Gas-sipping easy rides catch on in Colleyville

American Airlines pilot John Raimondi was on a layover in upstate New York 10 years ago when a billboard changed his life. Or rather, a billboard led him to a website where a fine-print Internet link changed his life.

"A billboard with a red scooter caught my eye," Raimondi said.

Raimondi not only liked the looks of the scooter— he also was mesmerized by the potential savings over the cost of operating his gas-guzzling car. With possible layoffs looming because of financial troubles in the airline industry, Raimondi was on the lookout for ways to be frugal.

He found that and a whole lot more with scooters. For a decade now, he has operated Moxie Scooters, the only full-time, full-service scooter dealership between Dallas and Fort Worth

"The billboard sent me to a website to look at different models," Raimondi said. "Down at the bottom of the page, there was a link that said 'Dealer opportunities available.' I clicked on that, and before I knew it I had my own shop."

Raimondi still flies for American, but he also stays busy watching scooter sales soar at his dealership. His wife Kammy is a big part of the business' success, and he has three other full-time employees.

"We are one of the best kept secrets in Colleyville," Raimondi said.

Moxie Scooters sells about 20 models of scooters across three brands: Kymco, Sym and Genuine Scooters. Genuine Scooters is based in Chicago, though all of Moxie's scooters are primarily manufactured overseas. Moxie is also an authorized Razor repair center and even sells the kid scooters at Christmas time.

"A big part of our success is that we are a full service business," Raimondi said. "We actually work and do the maintenance on a lot of scooters sold elsewhere."

Moxie sells scooters ranging in size from 50cc to 500cc. The top of the line comes with all-electric fuel injection. The 50cc scooters often get more than 100 mpg, while even the biggest rides get more than 70 mpg.

Scooters are both fuel efficient and easy to operate.

"They aren't heavy like a Harley-Davidson hog and have a low center of gravity," Raimondi said. "Because they have an automatic transmission, it is twist to go, squeeze to stop. Scooters have built-in storage under the seat. Insurance is cheap, only $200 to $250 a year for full coverage. They also are cheap to operate."

Moxie sells to several strong demographics. One is college students. Another is residents of mixed-use neighborhoods in downtown Dallas and Fort Worth. But the shop sells more scooters to teachers that live within three miles of their school than anybody else.

"My customers are educated," Raimondi said. "They know what they want. They are looking to make their lives a little better, save a little money, have a little fun."

The long-time Grapevine resident, who flew for the Air Force before joining American, said business increases when the price of gasoline rises.

"Another was when the movie 'Larry Crowne' came out, which featured scooters," Raimondi said. "We had a packed house in here every afternoon and we joked that it was the matinee crowd at the movies heading right over."

Raimondi believes the scooter business is really about people. He tries to advertise at events, and keeps pink scooters in stock so he can take them to Susan B. Komen charity events.

"If people see them, they like them."

Fast facts

One of the Moxie Scooters employees, Gene Long, hosts a radio show about scooters. Gene's World is aired 11 a.m.-noon Saturday on KVCE 1160 AM.

Moxie sells a full line of scooter accessories — anything from tools and gloves to sunglasses and helmets.

Scooters can cost as little as $1,500 and top out at around $6,000.

Moxie Scooters

4117 Colleyville Blvd., Colleyville

817-788-5333, www.moxiescooters.com

Hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday