With the recent dip in the economy, several Beale Street businesses
hope to drive more customers into the area with local taxicabs.
Figuratively speaking, that is.
Taking a cue from NASCAR, Blues City Café, Club 152, and
Blues City General Store are the first merchants to try the
“AutoGlove,” a fabric cover that stretches to fit the hood of any
car.
Unlike other vehicle wraps, it is not permanent and it does not
damage the car’s paint job. In a partnership with Nashville-based
AutoHood Media and local taxi company Kumar Transportation, the
AutoGlove will be placed on 30 to 50 taxis.
Jeff Goss, director of operations for Blues City Café, Club
152, and Blues City General Store, says that most of their previous
advertising was in print products. With the taxi ads, they hope to
reach people who may not pick up a local paper.
“We’re targeting airport and hotel clientele,” Goss says. “If those
people who are in town for one or two nights get picked up in a Blues
City Café cab, chances are, we may get them.”
Prior to last week’s launch of the new advertising campaign, one
Blues City Café cab already was roaming the streets.
“Within three days, I had people coming in saying they’ve seen us on
a cab, and that was with one cab, so we’ll see how it goes,” Goss
says.
Co-owner and marketing officer for AutoHood Media, Devin James, says
the AutoGlove is a perfect outdoor advertisement medium. The ads, which
run $300 per taxi per month, are interchangeable, low-maintenance, and
highly visible.
“[The ad] goes on in five minutes and comes off in 30 seconds. It’s
water repellant and heat resistant, and it won’t damage the paint on
your car,” James says.