Interview
US Army veteran who served one tour in Afghanistan talks about his Afghanistan Deployment, Heroin Addiction and his journey as an Entrepreneur
The story of Kendall Tipper is not an ordinary one. Kendall was deployed to Kabul, Afghanistan in 2012 and was a part of Operation Enduring Freedom. Once he was honorably separated from the Army and subsequently from the National Guard because of an injury, his life took a major turn, partially because of the painkillers he was taking after the injury, and got addicted to heroin. However, the ‘Army Man’ within him took charge of the situation and he successfully came out of the quagmire he was in. Thereafter he launched his Transportation business Tipper Transportation and is successfully providing services to his clients.
We recently sat down with Kendall Tipper to know more about his life as an Army Man and his latest venture.
Kendall, Thank You so much for talking with us. Tell us more about your role in the US Army in Afghanistan.
I was Deployed to Afghanistan in 2012. Back then, I was only 20 and to be honest, I was definitely scared. No denying that. Since my job in the Military was that of a combatant, we used to go after the bad guys. But it gave me the skills, discipline, and will power to make it in this world. I saw alot of bad things over there and a ton of poverty. A huge motivation for us to grow our business is that we want to provide jobs for people who need them, especially our fellow veterans. I wish I could help everyone in the world who is suffering but I know that’s not possible. I have to focus on what I can do and where I actually can make a difference.
Your initial dependence on Pain Killers after your injury and several other circumstances led you into Heroin addiction. But most importantly, you successfully came out of it. How difficult was this period for you?
Getting off of Heroin was literally one of the hardest things I have ever done mentally and physically due to being physically dependent on it. There were many times when I just wanted to give up and go use during my detox period but I knew that it would be equivalent to ending my life losing everything and everyone in my life that mattered. Luckily I had my family who was there with me at each and every step, supporting me in my recovery.
Starting anything on your own is never easy. How difficult for you was the decision to Start your own company?
The idea for my company came a few years after I was honorably seperated from the Army. I had jumped around from job to job and finally found a job I loved- working as a chauffeur for a local Limousine service. Initially, my company started out as just a personal protection agency due to my Military experience with personal protection and my contact with so many high end clients. Eventually, after working for two local Limousine companies, my idea to start my own Luxury Car Transportation service and personal protection agency came to life. After realizing how well the two companies go hand in hand and seeing the huge need around the world for Luxury Ground Transportation, I seriously thought about implementing my idea. Trust me, it wasn’t easy and there are still struggles today but I am now confident and proud of what I have built.
Tell us more about the services offered by your company Tipper Transportation.
Our company is essentially a modern day Limousine company due to the fact that stretch Limousines have really lost their popularity in the last 10 years or so. We do still offer stretch Limousines as an option but mostly focus our energy on the everyday buisness and vacation travelers. We are proud to offer Luxury Black Car Transportation anywhere in the World. We take care of all of our clients ground transportation needs for anywhere they need or want to go.
So you also provide personal protection for high end clients. Kindly tell us more about this service.
Yes. We offer our clients many options when it comes to Personal Protection.
Locally in the Jacksonville, Fl area, we offer Armed professionals to drive clients and escort them anywhere within 250 miles. On a global scale for lengthy contracts of multiple days, we offer as many armed protection associates that are needed by the client and can also offer threat analysis to ensure the security of our clients.
What are your plans with respect to your company in 2019?
In the near future, we expect to grow our influence and become a household name for Luxury Black car service and to create a mark through our service. We will always offer our personal protection service to all of our clients who wish to use it. We hope to expand that section of our company as well but right now we are focusing mainly on expanding our Ground Transportation on the Global scale which we know, will eventually happen with our guarantee that all of our clients are in safe hands with professional licensed chauffeurs and insured, inspected, and clean vehicles everytime.
You have fought against some serious odds in your life. What suggestions would you like to give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
To anyone out there who is thinking about becoming an entrepreneur- It takes alot of hard work, dedication, and time to actually become successful by yourself. Many times, I see online that people are selling “get rich quick” ideas which always makes me think; if only things were that easy. Great things always take time and hard work. Nothing in this life comes to us for free when it comes to building something for yourself. If things were to just come to us with no work, no one would have pride in what they do or have pride in themselves. Building a brand and/or yourself is always something you have to work for.
Thank you for your time and I hope that this Interview will help the readers of Times of Startups so that they can take that step out and take things into their own hands. As always, you can easily book a ride for anywhere in the World through our Website and just click reserve today to make your reservation. You can also send us an email here.