Forward Obsessed Resilience, Love, And Never Giving Up With Alan Lazowski
Alan Lazowski is the founder and CEO of LAZ Parking, the largest privately held parking company in the United States. Alan has grown LAZ Parking from being a valet parking attendant to running over 3,600 locations and 1.5 million parking spaces across 41 states. The company manages over $2 billion in annual revenue.
The interview focuses heavily on stories from Alan's family background. Alan's parents are both Holocaust survivors from Poland; Alan’s father was only 11 years old when the Nazis invaded his village. Through an incredible story of perseverance, Alan’s father survived the ordeal and came to America to build a new life with his wife, a survivor from the same village in Poland.
Alan credits his persistence and "never give up" attitude to his family's story of surviving against all odds. The stories from Alan's childhood underpin the culture and values at LAZ Parking today, such as leading with love, believing in second chances, and valuing employees as family.
Overall, this interview provides a fascinating origin story of a successful parking empire, from Alan's humble beginnings to running one of the largest companies of it’s kind in the United States. More importantly, it offers inspiration, wisdom, and values that any entrepreneur or leader should learn from. Alan's perseverance and philosophy is a model to follow.
OUTLINE:
(00:00:00) Intro
(00:01:30) Alan's origin story and family background as Holocaust survivor
(00:07:00) Surviving the Nazi ghetto and selection that saved Alan's father's life
(00:10:00) Father's journey as refugee to America and becoming a rabbi
(00:13:00) Starting the valet parking business in college
(00:18:00) Expanding into parking garage management
(00:19:00) Surviving real estate crash and $8M debt
(00:23:00) Building company culture and leading with love
(00:26:00) Giving second chances (Will Cordero story)
(00:29:00) Being generous and the "yes" mentality
(00:31:00) Supporting other entrepreneurs
(00:35:00) Surviving the COVID pandemic
(00:40:00) Developing resilience
(00:44:00) Continuous learning and education
(00:49:00) Hopes for a movie about his family's story
(00:53:00) Focus on people's passion, not just profits
(00:57:00) Unlocking potential and talent in employees
(01:00:00) Pivoting during COVID with new ideas and innovations
EPISODE LINKS:
- LAZ Parking: https://www.lazparking.com/
- Conscious Capitalism: https://www.consciouscapitalism.org/
- Faith and Destiny (book by Alan's father): https://www.amazon.com/Faith-Destiny-Philip-Lazowski/dp/0977959619
- Into the Forest (book about Alan's mother by Rebecca Frankel): https://www.amazon.com/Into-Forest-Holocaust-Survival-Triumph/dp/1250267641
PODCAST INFO:
- Podcast website: https://forwardobsessed.com/
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/forward-obsessed/id1615760781
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2TrkOZ7xL7WSlzc2mrwXuC?si=aa5e7790aca64e05
- YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-ldUUGxQZ5b9WPqVXz_qlfXgK3hHPs4z
- YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-ldUUGxQZ5Yt0LiPml0y6pNUSrqHzWql
SUPPORT & CONNECT:
- Digital Surgeons Website: https://digitalsurgeons.com
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@digitalsurgeons
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/digitalsurgeons
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/210497/