest level of hospitality to groups, sports teams, and individuals via sedan, SUV, mini-bus, motor coach, and executive vans. Rose’s commitment to customer care extends to the highest possible DOT safety records, 24/7 dispatch, full-time customer service staff, and the latest on-board technologies including ADA-accessible vehicles, Wi-Fi, and vehicle tracking. Reservations can be made from anywhere at RideRose.com or, in the downtown Charlotte area, via the mobile app RideRose.

Charlotte’s H.A. Thompson is on the ride of his life.

Posted On: 03/25/2015

When H.A. Thompson first started chauffeuring newlyweds in a beige 1956 Rolls-Royce, AM radio was king, the Yellow Pages was his company’s best advertising tool and Charlotte’s business community was an infant – small but growing, he said.

Thirty years later, Rose Chauffeured Transportation, the family-owned company he founded with his two sons, drives more corporate clients than married couples, has a fleet of 58 sedans, motorcoaches and minibuses and employs 125 people – some of whom have shuttled some of the city’s most illustrious figures, from Hugh McColl Jr. to Michael Jordan.

“You pay a premium, but you get the quality,” Thompson, 81, said. “That’s the secret.”

In the three decades he and his team have piloted the company, which generated $10 million in revenue last year, Thompson has amassed a trove of takeaways that turned his idea for a career change into a profitable enterprise.

Elementary school trips with Rose

Posted On: 05/04/2015

What do a hula-hoop competition, Taylor Swift parodies, and the city of Charleston have in common? Easy: Elementary school trips with Rose, that’s what.

Our drivers pride themselves on making school trips not only safe and comfortable, but also loads of fun for the kids. On a recent tour of Charleston, Carlos LeBron did us proud—and made a lot of kids happy—by going above and beyond to make it an unforgettable experience.

We were tickled when the kids showed us their appreciation by sending these letters:

jcletter

The letter reads:

Dear Mr. Lebron,

I wanted to thank you for making this trip to Charleston fantastic! My first reason is that you drove us to all these great places like the Ecotour, the Dinner, and dance and the Aquarium. My second reason is that you drove the bus well and you hit the whip and played Watch Me. The third reason is that you were the DJ for the dinner and dance!!! You let us have a hula hoop competition and a dance off competition between buses! Thank you for making this trip exciting!

Sincerely,

Happy Kiddo

mzletter

This one says:

Dear Carlos,

I am so glad you were my bus driver and DJ and here is why because on the bus you let us do the whip and nae nae while you were driving. You also made us that parody to blank space.

Another reason you’re so awesome is because you were our DJ. You played awesome music and you did those fun hulu hoop competitions.

I also love your manners. You always held the door and helpeded me with my bags and putting my seat back.

So, I just wanted to thank you did to make my trip great.

My best,

Another Happy Kiddo

You know those teachers are doing something right when the kids exhibit such sweet gratitude. And we’re proud as punch that Carlos gave them so much to be grateful for. Thanks, Carlos!

Rose Chauffeured Transportation Moves to New Location

Posted On: 12/10/2018

December 5, 2018–Charlotte, NC–Iconic ground transportation company, Rose Chauffeured Transportation, announced their move to a new location this week.

The 11-million-dollar family-owned company, which has operated from a facility on Nations Ford Road in Pineville, NC since 2006, has relocated their entire 66-vehicle fleet and 135-employee office to a facility off of North Graham Street at 3331 Asbury Ave in Charlotte.

Rose Office The new location includes a 20,000 square foot building, of which approximately 8,000 square feet is office space and 12,000 square feet is a garage with three drive-through mechanic bays. The garage plus two and a half acres of outside parking provides ample space for the company’s fleet of 22 motor coaches, 10 minibuses, 4 executive vans, 18 sedans, and 12 SUVs, which will also be served by the facility’s detached wash bay.

“Quite simply, we’ve outgrown our current space,” says Andy Thompson, president of Rose Chauffeured Transportation. “Our new space allows us to keep our entire growing fleet in one location, and the three drive-through mechanic bays are a huge improvement over our current one bay that requires buses to enter and exit the garage through a single door.”

Thompson also cites lower rent, a large conference room to accommodate their team meetings, and the facility’s proximity to the heart of Charlotte as advantages of the new location.

This is the company’s fifth move to accommodate growth since its founding in 1985. In 1990, it moved out of the family’s home to an office space on Park Road; in 1996, to a small warehouse and office space on Weona Avenue; in 2000, to a facility on Old Pineville Road that doubled the warehouse and office space; in 2006, to Nations Ford Road.

“The outlook for continued growth is positive,” says Thompson. “Several big events are coming to the region in the next couple of years, even as the city continues to boom and travel spending continues to grow. We’re optimistic, and excited to have a great new facility to operate out of.”

About Rose Chauffeured Transportation

Founders H.A. , Jeff and Andy Thompson started Rose in 1985 as a family-run limousine company with three employees serving the Charlotte, North Carolina area. Today, the company has grown to more than 135 employees, operates more than 66 vehicles, and is the leading ground transportation provider in the Carolinas.

Rose Chauffeured Transportation Acquires Local Charter Bus Company

Posted On: 08/11/2015

Rose Chauffeured Transportation, a leading ground transportation provider headquartered in Charlotte, NC, is pleased to announce the August 2015 acquisition of MY Bus, a Charlotte-based charter bus company formerly owned by Rebecca Cherry. The acquisition offers additional services to MY Bus clients.

Cherry, who founded MY Bus in 1999, says she chose Rose to take over the operation for the “high standard of care and attention” that the company will continue to provide her clients. The acquisition provides Cherry with the opportunity to focus fully on her transportation safety consulting business.

“We’re proud that Rebecca chose us to take care of her business and her loyal customers,” says Tom Holden, Director of Operations for Rose. “We’re excited to extend them our 24-hour, 365-day-a-year operation plus an inventory of over 100 vehicles. They’ll now have access to sedans, SUVs, executive vans, and mini buses in addition to our luxury motor coaches.”

About Rose Chauffeured Transportation

Rose Chauffeured Transportation is a leading ground transportation provider in the Southeastern United States, headquartered in Charlotte, NC. With more than 130 employees and approximately 100 vehicles, Rose provides the highest level of hospitality to groups, sports teams, and individuals via sedan, SUV, mini-bus, motor coach, and executive vans. Rose’s commitment to customer care extends to the highest possible DOT safety records, 24/7 dispatch, full-time customer service staff, and the latest on-board technologies including ADA-accessible vehicles, Wi-Fi, and vehicle tracking. Reservations can be made from anywhere at RideRose.com or, in the downtown Charlotte area, via the mobile app RideRose.

Media Contact
Tom Holden, Director of Operations | 704-363-2833

Rose the Official Transportation Provider of the Charlotte Hounds

Posted On: 08/31/2016

The Charlotte Hounds are one of eight professional Lacrosse teams across the US and Canada. With a year-on-year attendance increase, Major League Lacrosse has continued to lead the sport of lacrosse into the mainstream of competitive team sports.

The Charlotte Hounds 2016 season debuts April 23rd in Charlotte at the American Legion Memorial Stadium, 310 N Kings Drive Charlotte, NC 28204! Major League Lacrosse boasts the best 230 lacrosse players in the world. They hail from some of the top academic institutions, including Princeton, Johns Hopkins, Syracuse, Duke, and Virginia.

Rose Chauffeured Transportation supports and transports many amateur and professional sports teams throughout the Charlotte region and is proud to be designated the Official Transportation Provider of the Charlotte Hounds. Go Hounds!!!