Valhalla Limo Company Battles for Survival

Like any prudent CEO, Jeff Nyikos planned for unexpected disruptions to business and recessions.
But the brightest and most successful business leaders or Wharton School graduates couldnât have prepared him or tens of thousands of other business owners and executives for the economic devastation wrought by the coronavirus.
Nyikos leads the Valhalla-based Leros Point to Point, Westchesterâs largest private ground transportation company. His decision to lay off all but 30 of his roughly 300 drivers by Mar. 20 was an example of the dire predicament his firm and thousands of other business owners small and large are facing.
âYou can have all the disaster economy plans, and you plan for downturns and recessions and things of that nature,â Nyikos said, âbut you could never plan for anything thatâs taking place here over the last two weeks. I donât care what business youâre in. So, weâre doing whatever we can. Weâre in survival mode at this point.â
As late as Mar. 18, Leros was still doing some corporate shuttles and other black-car runs for major Westchester corporations. But over the past two weeks business has fallen 90 percent, Nyikos said, as government leaders shutdown the economy and urge people to stay home. In that time, Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued executive orders mandating that only essential businesses remain open, eliminating much of the commuting workforce and the need for transportation, which is deemed essential.
Runs to the metropolitan area airports have dwindled and downtowns that had been bustling with evening activity from the restaurant crowds have been reduced to ghost towns by nightfall.
Nyikos said Leros does work with some corporations that have disaster recovery sites in the county, plus heâs been reaching out to hospitals throughout Westchester in hopes of recovering a small amount of business to transport healthcare workers.
âMy friend has a company that places nurses, so weâre talking about possibly providing transportation, if not (last) week than (this) week, to nurses either going to work or from work and maybe late at night because you donât want to take public transportation with no one on the trains at night, â Nyikos said.
As circumstances were unfolding a couple of weeks ago, there had been some calls from families that wanted their older parents to stay with them in their homes in Westchester, Rockland, Connecticut or New Jersey, he said.
Other attempts to find work have included reaching out to organizations to make deliveries of essential items to local seniors.
Nyikos said the most difficult aspect was telling the overwhelming number of his drivers that he had to send them home.
Heâs not certain how long he can continue to operate even with 10 percent of his drivers. If there was zero revenue being generated, Leros could last two to three months, Nyikos said.
The hope is that the companyâs lenders and Ford Motor Co. wonât ask for their scheduled payments until thereâs a modicum of business. Until then, Nyikos has been busy searching for loans and assistance.
A major challenge for Nyikos is keeping his remaining drivers safe from the coronavirus. Each driver pilots the same car, they wear gloves and after a passenger is dropped off the back seat is wiped down.
While most of the drivers have only two or three calls a day now, there is still significant danger. However, few drivers wanted give up their livelihood.
âWe told these guys they donât have to work,â Nyikos said. âWe gave every driver the option of going on unemployment and when things come back, weâll bring you back. We gave everyone that option. I canât make a guy not work.â
Nyikos, like his employees, is hoping he can survive.
âThe game plan is to ride this out and hopefully we get through the virus and at that point weâre hoping to get some assistance,â he said. âWeâre not looking for a handout, but basically some long-term loan that will allow us to operate and then allow us to bring these people back.â

Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martinâs archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/