SAN ANTONIO — More Americans are choosing a limo or private car service to get from point A to point B this holiday season.
For the chauffeur industry, it's a welcome boost following a hard hit in 2020.
The challenge now is finding more cars with enough people to drive them.
"It's been night and day," said Andy Hernandez, President of CTA Worldwide Chauffeured Transportation, when comparing December 2020 business to December 2021.
CTA Worldwide, with services in San Antonio and Austin, is booked and busy.
"The demand was through the roof come September," said Hernandez. "We are sold out on most days."
This December, company Christmas events are back. Those celebrations, along with Christmas light tours and yearly activities returning in 2021 are driving demand.
"Corporate is moving, university travel is moving, sports teams, fans, they're moving around again," Hernandez explained.
With more booking requests, Hernandez says he's in the market for 10 to 15 more vehicles.
"We're still hitting those dealerships every day to see if anything's come in," he said. "We scaled down from about 50 [vehicles] to 25 due to COVID. We need to get up to at least 35 or 40 by this time next year."
Hernandez was able to put in orders on a few new Suburbans, but not enough to replenish the fleet. The problem is, the vehicles he needs are hard to find.
"Companies are having a tough time getting vehicles because of the chip shortage and they're having a tough time getting people to drive," said Robert Alexander, President of the National Limousine Association (NLA) and CEO of RMA Worldwide.
A member survey by the NLA, says 82% of chauffeur businesses are also struggling with hiring challenges. Drivers are much-needed.
The NLA says 80% of business owners are securing more holiday bookings - a third of which experienced a growth of 25% or more since last year.
"We're in the holidays and people want to reconnect," said Alexander. "That's where I think there's a lot of pent up demand."
Even with the boost in sales, CTA Worldwide is halfway to their 2019 numbers.
Hernandez remains optimistic that the trend will continue upward.
"The 2022 year, it's going to be like it's 2019 again," he added.
"I believe next year is going to be great, and it's going to be a great year for everyone. It's just a matter of how and when," said Alexander. "We're part of that ecosystem that creates jobs. It's something that I hope this new variant doesn't put a damper on."