Mary Young ’ s story in the motorcoach and tour industry began 30 years ago , but Capitol Tours will celebrate its 40th anniversary in August 2021 . Her husband , Buddy Young , started the company in 1981 when Mary was working as a registered nurse at a local hospital . In 1990 Buddy , who was also a fighter pilot for the South Carolina Air National Guard , was called to active duty in Operation Desert Storm . Mary stepped in to keep the family business going and it was the beginning of a whole new career . Over the years , the Youngs have been involved in paddlewheel boats , an ambulance service and charter buses , but now work daily in their charter and tour business .
Located in West Columbia , South Carolina , Capitol Tours currently operates eight motorcoaches and serves customers of all types from students to seniors and churches to military units . Capitol specializes in providing group charters , custom tours and student travel throughout the southeast . “ We ’ ve worked hard to focus on our customers and pride ourselves on reliability and world-class service .” Mary says , “ The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly had a significant impact on our business , but being nimble with our team of ‘ can do ’ employees has helped us adapt and survive .”
Capitol truly is a family business with Mary , Buddy and their son , Matt , working daily to grow a better business . Matt grew up in the business and spent nearly a decade after college outside the business as a CPA in both public and corporate accounting . Rejoining the company in 2018 , he has brought new perspective and moved the company forward with technology enhancements both in the office and on the motorcoaches . With a renewed emphasis on the customer experience , they experienced double digit growth in both 2018 and 2019 . “ We are looking forward to getting back to business after the pandemic subsides and getting our customers back on the road ,” Mary says .
In addition to her work at Capitol , Mary is involved in the industry at the state level with the Motorcoach Association of South Carolina , as well as the national level with the American Bus Association ( ABA ). She attends the annual ABA Marketplace and served on ABA ’ s Top 100 Event selection committee . Mary was recognized as the first Women In Buses – Woman of the Year award in 2014 , which recognizes an individual or company who has directly impacted the advancement and promotion of women within and among the motorcoach , tourism and hospitality industry .
Mary is one of the original members of Women In Buses and remembers when during its first year it was simply a social event to bring together women in the industry . It did not take long to establish formal meetings at Marketplace and then hold quarterly conference calls . Mary is excited to watch Women in Buses grow and to see so many others in the industry get involved .
Buddy and Mary met in high school and will celebrate their 44th wedding anniversary this fall . Mary says , “ If someone had told us all those years ago that we would be in the bus business , we wouldn ’ t have believed them ! But , we are grateful to be a part of this industry .”
SOUTH CAROLINA
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