Andrew Marocchini: Changing the Face of the Connecticut Bail Industry

• January 26, 2009
• by Collateral Staff

[caption id="attachment_700" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Andrew Marocchini"][/caption]

Andrew Marocchini began his career working as a salesperson for CBS radio, but knew from the start that he didn't want to spend his days working in a corporate atmosphere.

"I started being a bondsman on the weekends in college," said Marocchini. "I always did it to earn extra money. I didn't really enjoy the corporate life; so, when I had the opportunity to purchase the company, I did with the intent to build it up."

Marocchini purchased a pre-existing bail bond company that was in trouble -- losing 20-30 percent of its revenue a year. He was able to turn the business around in about three years to the point where he could leave his primary job to be a full-time bail bond agent.

The biggest changes Marocchini made to the business were watching his overhead and developing a good marketing campaign. He says that the "marketing campaign turned it around." At the time, Marocchini tried to benefit from newer forms of media. While today it is essential for bail businesses to have an online presence, many were not online six years ago. It was his task to brand the company by creating a name, logo and everything else related to the company's image.

His business became BailCo Bail Bonds, and has seen significant changes in the past six years. Marocchini began his business as a partnership with two part time employees, and is now the sole owner with 10 employees and one assistant.

We're not a large bail bonding company," said Marocchini, "but a respectable business." Marocchini says that it is the professional look of BailCo Bail Bonds that sets his company apart from others.

"For some people it's all about price, but for the clients who aren't necessarily in this circumstance often, it has a professional look that gives the client more comfort," he said. "It helps us to get some newer business and it is not so much for the defendants who have been in and out of the system."

Despite Marocchini's solid business practices, he is beginning to see the trickle down effects of the economy. "Cash collateral is almost impossible to get," said Marocchini. "Before, the effectiveness of the yellow pages was dismal, and now the results are awful. Where you would normally would have had a pretty consistent flow of full-fee, no credit bonds that's no longer the case. The majority of the larger bonds are on a payment plan. Many of the ones that would have been done a year ago won't be done now because people don't have the money."

Although the bail industry is facing challenges, Marocchini sees ways to strengthen it. In 2006, he and A.J. LaPlant founded the Connecticut Bail Academy LLC. The goal of the academy is to offer instruction to those who wish to enter the commercial bail bond industry. "It was a part of our attempt to increase the quality of the bail industry and the quality of the people," said Marocchini. "We want to educate them about the business, and not how to be a blight on the judicial system, but how to be a part of it like we are supposed to be. We're trying to instill some ethics."

Besides his work with the Connecticut Bail Academy, Marocchini stays busy as the President of the Connecticut Bail Association. The association is in the organization phase. Currently, members are drafting bylaws, but by early February Marocchini hopes that it will be representing the bail industry in Connecticut.

"For years I have been going to various bail conventions, and I have seen that an active legislative association is paramount to the success of the industry," said Marocchini. "Creating a successful organization is very difficult. We have a very good, qualified board that is putting a lot of effort into the bylaws and I'm hopeful this will insure the success of the industry."

If you are interested in learning more about the Connecticut Bail Association, please contact Andrew Marroccini at 800-422-4526.