Hossein Ansary is a combatant in Montreal's great limousine war, with a cheap but effective weapon. It's a telephone number that cost him $25,050 and brings in close to double that amount each week, he says.
The number once belonged to Samson Limousine Ltd. of Dorval, whose sleek dark-blue cars were a familiar sight for five years to travellers passing through Dorval airport until the company lost the exclusive service contract last year.
Ansary is a former Samson broker - an independent driver with contracts to operate six Samson cars and use the company's stand at the airport. Now he heads Contact Limousine Inc., a Lachine-based outfit he set up with 14 other former Samson brokers. Contact operates without a limousine permit from the Quebec government. And it's not alone.
A 4-year-old moratorium on new permits has led to the emergence of many so-called "gypsy" firms. The new hustlers are fuelling an already intense war among operators for the city's small and highly competitive market.
For the customers, the fact the company that operates the limousine they ride in has no permit is not a problem. Quebec's no-fault insurance system will still compensate passengers for injuries suffered in an accident.
And there are big benefits for the customers in what's happening. They have a wider choice of firms to choose from and there's the beginnings of a price war.
But for the companies, operating with and without a permit, the city is a business battleground.
According to Paul Hershorn, president of Murray Hill, the "limousine war is heating up . . . and it's hurting us." He said his permit-less rivals are taking 15 to 20 per cent of the potential business away from his firm.
Since Samson went bankrupt last month, Murray Hill is the only limousine operator in Quebec with a permit to operate more than one car.
Contact bought Samson's telephone number from the bankruptcy trustee, Ansary said. It was one "asset" Ansary and his partners were able to obtain from a company in which, he said, they lost an investment of about $200,000.
Ansary said he has no choice but to operate Contact without a permit.
"I'm not an outlaw," he insisted. "I begged the government to give me an emergency permit.
"I can show you over $12,000 in legal fees I spent . . . just trying to approach the government.
Ansary said he is still running his business on the advice of lawyers.
"I feel I am legal. I paid for the insurance, for the cars, and people call me out of choice."
He argues that he is simply trying to keep his clients until he can bid for Samson's limousine permits. They go up for public tender today, through trustee Morley Miller of M. Miller and Associates Ltd.
Tenders close Jan. 16. But the winning bidder needs approval from the Quebec Transport Commission for the transfer of the permits, which could take three to 10 months.
"We're cheaper than everyone else," Ansary boasts.