The Story of The AutoPILOT

For several years now, The AutoPILOT has had the privilege of writing about men and women who have made significant contributions to aviation. The AutoPILOT reaches a community of readers that are all held together by a single common thread: their love and passion for aviation. The beauty of The AutoPILOT is that it tells the stories of the people who promote aviation’s positive aspects and inspire others to take up the challenge.

An Unlikely Team

Bob Rosenburg, Brenda Tran and Ketan Solanki are the individuals responsible for the tremendous growth of The AutoPILOT. Despite coming from very diverse business backgrounds, they have been successful as a team and have proven that with hard work, success is achievable.

Nothing in Rosenburg’s early life indicated he would be successful in the aviation business. Rosenburg learned about business through his 20 years of experience in the fast food industry. “I had the opportunity to work with some really great people who took the time to teach me about the importance of vision and perseverance,” he says.

After leaving the fast food industry, Rosenburg found himself looking for a job. With determination, he began planning his next move. When he was approached by a pilot about a fractional aircraft ownership, he was intrigued. Though he knew nothing of the aviation industry, Rosenburg began working on a business plan that called for selling shares in new aircraft. When he showed the plan to friend David Lee, AirShares Elite was born.

A New Direction

As AirShares Elite grew, so did the need for marketing. They started with direct mailing. “With the best lists money could buy, we sent out two mailings and got the same results: nothing!” explains Rosenburg. “Fortunately, we had the foresight to include ourselves in the last mailing, and I remember coming home one day a few days after the launch, picking up the mail and throwing out all the ‘junk.’ Suddenly I realized one of the pieces looked familiar. It was our piece! I realized that we had to find a better way to get our message into the hands of pilots.”

Solving Problems

The answer was a newsletter. Rosenburg designed a slick informational newsletter and sent it to the list with results—not just sales results, but aviation businesses called to ask about advertising. “We actually had more advertising space than we could put in a newsletter, so I decided to publish a magazine.” Rosenburg worked on the magazine during his spare time. He did everything from selling advertisements to writing stories. As both businesses grew, Rosenburg had to decide where to spend his time. Ultimately he hired a management staff for the magazine and dedicated most of his time to AirShares Elite.

The new publishing company produced four issues that were not to Rosenburg’s liking. “My editor-in-chief didn’t like having people on the cover, and I didn’t like having airplanes on the cover,” says Rosenburg. “He insisted that the articles be about airplanes and avionics; I insisted they be about people. We couldn’t agree, so I shut the operation down and let everyone go.”

Having just lost their primary advertising vehicle, AirShares Elite was in need of a new marketing program. They decided to hire a marketing manager, and Brenda Tran was one of the applicants. Though she made it through two phone interviews, she did not have the necessary credentials for the job.

Months later, however, when a receptionist position opened, Rosenburg called Tran and offered her the job. She took the job, and on her first day her performance exceeded expectations! AirShares Elite had put together a program with Mid-Atlantic Diamond to display an airplane at one of Atlanta’s shopping malls. Tran arrived just as the marketing director quit and the program was dumped in her lap. With the success of the Mid-Atlantic Diamond promotion, Rosenburg says, “When I saw how hard she worked and how well she interacted with people even though she knew nothing about aviation, I knew she was going to be someone special. When the promotion ended, I asked her if she would work with me to re-introduce The AutoPILOT.”

Tran had reservations about publishing a magazine because her background was not in journalism nor aviation, but Rosenburg’s enthusiasm and energy was contagious. Tran says, “Bob had this belief that we could do it, so I said ‘Why not?’”

To grow the company, Rosenburg and Tran recognize that investing in the sales department was crucial. In 2003, they luckily stumbled upon Ketan J. Solanki. Coming from a family line in the print industry, Solanki saw the business opportunity with The AutoPILOT. He aggressively grew the sales department and has helped secure the financial future of the magazine. His leadership and commitment to success has made it possible for The AutoPILOT to grow and find its place in the aviation industry. Within less than 3 years, Solanki was named Vice President of Sales; today, he is Executive Vice President. Under his guidance, The AutoPILOT will continue to soar.

Full Speed Ahead

Rosenburg left AirShares Elite in 2003 to turn his full attention to The AutoPILOT. Today, The AutoPILOT publishes five editions: Florida, Georgia, Mid-Atlantic, Texas and Alabama, but they show no signs of stopping there!

Rosenburg is still active as Chairman and CEO while Tran oversees the daily operations of the business. “It has been Brenda’s marketing creativity, dedication and energy that have put The AutoPILOT on the map,” says Rosenburg. “She’s done it with personality, poise and creativity.”

Supporting General Aviation

The AutoPILOT’s mission is to support and promote the General Aviation community and share stories about local people who positively impact aviation.

Tran now fills the shoes of President and Editor-in-Chief. She says, “It’s rewarding to help promote and grow a business that gives back to the people who are the reason we’re here, and we believe aviation has a greater interest from the local perspective. Our approach, our niche, has been human interest, and that is one of the things that differentiates us from other aviation publications and one of the reasons we’ve been so successful.”

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