ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, April 24, 1997 TAG: 9704240002
SECTION: AT WORK PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JEFF STURGEON THE ROANOKE TIMES
EIGHT YEARS AGO, Kimberly Pendleton's husband said he had an idea: Start a limo business.
Absolutely not, she said. She was a homemaker with two kids. He ran a small construction business.
Randy Pendleton saw them as part-time chauffeurs, too. It would mean financing a $50,000 Cadillac limousine on top of their Roanoke County house. ``I just thought it would be too much,'' she said.
They went for it anyway, their eyes on the prospect of more money, job security, and fun if they succeeded.
Today, she is the black-uniformed driver and owner of Prestige Limousine Service in Roanoke. She shuttles celebrities, couples on getaways and kids' birthday groups all over the Roanoke and New River valleys for $50 to $60 an hour.
The business - operated at a loss for five years - survived; their marriage didn't.
``Anything you do in a marriage, it takes teamwork, whether it be raising kids or cleaning house; or, if you're going into business with your spouse, it takes two people,'' said Kimberly Pendleton, 35.
Something felt uneven from the start, in 1989. She said she ``spoon-fed'' their business, while he ran his. His business helped with the new venture's costs, and he drove early on. It wasn't long, however, before she was driving 95 percent of the runs. With her day-to-day involvement greater than his, they struggled with the issue of equal commitment.
The marriage didn't dissolve right away; a third child came along. But conflict over the business contributed to their separating in 1994 and divorcing last year, she said.
She hung onto the business for personal reasons. She liked what being a businesswomen did for her.
``Being an at-home mom, you feel like you are losing touch with the real world,'' she said. She saw herself in pre-limousine days as uneasy in social situations. But the limo business helped her confidence.
She told herself: ``Hey, I've got three children, I have a brain and can still do things.''
Today, she and the three kids live from the business and child support payments in a different house, in Roanoke. The business - operated from a kitchen table in the basement and with a bucket and sponge in the driveway - grew with the purchase of a second limo last month. She is the only full-time employee. Her goal is to get along without the support payments.
On a typical day, she drives and works in the office while her children are in school. Four backup drivers let her put the business aside when the kids come home.
``I've got until 2:20 to really focus on the business.'' Her youngest, Megan, 4, arrives by bus from preschool about that time. The others are Clint, 8, and Matthew, 10.
She relies on a baby sitter available on short notice to free her to drive afternoon and night runs when no backup is available. Even with these safety nets in place, juggling roles ``can be unbelievably difficult,'' she said. But she doubts she could make enough money in a more routine job to want to give up Prestige Limo and her time with her children - not to mention her contact with celebrities who pass through the area.
When rock singer Axl Rose refused to walk in the rain to his waiting ride after a concert at the Roanoke Civic Center, Pendleton escorted the leader of Guns 'N Roses under an umbrella to her limo.
Driving for singer Michael Bolton, she was invited to eat a roast beef dinner with him and his crew backstage at the Roanoke Civic Center. Bolton quizzed her about the Roanoke area, asking in particular what type of industry it had. She mentioned Norfolk Southern Corp. and Trigon Healthcare Inc., formerly Trigon Blue Cross Blue Shield of Virginia.
Another time, comedian Sinbad, seeing a boy staring at the limo during a stop at a Hardee's, lowered the glass, shook the boy's hand and gave him a signed photo. Later, as Pendleton dropped him off at his hotel, he and a manager retrieved a duffle bag from a room and Sinbad said, ``You wouldn't mind taking us to the nearest laundromat, would you?''
Then there was the time a representative of James Doohan, who plays the "Star Trek" character Scotty, asked her to buy Doohan a bottle of Scotch whisky - on a Sunday, when state liquor stores are closed. She found the bottle he wanted; she won't say how. Her tip: $75.
Name: Kimberly Pendleton
Age: 35
Occupation: Owner and operator of Prestige Limousine Service in Roanoke
Duties: Driving and washing 24-foot vehicle, running the office
Qualifications: ``I was the queen of cruising back in high school.'' Learned to drive her dad's Pinto station wagon at age 16. ``I didn't think it was cool or anything like that. I enjoyed the freedom of driving, just like any teen-ager would.''
Salary: Chauffeurs in this part of the country make an average of $8.97 an hour plus tips, according to the 1995-96 industry fact book by Limousine & Chauffeur magazine.
Kids' reaction to what mom does: They mostly keep quiet about the limo in their driveway, showing it only to close friends. ``They don't want people to think we're rich. We're not.''
View of her work: ``I've got until 2:20 to really focus on the business.'' Then her kids come home from school, and they get her attention
Best thing about job: The freedom
Next-best thing: ``If I decide I'm getting cabin fever, I can opt to drive a job myself or I can go out and clean the car.''
The down side: Cleaning the car in cold weather with a bucket of hot water from the kitchen sink
LENGTH: Long : 111 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: CINDY PINKSTON THE ROANOKE TIMES. 1. Kimberly Pendletonby CNBchecks her schedule in the office of Prestige Limousine Service,
which she operates from the basement of her home. 2. All gussied up
in her tux, Kimberly Pendleton leaves her Roanoke home for an
afternoon driving a couple who have rented her new white limousine
for their 50th anniversary. Pendleton also has an older black limo
as well as part-time drivers who work for her home-based business.
color.