Addison Lee
Encyclopedia
Addison Lee is a London
-based private hire company, currently the largest taxicab
company in the United Kingdom
.
to a civil engineering
contractor father. Raised in Kilburn
from 9 years old, he left Finchley Catholic High School
with no qualifications, after contracting tuberculosis
from drinking the milk of a cow he had milked on a school visit to a farm.
After starting training as an accountant, his father's road and sewer building business got into financial difficulty following risky expansion. Griffin left accountancy training to help salvage the business with some success.
Whilst undertaking this, and wanting a flexible position to create extra income, Griffin started working as a minicab driver. After founding Addison Lee in 1975, in 1976 Griffin founded the Private Hire Car Association in response to the Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1976. As founder and Chairman of the association, Griffin steered the debate that led to the licensing of the industry within the UK.
Convinced that his new company needed a name which started with an "A" for it early in telephone directory
listings, a work colleague who lived in Addison Gardens said people seemed to think this was a very posh address, which Griffin supplemented with Lee. The company was founded in 1975, with half the company owned by investor, Lenny Foster.
The company commitment to new vehicle purchasing ensures that no car within the fleet is greater than 2 years old. Addison Lee was the first within the industry to achieve both the ISO 9002 and the Investors in People
accreditation.
The company was listed in the 2008 Profit Track 100
. Both of Griffin's sons now sit on the company's board. Lenny Foster died in 1992, but his son Daryl Foster is Chief Executive.
at the offices of Addison Lee's software partner, Haulmont Technology. The copyrighted technology allow Addison Lee to:
The result is that Addison Lee has reduced its carbon emissions by 17 per cent since January 2008, and became a member of Mayor of London
Boris Johnson
’s “Green500” initiative.
Addison Lee's technology has won numerous awards including a National Business Award for Innovation and many green awards for reducing carbon emissions through increased efficiency.
Addison Lee's software has been applied to other industries by the company's software partner, Haulmont Technology. The first client announced was JBW, a bailiff company.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
-based private hire company, currently the largest taxicab
Taxicab
A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice...
company in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
John Griffin
Co-founder John Griffin was born in IrelandIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
to a civil engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
contractor father. Raised in Kilburn
Kilburn
Kilburn is an area of north west London, England, which is divided between three London Boroughs, Brent, Camden, and a small part in Westminster. The main thoroughfare running northwest-southeast is Kilburn High Road, part of the modern A5 road which forms the boundary between the boroughs of Brent...
from 9 years old, he left Finchley Catholic High School
Finchley Catholic High School
Finchley Catholic High School for Boys is in North Finchley, part of the London Borough of Barnet.-Admissions:Finchley Catholic High School is, as its name declares, a faith school; it is also - up to the end of Year 11 - exclusively for boys...
with no qualifications, after contracting tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
from drinking the milk of a cow he had milked on a school visit to a farm.
After starting training as an accountant, his father's road and sewer building business got into financial difficulty following risky expansion. Griffin left accountancy training to help salvage the business with some success.
Whilst undertaking this, and wanting a flexible position to create extra income, Griffin started working as a minicab driver. After founding Addison Lee in 1975, in 1976 Griffin founded the Private Hire Car Association in response to the Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1976. As founder and Chairman of the association, Griffin steered the debate that led to the licensing of the industry within the UK.
Foundations
Griffin decided to move on from driving mini cabs, deciding that his best option was to start his own business. Approaching another cabbie, they started a company which today is known as West One Cars. However, his existing employer persuaded him not to leave by quadrupling his salary, which he did, but eventually decided that he would start his own business.Convinced that his new company needed a name which started with an "A" for it early in telephone directory
Telephone directory
A telephone directory is a listing of telephone subscribers in a geographical area or subscribers to services provided by the organization that publishes the directory...
listings, a work colleague who lived in Addison Gardens said people seemed to think this was a very posh address, which Griffin supplemented with Lee. The company was founded in 1975, with half the company owned by investor, Lenny Foster.
Operations
Today, the company has a fleet of 2,800 vehicles in London, over 2,200 drivers in the fleet, with annual revenues of £180m. As well as being Europe's largest Private Hire operator, Addison Lee also operates London's largest private coach company with a fleet of 100 coaches of various sizes. The company carries out over 20,000 jobs every day.The company commitment to new vehicle purchasing ensures that no car within the fleet is greater than 2 years old. Addison Lee was the first within the industry to achieve both the ISO 9002 and the Investors in People
Investors in People
Launched in 1991 Investors in People is a business improvement tool administered by UK Commission for Employment and Skills and supported by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills ....
accreditation.
The company was listed in the 2008 Profit Track 100
Profit Track 100
The Profit Track 100 is a list published by British newspaper The Sunday Times each year ranking Britain's fastest growing private companies by their average profit growth over the previous three years....
. Both of Griffin's sons now sit on the company's board. Lenny Foster died in 1992, but his son Daryl Foster is Chief Executive.
Technology
Griffin's nephew Peter Ingram is IT director, an area in which the company spends £2m per annum, and employs 24 programmers, 16 of whom are based in RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
at the offices of Addison Lee's software partner, Haulmont Technology. The copyrighted technology allow Addison Lee to:
- Offer precise waiting times.When booking by phone or online, request a minicab 'ASAP' and passengers are told the exact time to pick-up (the current average time is just four minutes). Online bookers can even see vehicles on a map
- Integrate with iPhone apps. 11% of bookings are taken via iPhone with the company on course to take £20m of bookings in 2011
- Automatically manage the fleet, allocating up to 2,000 jobs per hour to the fleet, without human interaction. This Auto Allocator maximises fleet performance by assessing the fleet as a whole, optimising each individual job to be allocated with the shortest pick up time and the least mileage for the whole fleet
- Monitor how many calls a telephonist takes an hour and the length of each call
- Integrate Google MapsGoogle MapsGoogle Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
into all the internal IT systems. If two cabbies are in the same location, they can detect which driver has been waiting the longest – and he’ll get the next local job - In trying to reduce dead mileage, a “Going Home” button allows drivers who are finishing their shift to find customers to pick up on their homeward journeys
The result is that Addison Lee has reduced its carbon emissions by 17 per cent since January 2008, and became a member of Mayor of London
Mayor of London
The Mayor of London is an elected politician who, along with the London Assembly of 25 members, is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London. Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position since 4 May 2008...
Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson is a British journalist and Conservative Party politician, who has been the elected Mayor of London since 2008...
’s “Green500” initiative.
Addison Lee's technology has won numerous awards including a National Business Award for Innovation and many green awards for reducing carbon emissions through increased efficiency.
Addison Lee's software has been applied to other industries by the company's software partner, Haulmont Technology. The first client announced was JBW, a bailiff company.