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Owlcab.com
3745 Cherokee St., Kennesaw
678-883-8294
As a student at Kennesaw State, Marc Dawson learned first-hand how difficult it was to get around the Chastain Road area. Getting to and from the campus and to the restaurants and shops nearby was a headache.
“I drove in this area, and I saw that there wasn’t a viable option other than driving,” said the now 30-year-old Army Reservist and father of two. “It seemed like there was a void to be filled.”
The void was a cab company that can get students, as well as local residents, where they need to be.
In mid-September, Dawson joined with partners Alexander McMichen, who studied at KSU before graduating from University of Georgia, and Brandon Skolnick, a current KSU international affairs student, to launch OwlCab. The 24/7 business prides itself on its knowledge of the KSU area, as well as towns across the northwest arc into Cherokee County. The team, all veterans who met in the Reserves, caters to students and military personnel by offering discounts.
“In the suburbs and especially in this college town, a cab is the main alternate form of transportation,” said Dawson. “KSU is a non-traditional campus, and much of their student housing is still growing, so many students live all over the area. Kennesaw (the town) is becoming a much sought-after area for businesses as well, so we wind up taking a lot of people back and forth from Hartsfield-Jackson (airport).”
The partners did considerable research before jumping into the cab business, said Skolnick, 29.
“We had to figure out what we could gross and what our infrastructure would cost, but we agreed with Marc that there was a dire need for a reliable cab company in this area,” said Skolnick, who lives in Kennesaw. “There was no uniform system to get drivers to interact with riders or for riders to get in touch with the cabs.”
McMichen admitted that he needed a bit of convincing. The Atlanta resident said his interest lies in analyzing business models and their viability, and he wasn’t sure there was enough need to warrant launching a new cab company.
“I was quite skeptical, but the call volume we’ve had is a good indicator,” he said. “We ended up acquiring two small, competing companies in the area, but we’re still getting a lot of calls from students and, surprisingly, folks with their cars in the shop or who just need another way to get around. In the last month alone, our call volume has quadrupled from when we started.”
The company has also grown from having two silver cabs to having eight and is looking for more drivers, particularly in light of the New Year’s Eve celebrations coming up.
“We’re hoping to have more by then,” said McMichen. “And we plan to make sure all our drivers are ready to go.”
Starting OwlCab is the latest business venture the partners have taken on, said McMichen. “The ultimate thing for us is that, with the economy not being that great, we’ve decided to make our own way We’re bootstrapping.”
Each Saturday, we shine a spotlight on a local neighborhood, city or community. To suggest a place for us to visit, e-mail H.M. Cauley at hm_cauley@yahoo.com or call 770- 744-3042.
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