There's advertorial and there's advertorial
I mean, you can just about tell from the headline that this is going to be a tad excruciating, and it doesn't disappoint
And talk about padding it out. I had to go for a rest while trying to get this on here
Fortunately the photos are a bit big to display on here, so just links. But never sure tats, t-shirts, jeans and stubble are a good look for this kind of thing. But maybe the tenor of the pieces suggest the whole thing has nothing to do with that kind of stuff...
Why demand for Elgin cabs means C&R Taxis keeps getting bigger despite owner wanting to stay smallhttps://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/bu ... ohn-milne/John Milne also opens up about why weekends are no longer peak times and how he plans to compete against Uber.https://wpcluster.dctdigital.com/wp-con ... 40x564.jpgC and R Taxis slashed their Elgin taxi fleet from 22 cars to only six vehicles during Covid just to survive the pandemic.
Despite the pain of going through the ordeal, it was enough to give the new owner of the business an idea of how he wanted to run it – with a small, nimble and agile feet.
At the time, long-time taxi driver John Milne had only been at the head of the company for barely a year, although he had been manager since 2017.
Five years on from lockdown though C&R Taxis has grown to 36, soon to be 37, cars with an expansion fuelled by Elgin’s growing population.
https://wpcluster.dctdigital.com/wp-con ... 40x564.jpgIt’s a growth that John hadn’t expected, but one he has embraced as the years have passed.
The Press and Journal caught a lift to C&R Taxis’ base in Elgin on the Chanonry industrial estate to find out the reasons for the expansion, as well as;• How the increasing size of Elgin is increasing the demand for taxis.
• Why C&R Taxis don’t rely on the traditional Friday and Saturday night trips from Elgin town centre for bookings.
• And how the firm hopes to stave off the potential threat of Uber should the firm launch in Moray.
Why C&R Taxis couldn’t stay small for longAfter a 14-year career as a taxi driver, John joined C&R Taxis initially as manager before doing a deal with the previous ownership to take over.
When the Covid pandemic hit less than a year later the firm had to slash its fleet just to survive with the rest of the drivers furloughed.
The six remaining drivers found their day-to-day job changing with runs to pick-up click-and-collect shopping from Asda replacing late night pub runs.
John said: “At that point we thought this is great, a smaller company is so much better.
https://wpcluster.dctdigital.com/wp-con ... 40x564.jpg“Our thoughts then were to stay small because it’s so much easier to handle and manage.
“We’re five years on from Covid now and we’re now at 36 cars, so staying small didn’t stay for long.
“We’re almost double where we started originally. In the last three years we’ve taken over two companies, Elite Taxis and 247 Cars, and acquired a phone number of a third.
“I think we’ve grown because the company is so long-standing. The previous owner Roddie did an excellent job growing it, and we’ve progressed it.
“It’s the repetitive and repeat custom that is keeping that growth going.”
Growing community fuelling demand for taxisThere’s no getting around it, Elgin isn’t as small as it used to be and large housing developments to the north and south mean the town is only going to become more spread out.
With other public transport options limited, it means many are turning to taxis to get about.
C&R Taxis has invested in a range of cars for wheelchairs and those with other mobility issues to help those unable to cover the larger distances.
https://wpcluster.dctdigital.com/wp-con ... 40x564.jpgJohn said: “Elgin is getting bigger, it’s growing. With the number of houses they are putting up it’s getting a longer walk to town for some people.
“Some people just can’t walk to town because they’re in a wheelchair or have other disabilities.
“We’ve got an array of vehicles now, we’ve got minibuses, wheelchair motors, just to keep up with demand for what people need.
“Elgin growing though is the main thing that is keeping the demand for taxis up.
“I know some people would like to see Uber in. Is one of our next moves to an app? We need to look at it.”
How C&R Taxis plan to modernise to stave off Uber threatUber arrived in the north-east last year with the US firm offering rides in Aberdeen for the first time.
Its arrival was controversial amidst fears it could disrupt the market and lead to some drivers not having a basic knowledge of the city.
There has been no suggestion so far of Uber moving to Elgin, although last year the Press and Journal revealed the firm was taking bookings for the area through its app.
It’s a potential competitor John is aware his customers will be familiar with though, and one he is preparing to compete against.
He said: “This generation now want to do everything on their phone, I know I’m like that myself.
“If I can get away with not calling up someone and speaking to them because I can do it on my phone then I’ll do it.
“So that has been something we have been looking into.
“It’s just tricky for us because we’re not manned from the office 24 hours a day, so you need to work out how to integrate the bookings from the office with the phones in the car.
“It’s something we’re working on and hopefully we’re going to get a step forward with it this year.
“We speak closely with the people behind the SafeKab app in Inverness, but it always comes back to how you integrate them.”
Why weekends are no longer peak times for C&R TaxisIn days gone by the peak times for taxi drivers would have been late night runs after Friday and Saturday nights on the town.
Both the nighttime and daytime economies have changed in recent decades though.
It means C&R Taxis now find themselves working at peak capacity right through the week to serve a variety of Elgin needs.
John said: “We’ll book 300 to 400 runs a day between 9am to 5pm in the office, outside of those hours the drivers will probably do about the same again.
https://wpcluster.dctdigital.com/wp-con ... 40x564.jpg“Then there’s hospital contracts, school contracts, college contracts on top of that too.
“We’re 24 hours, seven days a week. If the phone rings at night we’re up, out and away.
“For example, a quick run to Aberdeen yesterday turned into a drive to Edinburgh.
“Taxis are seven days a week now. I remember when I started you lived to work at the weekend, Fridays and Saturdays was when you made your money.
“I know I’ve got drivers now who will turn round and say they made more on a Wednesday night than the weekend. It’s changed.
“People use us for anything. It’s house to house, people don’t want to walk now. It’s a run to the shop and back again, stuff like that.”
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