"The thing that impresses me," Mateo said in the limo, "is how everyone is infected and genuinely enthusiastic about the company. I’m convinced they have a great company with a great leader, who has inspired them to do great things."

Mateo was speaking about NetJets, the fractional ownership provider, and Richard Santulli, the company’s chairman and CEO, who launched the brand in 1986. Mateo, who was considering the purchase of a fractional share, had spent the day flying in a Citation X and touring NetJets’ operations center in Columbus. He had considered alternatives, such as Marquis Jet Partners and Sentient, two companies that offer private aviation programs, but after his NetJets flight, tour, and meetings—and the steak-and-shellfish dinner in Smith & Wollensky’s private dining room—Mateo thought he had found his solution. "In my opinion, you have the only credible program," Mateo told Kevin Russell, NetJets executive vice president. "I’ve looked at your competitors. If you’re going to go fractional, you’re the only game in town."

However, Mateo did not make his final decision until a month after his visit. He double-checked the company’s contract, queried friends who were NetJets owners, and discussed his possibilities with Bill Quinn, president of Aviation Management Systems, the aviation consulting firm Mateo hired to assist him with his purchase. "He wouldn’t let go of the concept until he had wrung it out to the point where it wasn’t moist," Quinn says of his client. "It wasn’t even damp. It was dry."