Elizabeth's career as an entrepreneur began in 1979 when she co-founded Air Nevada, a commercial airline that provided Grand Canyon tours and private charters for passengers boarding in Las Vegas. Under her guidance and leadership, Air Nevada grew from a small company with a single office to an international presence with 47 offices worldwide.
After selling her interest in that company, she opened and developed Condor Training and Aviation, a first-officer training program for pilots that trained on multi-engine and turbine time. Elizabeth also started EZ Casino Travel, a charter broker for all of the new marquee casinos throughout the United States. Through EZ Casino Travel, she worked with such influential clients as the Trump and Harrah's Properties and was instrumental in the tour industry coast-to-coast.
Currently, she is the partial owner SAVI Group LCC and President and CEO of Gallagher Group International. SAVI Group was born of necessity and innovation in 2008, when the effects of the 911 tragedy began to negatively impact her aviation businesses. Recognizing the population growth that Nevada was experiencing, she began to design, build, and sell spec homes. Her success in this venture, along with the valuable marketing services she had been providing, led one of the Gallagher Group International clients to request a partnership in which they have successfully formed a new design/build company, SAVI Group. Today, SAVI Group specializes in commercial building, healthcare, public works, and industrial construction.
One element that has contributed to the success of SAVI Group was her determination to earn client trust by proving her unwavering commitment in doing it right. It was then decided that SAVI Group should venture into the healthcare construction market, and had to find ways not only to be competitive, but offer potential clients greater value. When she landed her first contract in the healthcare market, she made the decision to complete the job at cost - without profit. It was a difficult decision, but her ability to see the big picture allowed her to understand the potential payoff. It was an opportunity to prove to a new market segment that SAVI Group would provide cost-effective, technically competent construction services of the highest quality. Today, it is clear that her decision has paid off, not only is SAVI Group involved in significant healthcare projects (e.g., renovation of the Emergency Room and Operating Rooms at Desert Springs hospital), but it has been involved in some of the largest non-healthcare construction projects in Las Vegas. Elizabeth’s ability to understand the ramifications of complicated decisions has served her business interests well and promises to be invaluable to the Las Vegas community.
She understands how important it is to possess key business skills needed to build and grow a successful company. Having chosen to work in the non-women and non-Latina industries of aviation and construction (among others) she has overcome many of the race and gender-based challenges faced by Latinas in the marketplace.
