Road to Success

A Rocky Start

David Seelinger was born to a middle-class family in Erie, PA, though spent much of his childhood moving around—from Pennsylvania, to South Carolina, and eventually to Chicago. He dropped out of school halfway through the ninth grade and went right to work at a service station that repaired cars and served gasoline. “Within six months, I was running the place,” Seelinger says. Quite an accomplishment for a young teenager. By the age of 19, he was also successfully running his own towing business and working with the fire department and as an EMT on a volunteer basis. “I think I had an entrepreneurial spirit at a young age,” he explains. But despite his motivation and early achievements, Seelinger unfortunately also developed an addiction to drugs, alcohol, and food. “In 1985, I hit rock bottom. I weighed 350 pounds, had lost everything, and ended up in rehab,” he admits. “After I got out, I moved in with my family and started my recovery process. It has been a life long journey ever since.”

A Second Chance

A setback like this may have left anyone else in a state of hopelessness and despair, but Seelinger was instead even more determined to get back on track. He began working as a chauffeur for Executive Transport Service, a small three-car limousine company in Northern New Jersey. “I only lasted about four months as a chauffeur,” he confesses. “I had a very bad sense of direction. The customers loved me, but I just had trouble finding my way around!” Without the luxuries of Mapquest or GPS navigation systems, Seelinger was close to being let go. “I was desperate to turn my life around, and I said to the owner of the company, ‘I’ll do anything else you want me to do, I really just need a job’.” His boss, Alan Lehrer, had taken a liking to him and offered him a position inside the office as a dispatcher for the drivers. “I thought, that’s kind of odd…I don’t have a sense of direction, but I’ll do it.” Lehrer and Seelinger became close friends, and together they built the business, growing it from three cars to 150 cars in a very short period of time. By that point, Seelinger had become his business partner, company Vice President, as well as best friend and confidant.

Tragedy Strikes

In 1990, Seelinger faced more adversity. Lehrer was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident, leaving behind a devastated widow with four children, and a disparaged Seelinger. “I was very close to his family and spent a lot of time with them after his death. I made a commitment to myself that regardless of what happened I would always make sure that they were very well taken care of.”

Moving Onward and Upward

Throughout the ‘90s, the company continued to expand, forming a vast network of affiliate operators in cities across the country and in Europe. “We would take a reservation for the pickup in New Jersey, which we’d do with our own car, and then wherever the passenger arrived, we would pick them up through another operator, but with the same service level guaranteed.” It was a novel concept at the time and the company continued to thrive.

In 2000, Empire opened up an office in Atlanta and soon after set out for the west coast. “We opened up in LA on Sept. 9, 2001…we closed it on Sept. 11, 2001,” he notes delicately; another unfortunate obstacle to overcome. The events of 9/11 practically caused traveling to cease, forcing many transportation companies into bankruptcy. But Seelinger kept pushing forward. In fact, it was he who kept many of his affiliate companies afloat during this time. Though concerned about his own revenue, he was and always has been dedicated to helping his affiliates, knowing that they play a vital role in the success of his business. Seelinger’s savvy entrepreneurial spirit and unprecedented perseverance certainly helped the company bounce back, but the humble Seelinger instead credits his wife Michelle of 15 years. “She has helped me every step of the way—even when I would work 24/7 and would sometimes sleep in my office! She‘d sit with me at night and work on resolving issues in operations. I would have never have built this company without her.”

Oppurtunity Knocks

In 2004, Seelinger was approached by CLS, a larger transportation company that primarily worked in entertainment, five-diamond hotels, and private aviation. “You know how American Express has the Black Card?” he says, “You almost needed to have a Black Card to use CLS. They just had that air about them.” He recalls, “It was really a dream of a lifetime. Being in the business as long as I had been, I had wanted to expand into these other markets, and this company already was!” The merger combined Empire’s technological advances and infrastructure with CLS’ widespread network and first-class reputation. “It was the first time in the history of the limousine industry that an acquisition of this size had ever been done. We roughly went from $50 million in revenue to $100 million in revenue overnight! It was a massive undertaking.” But he adds, “It was also a way for me to pay back my friend for everything he had done for me after I got out of rehab.”

Duty Calls

In 2005, the two companies officially merged to become EmpireCLS. They subsequently opened several new locations throughout the U.S., expanded their global network to more than 650 cities worldwide, and continued to add more luxury cars to their impressive fleet, which now consists of Mercedes-Benz, Mazeratis, Escalades, Rolls-Royce Ghost and Phantom, the Mayboch 62, stretch limos, tour vans, and more. In time, EmpireCLS has grown to become the premier transportation company in the nation, responsible for getting the who’s who of America where they need to go. This is a major feat considering that the brand does very little advertising. Instead, business comes primarily through word of mouth. “As large as people think the entertainment industry is, it really isn’t,” Seelinger explains. “Word gets around really quickly when you do the right thing (and when you do the wrong thing), so we try very hard to stay on top of our game.” While 50 percent of their business comes from within the entertainment industry, the other half deals with servicing 14 five-diamond hotels in LA and NY such as the Four Seasons, The Palace Hotel, and The Beverly Hills Hotel. They also work in the private aviation sector with the owners of Net Jets, the world’s largest private aircraft company.

The Show Must Go On

With Awards Season in full swing, things are even more hectic for Seelinger. In fact, at the time of our conversation, he is scheduled to hop on a plane the very next day from New York to LA to prepare for the upcoming Golden Globes. “It’s absolutely insane!” Seelinger exclaims, “You go from one awards show to the next–Critic’s Choice, People’s Choice, Golden Globes, Grammys, to the big grand finale of course which is Oscars. It’s non stop; I can’t even really describe it.” He lists some of the requests his staff faces on a daily basis, which includes anything from special route planning and security detail, to specific food and beverage requests all the while maintaining the upmost professionalism and confidentiality. Because of Empire’s impressive roster of high net worth individuals, his clients require a certain level of perfection—and EmpireCLS delivers. “Not only are we making sure that everybody is being accommodated, but that it’s the way they want to be accommodated,” he explains. Seelinger goes into detail about the intricacies of award show days: “We could have two SUVs and three security people attached for one A-list celebrity. We do the route planning, making sure that we know where all the police facilities and hospitals are on that route, just in case.” EmpireCLS is also the official transportation company of the Vanity Fair party, notably one of the hottest ticketed Hollywood parties of the year.

In order to facilitate such comprehensive undertakings, Seelinger has assembled a first-class team, without which he says he would be nothing. It is clear his staff recipricates these sentiments, as Seelinger has received dozens of heartfelt letters and other tokens of appreciation from his employees over the years.

What The Future Holds

“It’s really interesting how we got here. Some of it wasn’t by design, it was by default,” Seelinger admits. “Unfortunately, a lot of companies in our industry haven’t survived, but we’ve done really well.” In 2010 alone, EmpireCLS brought in approximately $140 million in revenue. “I think the business will continue to grow in the entertainment industry in the United States and abroad,” he predicts. And if last year is any indication of how the company will fare in 2011, then there’s even more rewards to come. Seelinger already boasts his own personal collection of luxury vehicles, including three motorcycles and a couple of racecars, which are parked outside his New York and Manhattan Beach homes. And while he’s certainly living a life of luxury, he always finds time to give back. EmpireCLS supports several non-profit organizations like Music Cares, Table to Table for Northern New Jersey, the Make-a-Wish Foundatio, and countless others.

Seelinger is also quick to mention that he makes sure his daughters, who are 5 and 9, stay very grounded. “Nothing is more important than your children and your family. I’m fortunate that I’m able to go to these events, spend time with celebrities, and eat at the finest restaurants in the country! But I don’t want my children to think this is a normal way of life, because it’s really not. I make sure they understand they’re able to participate in certain things because the work we do.” He plans to take his oldest daughter to the Oscars this year, who he says has taken an interest in his work. “I told her after she gets a college education and a Masters degree, then maybe I’ll let her come work with me. I never got an education, so that’s priority one for me.” The tender words of a loving father, who despite his struggles has truly persevered and come out on top. “Some days are better than others,” he admits. “But I always have my best friend, my dog Raika, who keeps me on my game every day,” he says affectionately. “And of course, my wife, my rock of 18 years. I could have never done this without her.” He pauses for a moment to relfect on his life’s journey, then adds, “I really do have the best life in the world and I thank God for that every day. I got a second chance at life, and regardless of what happens, I never take any of it for granted.”