In the corporate and events transportation industry, it’s important to offer your clients every benefit available. Until recently, however, my company, Aristocat Transportation, was not taking advantage of one major opportunity: seeking certification from the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).
Businesses that use a company certified as women-owned or minority-owned receive a tax benefit. At an industry convention last year, I attended the Minority Limousine Operators of America’s membership meeting. The association’s president explained the certification’s benefits and how it has enabled him to take his business to the next level. After listening to him, I knew I had to become certified as women-owned so that I could offer the certification’s benefits to our clients and our company.
I began the process, which takes about 90 days, with our WBENC state representative. To obtain the certification, your business must be at least 51 percent women-owned. The representatives were incredibly helpful and really walked me through the process, helping me determine exactly what was required. If you are thinking about getting certified, it’s important to ensure that your company will benefit from the certification.
After a business has been certified, the owners can gain access to a directory of certified businesses and companies. Currently, we are visiting the supplier diversity managers of the companies we do business with to spread the word of our certification and find out who might be interested in taking advantage of the benefits it offers.
At Aristocat Transportation, we have seen an increase in calls and sales after our certification announcement. We are excited to be able to provide additional benefits to clients as a result of our WBENC certification.
– Sue Jarvis
Sue Jarvis started Warren-based Aristocat Transportation 25 years ago with one limousine. Today, the company has grown to offer a fleet of more than 90 vehicles. Aristocat specializes in corporate, meetings and worldwide ground transportation.
Readers interested in learning more about Sue’s experience in becoming women-owned certified can email her.
