An on-the-water towboat company that helps Southwest Florida boaters get home safely was singled out for its professionalism at the BoatUS Towing Services Annual Conference recently held in Tampa, FL. Tower of the Year honors went to TowBoatUS Cape Coral, which is owned and operated by Capt. Richard Paul and Capt. Jay McMillin. The company has locations in Cape Coral, Ft. Myers Beach and North Ft. Myers. Services offered include jump-starts, soft ungroundings, tows back to launch ramps, marinas or home docks, and fuel drop offs.
Paul’s and McMillin’s locally-owned company is part of a nationwide network of 300 ports and fleet of 600 TowBoatUS and Vessel Assist towboats. The company was honored for its near-perfect towing dispatch operation, superior customer service and satisfaction, as well as towing case management. The company also ranked fifth in the fleet for new membership sales. Additionally, TowBoatUS Cape Coral was honored with the distinguished Dispatchers Choice of the Year Award for the Gulf Coast States region—for the second year in a row.
Paul and McMillin first met over 17 years ago working at Publix Supermarkets, where both were former store managers before retiring and purchasing their first location, TowBoatUS Cape Coral, in 2005. Since then, they have expanded their operations to Ft. Myers Beach as well as North Ft. Myers. These additional locations have led to faster on-the-water response times, greatly decreasing the time it takes to arrive on scene. “With close to 2000 on-the-water tows annually, as well as un-groundings, adding these ports has been a huge complement to our business,” said Capt. Paul.
“What sets Paul’s and McMillin’s operation apart, is their deep commitment to marketing efforts that have really helped spread the word about our on-the-water towing services,” said BoatUS Vice President of Towing Services Jerry Cardarelli. “We are also very proud of their staffs’ professionalism and their deep commitment to providing Outstanding Customer Service.” Much like an auto club, BoatUS Towing Services offers an “unlimited” towing plan for Florida boaters for just $149 a year, which includes BoatUS membership. Without a towing plan, the national average out-of-pocket cost for a tow is about $600. For another $14, those who trailer their boats on the road can also take advantage of BoatUS’ Trailer Assist program which will tow both a boat trailer and tow vehicle up to 100 miles to a safe location or home.
BoatUS—Boat Owners Association of The United States—is the nation’s leading advocate for recreational boaters providing over half a million members with government representation, programs and money-saving services. For membership information visit www.BoatUS.com or call 800-395-2628.
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