August 24, 2016 – New York, New York
We are in those last precious weeks of August and by some fantastic stroke of luck, the weather is lovely (versus sweltering).
As is typical for this time of year, life in general, has morphed into a slow(er), quiet(er) pace. I mean, dare I say, it’s almost, sort of…relaxing. It’s the calm before the storm actually, as we all know what’s coming….Fall! (I write as a big smile comes across my face, I love Fall in NYC).
But, I digress.
I decided to write this piece, sans an interview, but just about an experience I had that was rather noteworthy and fit within the general theme of Conversations with Friends. Why? 1) Because I made a new friend as a result and, 2) I experienced a very cool business that is taking NYC by storm (and many other markets as well). Curious? Read on….
The story goes, a few weeks ago, it wasn’t so relaxing….it was HOT. Like a 100 degrees in the shade kind of inescapable hot. If you have ever been in the City during those kind of days, you can appreciate that getting “dressed” for work is almost a complete waste of time. While you wake-up with all good intentions in your air-conditioned apartment and pick out a nice summery dress, do your hair and make-up and select some very adorable open-toed footwear…within seconds of steeping outside, you basically melt. And that pretty much wrecks what you have just spent at least the past half hour doing…oh, yea, and then …gasp….you have to get on the subway. Day ruined before 8:30AM.
Ok, so what does this have to do with making a new friend and a great new business? I’m getting to that, just setting the stage.
One afternoon, during this hotter than hotness, I was in Midtown and had to get back to the Upper East Side. I was coming from a meeting, in a nice dress and heels…and the thought of hoping the subway made me almost burst into tears. I just didn’t want to “melt”. But, lucky for me, I had been introduced to a wonderful car service a few weeks prior to that called Via.
For those of you who haven’t heard of Via, take note! It’s a new car service, piloted in NYC and now in Chicago and I think just launched in DC, too. And I’m pretty sure it will continue to sprout up in metro markets around the country.
I actually first heard of it through an “in the know” friend a while ago. When we were about to part company, she looked at me in shock as said I was about to hop on the train. To that I responded with a shrug “What?” look. She smiled and rolled her eyes and said, “Honey, I’m never taking the train again. You gotta download the Via app.” with a slight “that was so yesterday” shake of the head and pat on the shoulder. As I started to inquire, she said, “Oh! Sorry, it’s here!” and ran off. (If you have taken a Via, you’ll understand that she wasn’t being rude by running off…it’s the way it works, you have to meet the car at a certain time). So I thought about it for a minute, then forgot the whole episode.
Then, about a month later I got an invitation from a charity I’m involved with. They were hosting a breakfast and the speaker was slated to be none other than the founder of Via (Daniel Ramot). I thought about it for a second and said to myself, “Ooooh, I remember hearing about this…”.
I went, I heard and was so excited about it that it was the catalyst for me switching from a Windows phone to a Samsung. (Windows doesn’t support the Via app… and while I truly loved my Windows phone, sadly it can’t provide me with $5 rides around the city thus enabling me to avoid the subway. Trade-off’s!)
Well, let me tell you, Via is not only a game-changer and it’s a life-changer. It’s the kind of new discovery that makes you want to sing out loud, like Opera voice sing out loud! (Again, it’s $5 per ride, from any point to any point in the City. Yup, true.)
So, back to that hotter than hot afternoon. I punch in my info in my new favorite app, Via and within minutes, get picked up in a lovely, air-conditioned SUV and off I go to the UES. You have no idea how nice it is to just get picked and go when you are used to either public transportation or poorly ventilated taxis (both of which tend to smell pretty awful by around 4PM on a 100-degree day, hence the brink of tears).
Sitting next to me in the SUV is a guy, nicely dressed, looks about my age and is reading a book. That in itself is a miracle because reading while riding in stop and go traffic is a not easy, and for me not even possible. So, I say “hey!”, he nods back. And then ask him about the book and how he reads in traffic…we just start chatting and so it goes. (BTW, NYer’s are really friendly people in general – and some of us even tend to be chatty)
By the time we get up to the East 80’s the conversation turns to how much we LOVE Via. Turns out, he knew about it early on and was part of the pilot program. I said I just saw the founder at a breakfast. Then we figured out we may know some of the same people and then asked each other what we do for a living.
Turns out my now new friend Ron, is a banker whose firm specializes in working with small businesses just like mine. We met for coffee soon after, we came to realize that we are both very interested in Israel and Israeli business (Via was founded by an Israeli) and know quite a few of the same people through different charity and business involvements. And yup, we now plan to do business together at some point in the future!
You truly never know where the day might take you and who you might meet…so try to enjoy the ride…especially when you travel via Via.
Conversations with Friends was developed by Hilarie Viener as a way of sharing enlightening and entertaining conversations, she was having with many of her friends – who happen to be thought-leaders and game-changers.
Ms.Viener is the founder of Viener&Partners, a brand and marketing consultancy based in Manhattan. She and her Partners have been fortunate enough to have worked with over 100 brands (and counting) from start-ups to Fortune 100’s, all over the globe. Prior to launching V&P, Hilarie was Executive Vice President, North America of The Value Engineers, global brand consultancy and President of branding and digital agency, WONDER. Ms. Viener is a graduate of American University’s School of Communication in Washington, DC. She began her career at Wells Rich Greene Advertising, then moved on to roles at Griffin Bacal, Lowe & Partners and BBDO.
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