Cruise Car Reaches New Heights Amid Pandemic

Adam Sulimirksi and Nathan Kalin have thrived during the coronavirus crisis. Both are partners in a low-speed vehicle company in Sarasota.

A representative for a famous actor recently walked into Cruise Car — a Sarasota-based company that builds customized, low-speed vehicles for a wide array of clients — and was interested in making a purchase.

It seems the actor is building a resort in the Caicos Islands and was looking to buy some of the vehicles so guests can be transported in style from their villas.

The actor?

Robert De Niro.

Since taking over the company in 2017, Adam Sulimirksi — CEO and partner — and Nathan Kalin — President and partner — have turned it into perhaps the most successful business of its kind in the country. Sales have exploded in the past two years and largely by word of mouth.

Cruise Car has vehicles at over 1,000 properties in 40 countries, with clients including the United States government, universities, professional sports teams, resorts, hotels, airports, and parks. Vehicles can cost between $15,000 and $45,000 and the company reported $1.75 million in gross revenue in 2017. By the following year, it had grown to $10 million, an increase of 470%.

“There is no limit,” Sulimirski said. “If we do our job there is no reason why we can’t be a $50 million company.”

Cruise Car — founded in 2004 — assembles its vehicles on a four-acre site in Sarasota, though some are also made in Las Vegas. A staff of 18 has continued to work throughout the coronavirus pandemic, and no layoffs have taken place. In fact, business has been robust. The company has been up about 40% in the first quarter compared to last year and perhaps one reason has been the sales of ambulatory medical carts to health centers. Around 100 a month have been built recently.

Sulimirski, who formerly worked in finance in New York, said he took the virus seriously early on and attempted to prepare his company for it. They had conversations with a sub-supplier in China, who relayed the severity of the disease, and it really hit home, Sulimirski said, when he spoke to his brother, who works for JP Morgan Chase & Co. in New York.

“He never gets shaken and he was affected to the core,” Sulimirski said. “I thought, ‘Wow, this is big-time.’”

They devised a plan in February, well ahead of the curve, and assessed the company’s structure and functionality. Employees have since been split into two teams, with each team working three, 10-hour days in a row. They also work remotely.

“One takeaway is how much you can still get done remotely,” said Kalin. “I’ve been surprised by how well our team can function virtually. It’s been encouraging to watch.”

And yet several things have been missing. Shaking the hand of a client and looking them in the eye, for example. And it’s also hard to gauge body language on a computer. Another important aspect is traveling to a client to study aspects such as topography and other physical traits in a prospective client’s area. A university may have hills, for example, that must be taken into account when assembling the vehicle. Or a city may be cold.

Custom vehicles may include food trays and wheelchair ramps. Places to hold medical equipment, bikes, garden accessories, and propane, and gasses for the military. There is a large number of special things clients request, and Sulimirski and Kalin are always looking for ways to be creative. They might see a truck drive down the road and notice the way it holds water bottles, for example. They may incorporate part of what they see into their own designs.

“We’ve never had one car returned,” Sulimirski said. “We have a phenomenal track record. They are ready to go and we don’t get it wrong.”

Cruise Car has a $430,000 contract with the Veteran’s Administration and another with the Department of Homeland Security. Hong Kong Disneyland, Paramount, the Ritz-Carlton and Universal Studios are clients.

The University of Florida, Florida State, and the University of Texas are among the schools that are clients. Locally, Sarasota Ford and IMG Academies in Bradenton have purchased their vehicles. The Tampa Bay Rays use a customized EMS cart from Cruise Car for on-field injuries.

All vehicles are also street-legal and possess 17-digit VIN numbers. They can be used in residential areas. Some people have bought them to take their children to school at Out-of-Door Academy in Lakewood Ranch and Siesta Key, for example.

An apple cider resort in Virginia purchased a customized vehicle for $45,000 that was capable of transporting 14 passengers to remote countryside weddings on the property.

Celebrities, according to Sulimirski, are clients as well. Some fly in on private planes and helicopters to purchases the vehicles. Though Sulimirski won’t reveal most names, he did say De Niro has been a client for his resort and the company customized a vehicle for Tommy Lee, drummer for the rock band Motley Crue. Installed in Lee’s vehicle was a $6,000 stereo system.

“There’s no limit,” Sulimirski said, “and the reason we’re so optimistic is because no one is doing what we are doing.”