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A close friend recently asked me, why are you starting Fresh Jets? My answer: I love travel and I want to make flying as pleasant as it was the first time that I flew. It’s not about the money and never will be. It’s all about something bigger and will always be. What is ‘something bigger’ you may ask? It’s about disrupting an industry and changing the way things are done. At Fresh Jets, we will evolve the way you fly. I’m not saying this with arrogance but with the utmost confidence because our team is all-in.
The definition of travel is to make a journey. As we prepare to launch Fresh Jets this week, I thought it would be important to share the itinerary of our journey and those who influenced me throughout this journey. Over the past few years, I’ve had incredible influences in my life and without these, Fresh Jets would not exist today. This quote by John Lennon sums up how I got started, “A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality.”
When I first came up with the Fresh Jets concept, I never wanted to experience this journey by myself. Shortly after I explored the concept that would later become known as ‘Fresh Jets’, I excitedly came home from work one day and discussed it with a very close friend and roommate at the time, Johnny Sengelmann. His immediate passion and drive to learn about the industry impressed me immediately.
We were broke and lived together with six other guys in a tiny house – a memory that I will cherish forever. We were both working standard corporate jobs and weren’t satisfied with where we were at professionally and we knew that we wouldn’t be satisfied until our dreams of being entrepreneurs were fulfilled. After a long conversation, he was all-in and together, we were all-in. Fresh Jets was born and we co-founded it together as a team.
Both Johnny and myself are very close friends so we knew starting a business together was very risky but looking back on the past two years, it has made it easier because we have a mutual sense of respect between us that really can’t be described. We share the same vision for Fresh Jets and our objectives and intentions align with each others allowing us to strive. Over the past few years, we have experienced many challenges between us and within the business but our understanding of each other and shared vision has accelerated our ability to stay the course.
From the tech challenges to all-nighters to pitch contests to the pivots in our product or strategy, I wouldn’t trade in any aspect of this journey for anything. Not only has it been incredibly fun, educating, frustrating, debilitating and exhausting, but it has taught me many lessons about life, friendship, happiness, humility, integrity and success. And we’ve just begun!
Today, I’m incredibly proud and humbled to be part of Fresh Jets and I’m incredibly excited to share it all with you who have so patiently waited for these days to come when we launch our application. First, let me thank everyone who has been involved in this process – my co-founder, Johnny and our team, families, friends, partners and many other stakeholders. I’d also like to thank those who have doubted us, criticized us and given us constructive advice – you’ve all kept us motivated. My friends, my family and the many strangers I’ve met over the past few years throughout this journey make me feel incredibly privileged and fortunate. This feeling can’t really be described but it continues to give me goosebumps daily.
When I think of the many times I traveled as a kid, I can do nothing but cherish that experience. Meeting and visiting the pilots in the cockpit (even sitting in their seats) and then thinking they are rockstars, being treated like a king by the flight attendants (even getting served a warm meal) and just remembering the overall morale and energy onboard is something that I will never forget. When I think of the most recent time I traveled, I can do nothing but forget about it. Paying excessively for my bags (even my carry-ons sometimes), a flight attendant rudely rushing me onto the aircraft and being amidst a group of people who dread being there as much as I do, generally brings me down.
My dreams are constant for what the future will bring but I’m happy today that we have the basic necessities to continue this journey. Fresh Jets represents our opportunity to change this perception of flying and bring back the good ole days. We make more destinations accessible for all of you and we make the private jet industry more sustainable and responsible. The next few years will be an exciting time in our industry as disruptive technology changes the way we travel. Fresh Jets looks forward to seeing it happen and being in the midst of it.
By Timmy Wozniak
Timmy is the Co-founder and CEO of Fresh Jets, an app that aggregates private jet schedule and pricing information and matches inventory to the travel needs of businesses and individuals instantly. Become a member today by signing up here.