Across Town Cab
By Jessica Luther

Debbie Rogalski never liked sitting behind a desk.  As a kid growing up in the Ann Arbor area, she helped her father at the restaurant he owned, starting at the age of 12.  From there, she stayed involved in the restaurant business, even after graduating high school.  Eventually she moved on to a job at a telephone company, but her desire to be on the go and helping people never went away.
           
 “I worked in customer service at the telephone company, and I enjoyed working with people,” she recalled.  “But I hated being tied to a desk, and I had always dreamed of owning my own business.”
             
When her boyfriend, Doug Armour, found himself without a job after being a roofer for 20 years, they began looking together for something else he could do.  At that time, Debbie had moved on to a small manufacturing company in Ann Arbor and once again found herself anxious to get out from behind a desk.  When Doug found a job with a local taxi service, things changed for both of them.
             
Debbie’s father, after leaving the restaurant business, had worked for years in his own auto sales/service business; growing up around cars, Debbie loved to drive and the thought driving a taxi was appealing.  She began riding with Doug on weekends so they could spend time together, as they had been working opposite schedules; both began discussing things that could be done better by the cab company.
             
“I fell in love with it,” she said of driving the taxi.  “We had suggestions for the company but they never really wanted to hear them.  With my customer service background, I knew I could do this better.”
             
Debbie began to look into starting her own taxicab company, while continuing to work full-time.  She found a vehicle, created a logo and had the lettering done, got the licensing needed and approval by the Ann Arbor Taxi board, all with help from Doug and a lot of long hours.
           
 “I was working all day, then coming home and working another four or five hours on the company,” Debbie described.  “I was exhausted; I couldn’t have done it without help from Doug.”
             
She named the company Across Town Cab, as a tribute to the Cross family in Ann Arbor, who had helped her and Doug tremendously over the past few years; they had become like a second family.  Once the company was named, approved and licensed, they officially opened on October 22, 2009.  At first, Debbie continued to work full-time at her other job and planned on leaving around August of 2010 once the University of Michigan students started returning; instead, she had to leave around February of 2010 to keep up with the business.  Her plans to add a second cab within six months turned to three months; Across Town Cab had taken off much faster than anticipated!
             
Across Town Cab serves all of Washtenaw, southeastern Livingston and southwestern Oakland counties; obviously, as Debbie described, the University of Michigan students comprise a large part of their clientele.  They are a full-service cab company, doing airport runs and chauffeuring weddings or other small parties in their two mini vans.  They also do package delivery and courier service, including delivering of prescription drugs to those unable to pick them up.  As the business grows, plans to add another cab and driver, plus a dispatcher, are in the works for next fall.

     
Debbie does all the office work and drives, with Doug dispatching and driving as well.  Both are committed to the business’s success: sometimes, Debbie laughed, she has to convince Doug to come in after working a 20-hour day (including power naps).  Though getting there was exhausting, Debbie is glad the business is now thriving.
             
“I grew up around cars, and I loved to drive and I always loved being around people,” she described.  “It’s not something I thought I would be doing a year ago, but I’m happy I did it.”
 

If you found this story interesting, informative or inspiring please let Debbie know! You may contact Across Town Cab at 734-216-5932, office@acrosstowncab.com, or visit their website at www.acrosstowncab.com.