Conscious Transportation With Longboat Key Limo and Taxi

Sarasota is one of those places where, even in a fully digital world, people looking for a service or a product still trust personal connections more than anything else.

And that’s precisely what made me want to write about Cameron DeBruin.

We met during a small photo shoot I did for his business, Longboat Key Limo and Taxi. It wasn’t meant to be an interview: just a few photos and some casual conversation. But the more we talked, the clearer it became that the interesting part wasn’t his service. It was his attitude toward work, people, and responsibility.

At some point, I asked him, almost jokingly, what he actually does every day.

He said, “I work.”

I laughed and said that sounded boring.

He looked at me and answered, very calmly, “How can it be boring if I meet interesting people every single day?”

Cameron moved from California to Sarasota in the early 2000s and has lived here since 2002. He started his transportation business in 2009, long before ride-sharing apps changed the way people move around cities. Back then, everything worked differently. You called someone. You remembered names.

His original business was called Conscious Cab of Sarasota. And the word “conscious” wasn’t branding. It was literal. It meant paying attention to people, timing, and situations.

Later, the name changed as the business evolved, becoming what is now known as Longboat Key Limo and Taxi, while the philosophy behind it remained the same.

When Cameron talks about his work, he starts with people, and the kind of requests you can’t hand to a random driver.

Picking up something important that needs to be delivered carefully, not just dropped off. Driving a client’s own car to the airport so they don’t have to worry about parking or timing.Helping someone move personal things when they’re settling into a new place. Running errands that require explanation and trust, not just an address in an app. Handling situations where timing matters and where the person on the other end must understand what’s needed. These are the kinds of requests that don’t fit into an app. They require a conversation and someone who actually listens.

At one point, I asked Cameron what really separates his work from something like Uber.

“Most drivers just drive,” he said. “I pay attention.”

One of the drivers once picked up George Clooney without realizing it until the end of the ride. Another time it was Cher. No excitement. No selfies. Just the same calm, respectful treatment as anyone else.

Because the point was never who sat in the back seat, the point was how they were treated.

What struck me most during our conversation was how naturally Cameron spoke about connection. Not in a trendy or spiritual way. Just matter-of-fact.

We exchange energy all day long. With the barista. With the cashier. With the driver who takes us somewhere. Those interactions shape our day more than we realize.

And in a world that keeps automating everything, that human layer becomes more valuable, not less.

Longboat Key Limo and Taxi is about consistency. Presence.

And that, more than any marketing strategy, is why this business works.

Photos: iruphotos.com