Cab companies jump on bandwagon to nix adult-themed ad on taxi tops

For some folks, there’s no rest.

Suzy Klass spearheaded a successful initiative to sell advertising on top of 66 Whittlesea Taxi cabs in Reno, an initiative that replaced adult-oriented taxi tops with more traditional advertising.

Her reward?

Klass, who works as an office specialist with NAI Alliance in Reno, now has another 80 taxi tops to sell — and the number might reach 150.

Following the lead of Brad Bell at Whittlesea Taxi, Roy Street of Yellow Cab and Reno-Sparks Cab told the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada that his company is willing to give up the adult-themed ads on its cars if EDAWN’s volunteers can find replacements.

Klass figures the cost of the taxi-top advertising — $1,000 a year for each vehicle — is likely to be attractive to small retailers as well as the big institutions that led the way in the first round of taxi-top sales.

Organizations ranging from the Nevada Museum of Art to the University of Nevada, Reno, stepped up to buy advertising spots on multiple taxis in the campaign’s first round.

Now, organizers are hoping that restaurants and retailers will sign on.

Some people have given cash donations to the initiative, and the EDAWN Foundation has used those donations to buy taxi-top ads for the economic-development agency.

The first cabs carrying the positive messages about the Reno-Sparks area were rolled out by Whittlesea in mid-September.

In the first round, Klass and her team lined up 80 commitments for 66 available taxi tops, so she’s not worried about selling the new batch within the next month. (Interested advertisers can call Rae McElroy at EDAWN, 775-829-3700.)

“We’ve been successful, unbelievable successful,” Klass says. “It was a snap to get the first 66.”

The taxi-top initiative developed after discussions among recruiters — ranging from executive recruiters to athletic recruiters at the UNR — about the image of the city that newcomers receive when they see lines of taxis with adult-themed ads parked at the airport doors.