Valet parking services sound simple. All a driver has to do is get into a vehicle, drive around a little, and eventually find a parking spot. Millions of people park their own vehicles every day. Anyone can do it, right?

Well, not necessarily. Because valet drivers are paid to be the best at finding parking spots—usually in urban areas where parking is scarce—certain character traits will facilitate success in this job.

Unparallelled Parking is here to pay homage to our hardworking employees and educate the public about the complexities of a job that is never as easy as it seems.

WORKING FOR ANY TRANSPORTATION COMPANY REQUIRES STEADFASTNESS

As anyone who has worked in a service industry will tell you, customers can sometimes be disagreeable. If you’re considering a career in the valet industry, you must know how to work around this to provide the utmost quality valet parking service. Day in and day out, you must be cool under pressure and willing to calmly take criticism if your customer or manager is unsatisfied.

VALET PARKING SERVICES ALSO REQUIRE PATIENCE

This need for steadfastness also applies to the less social aspects of the job: actually parking the car. Valet companies often serve urban areas, where parking garages are packed and space is scarce. Being able to put up with the universal frustration of not being able to find a parking spot is a requirement for working in valet services—and drivers must be darn good at it, considering the purpose of their job is to repeatedly shoulder this frustration for their customers.

WORKING IN VALET SERVICES REQUIRES LOCAL KNOWLEDGE

It’s not a prerequisite, but to be a good employee for a valet service, knowledge of the city's parking habits is a huge plus. Knowing where people tend to park, the streets which tend to be the busiest, as well as the closest parking spaces to your customer will all facilitate success in this job. This isn’t something that just anyone can know and often requires research or on-the-job training.

BEING SOCIALLY SENSITIVE: A MUST

At Unparalleled Parking, we pride ourselves on our friendly, personable employees, who effortlessly shift their personas to fit the given situation. Some customers, for instance, will prefer a simple smile and a nod when they hand off the keys, while others like to exchange a brief word.

Though the difference between both interactions is slight, it makes a big difference with the vibe of an event or establishment when those interactions reoccur repeatedly. Those who work for a valet company must be able to read social situations well enough to see what their customers need out of them—making the experience one to remember for their clients is part of their job description, after all.

GREAT DRIVING SKILLS ARE CRITICAL

Of course, valet company pros must know how to drive, but few people understand what that means in the context of this job. Everything from stick shifts to ADAS cars to giant trucks must be under a valet’s can-handle umbrella. Hopping into a strange vehicle and being trusted to take care of it takes guts, but more importantly, superb driving skills—better than the average civilian.

In today’s post-pandemic world, these skills might be more critical than ever. In a February 2022 issue of its magazine, The National Parking Association explores an instance wherein a fully automated parking system was created in a Seattle building. If such fast, easy parking becomes a norm, valet parking services workers are going to need to have impeccable driving skills to compete with consumers’ ever-increasing desire for convenience.

HUSTLE, HUSTLE, HUSTLE

Valet parking services are meant to be quick, so drivers must be similar: swift, efficient, and light on their feet. Not everyone has the type of personality, nor the drive, to continuously work at high speeds for hours, but those who do will find a great job opportunity in valet parking services.

NEED MINNEAPOLIS VALET SERVICES? UNPARALLELED PARKING HAS YOU COVERED

If your event could benefit from skilled valet drivers who fit all of the above descriptions, contact Unparalleled Parking today. We’re a Minneapolis and Saint Paul valet company that services everything from hotel valet to private events.

To find out more about our valet parking and transportation services or to reserve a date, reach our Minneapolis office today at 651-300-1515.