Parking Solutions of North Carolina is running the parking at Charlotte’s airport and it seems to be a success — they expect to gross over $1MM this year, parking about 300 cars a day at $19 each.
This is where parking should be going — adding more service. Folks are willing to pay for it.
I pay a bit more to have my car valet parked at Wally Park in LA. When I return the van driver asks for my ticket stub and when I get to the garage, my car is there, ready to drive off. My credit card on file has been charged, and all I have to do is get in and drive out.
The quotes in the attached article about Charlotte back me up.
I know that Standard has been successful in adding amenities in its garages, everything from car washes to audio books to dry cleaning. I even think the candy that Ampco System gives out in a number of its locations are great. Its all about service.
If you want to charge more, then you can, just be sure that folks get something for their money — at Charlotte/Douglas they pay $13 a day additional for the convenience of valet parking. And over 300 people do it most days. That’s nearly $4000 a day in increased revenue — certainly that pays for the service, and everyone is happy.
I also park in the valet operation when I go to the movies. There is a huge structure near our cinemaplex. I valet park right under the entrance at the escalator. It costs $3.50. The other day when we saw Batman Beginnings, the place was mobbed. We had no trouble valet parking, plus we paid extra for reserved seats. Worth every penny.
My guess is that if you called ahead to Starbucks, and told them what you wanted, and they brought it out to your car when you arrived, you would be happy to pay a bit more for that $5 cup of coffee, if you didn’t have to park and it saved you 15 minutes on your way to work.
Take a look at your location and see what there is that you can provide to your parkers. Then do a survey and see what they would pay for it. You might be surprised.
JVH
