Brothers John Benjamin and Larry Benjamin, owners of Northfield, Minn.-based Northfield Lines, have always been close, so naturally, when Larry had the opportunity to switch careers and take over a local school bus operation, he asked John to hop aboard.

"We had 11 children in our family. Larry and I had always been pretty tight," John says. "We had one older brother who had been killed in a car accident, so it was just Larry and I and the rest were all girls." John, an electrical engineer at the time, agreed to go into business with Larry, and on Jan. 1, 1989, the brothers got started with seven motorcoaches and 30 school buses.

"We really didn't have prior bus experience before that," John recalls. "He was looking for a different type of business to get into."

Larry, who passed away last November, had forged a career in the restaurant business, was successful in car sales and drove a school bus every day for supplemental income for family vacations.

Meanwhile, the owner of an area school bus company decided to buy a local motorcoach business and hired Larry to run it. "After about two or three years he was going to retire, and [offered] Larry the opportunity to experience what the bus business was like," John explains.

Larry operated the motorcoach side of the business, Northfield Lines, for three years, while John managed the school bus end of operations, Benjamin Bus. Larry bought the business when the original operator retired. Over the years, Northfield Lines grew to 37 motorcoach vehicles, and Benjamin Bus expanded to 80 school buses.

What John remembers most about the early days of the business is the first time he and Larry bought several new Van Hool motorcoaches from ABC Companies in 1991.

"We were expanding. We had some over-the-road, long-haul type business that we could move these into. And, I think it was just like buying your first new car. It's kind of an exciting time," John says.
Eventually, the brothers grew the operation, providing premium motorcoach, charter, shuttle and daily route service to a varied customer base throughout Minnesota. In February, 2011, they were named

"Business People of the Year" by the Northfield  Chamber of Commerce.
"Larry made a wise choice when he had John join him in the business," Pam Williams, sales manager and Northfield Lines' first full-time employee, says. "John is a very level-headed person and is not afraid to ask for input [from others]. He didn't come from a transportation background, yet has exceeded many others that have."

Caring workplace
Williams adds that John always makes time to listen to all his employees. "He takes the time and really cares, always asking how it's going, checking in with us about our families, what our kids are up to," she says. "All employees, — [from] school bus, motorcoach [and] van drivers to the mechanics and detailing staff — we all matter."

Like John, Larry was also closely connected with and encouraging of staff members. "He would say, 'If you believe in it, go with it. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, don't be afraid to take a chance...one never knows if you don't try.'" Williams recalls.

Deeply involved in the industry, Larry served on the United Motorcoach Association (UMA) since 2005, and on the International Motorcoach Group board of directors. John has served on the Minnesota School Bus Operators Association since 2004 and won the National School Transportation Association Golden Merit Award in 2002.

To honor their exceptional achievements in the industry, METRO Magazine chose John and Larry Benjamin as its 2012 Motorcoach Operator of the Year. METRO Publisher Frank DiGiacomo presented the award to John Benjamin and Larry Benjamin's family at the UMA's 2012 Motorcoach Expo in Long Beach, Calif., in February. [PAGEBREAK]

Diverse customer base, fleet
What makes Northfield successful, John says, is the diversification in the business, with a customer base running the gamut from corporate employees and convention customers, high school and college transportation to wedding bus shuttles.

Northfield also diversifies its equipment, offering vehicles ranging in variety from 56-passenger motorcoaches to mini-vans, with a fleet mix of Van Hools, MCIs, Setras and even one Mercedes-Benz Sprinter minibus. "When somebody calls, we can fit the vehicle to the customer," Benjamin says.

Recently, Northfield expanded its contractual business by bringing on a few local Fortune-500 companies, operating employee shuttles for them. Two years ago, Northfield started a commuter shuttle between Northfield, Minn. and Minneapolis-St. Paul, which runs four times a day. "That particular business works well because we've got two colleges here in town," John explains. "Students use it quite a bit to get to Minneapolis-St. Paul, which is 45 miles north of Northfield."

Next steps for Northfield include a goal to continue expanding the business slowly, primarily with more contractual business. In particular, Northfield plans to target more corporate employee shuttle customers, and nearby colleges, of which there are about 20, including the University of Minnesota.

John advises other motorcoach operators looking to increase business to consider diversification, both in their fleet and customer base. There are times when certain segments of the market don't do well, he points out, using colleges as an example.

"They're tight for money right now, as are a lot of businesses, so they're looking for ways to save money. That makes them a little more ready to look for alternative means of transportation," he says. "If you've got a diversified fleet, you might be able to help save them money."

Valued industry contributor
As the chairman of the UMA convention, and member of the UMA Meetings Committee, the Legislative and Regulatory Committee and the Marketing Committee over the last two years, Larry held an invaluable influence in the industry and was very devoted to it, Victor Parra, president and CEO, UMA, says.

"Larry was a very hands-on leader, especially when it came to the convention," he adds. "He  helped [us] through the big picture each year when we established our theme and the education sessions we wanted to cover. Larry was instrumental in doing all of that."

As a result, Parra says, Larry had a unique ability to represent the thinking of the industry very effectively. He recalls that during the process of selecting sessions and topics and gathering research and feedback from members about the issues that they were struggling with, Larry provided "a sense of reality," translating many of those issues so that the education sessions were timely, and topics were on point.

"He would take some of that thinking and say, 'Ok, here's what we're really talking about. Here's what we really need to address.' He was a reflection of the industry in that respect. That really helped us," Parra says.

Too often with volunteer boards, he adds, factions will form, and Larry was able to bring everyone back together. "Larry said, 'What's important is for us to figure out what we can do to help the situation, be successful and give our members the competitive edge," Parra observes. "He was good about shoving aside that trivial stuff and focusing on the important issues. [He was] engaged to make sure we stayed true to our mission: helping our members and the industry be successful."

Parra adds that Larry was loved and well-respected throughout the industry and left Northfield in good hands, with "all the i's dotted and the t's crossed."

"That's a very difficult thing to do. It showed tremendous character, which, if you knew Larry, doesn't surprise you," he says.
"This has always been a family-run business and Larry has been a big part of that for many years," John says. "I, along with our employees and other people in the industry, will greatly miss him."