About this episode
Derrick Edwards of Premier Transit in Mobile, Alabama explains how he held overhead near zero by dispatching from a home office while still at his old job, and by letting the business rather than a lender buy each new vehicle. He pushes back on the idea that brokers make you broke, saying he cleared close to 100,000 dollars with a single broker in his first year and now keeps broker work at roughly 25 to 30 percent, behind private pay, facilities and Medicaid. He also walks through Alabama Medicaid onboarding and a plan to rent and sell wheelchair vans.
Key takeaways
- Edwards does not finance vehicles. The business pays for the next van out of profit, which holds overhead down, leaves the asset owned outright, and frees up money to pay drivers more.
- He says he cleared close to 100,000 dollars with a single broker in his first year, and now uses brokers only to fill gaps behind private pay, facilities and Medicaid customers.
- Alabama Medicaid work reaches him without a broker. Providers apply, submit credentials, and are added to a regional list that Medicaid hands out when a member calls asking for a ride.
- He is targeting eight to ten vehicles, mostly wheelchair vans, and says that is enough for his market. He holds a dealer license, so he can buy at auction and at dealer rates.
- The expansion plan is wheelchair van rentals and rebuilt van sales. He says the one local rental operator has a single van booked all thirty days of the month, and customers drive to Florida.
Chapters
- 0:00 Introduction
- 0:19 Keeping overhead down
- 2:00 Treat people with respect
- 3:22 Don't focus on competition
- 5:10 5-year vision for Premier Transit
- 8:00 Reaching maximum vehicles
- 10:12 How to use brokers
- 13:00 Medicaid rides
- 18:35 Bambi NEMT software
