by late 1921. After Markin received what was probably an inflated valuation for Markin Auto Body, he proposed a stock swap, in which Commonwealth's creditors would receive Markin stock in exchange for the assets of Commonwealth. This was approved by Commonwealth's creditors in October 1921 and Markin reorganized the combined companies as the Checker Cab Manufacturing Company in May 1922. Checker Cab produced the Mogul alongside Commonwealth passenger cars briefly, but soon began concentrating on commercial sales, introducing the Checker Model C on June 18, 1922, followed by a Mogul variant, the Model H, later that year. Markin is credited with devising and applying the brand's signature checkerboard trim to the vehicle's beltline. Checker Cab would move to Kalamazoo in 1923, taking over two factories previously operated by Dort Motor Car Company and Handley-Knight. In 1930, Checkers came in either black, maroon, yellow or canary. Solidifying the taxi market Markin gradually acquired the unrelated taxicab operator Checker Taxi of Chicago over the course of the 1920s. In 1929, he purchased Checker Taxi's rival Yellow Cab Company from John D. Hertz, who had grown weary of the decade-long Chicago Taxi War between Checker and Yellow Cab. The two operators were merged into the Parmelee Transportation Company. Yellow Cab previously had used taxicabs built by a subsidiary, the Yellow Cab Manufacturing Company, but after Yellow Cab (the taxi operator) was folded into Parmelee, both companies turned to Checker Cab instead, ensuring a steady demand for its taxicabs. Yellow Cab Mfg. had been established in 1920 and following its acquisition by General Motors (GM) in 1925, was reorganized as Yellow Truck & Coach. By that time, Yellow Cab Mfg. had begun to pivot towards producing motorbuses, but continued to manufacture taxicabs. Markin would go on to acquire the principal taxicab operating companies in New York City, Pittsburgh, and Minneapolis. From 1922 to 1928, Checker Cab made and sold 8,019 taxicabs to various operators. Markin's captive market strategy proved sound during the Great Depression; with Checker Cab sales holding steady, the company continued to return a reliable profit. Although the year-to-date profit for Checker Cab in May 1931 was just US$665, it was still a positive profit when many automobile manufacturers were struggling, prompting GM to rename the Yellow Cab company to General Cab and to re-enter the taxicab market. However, operators took advantage of GM's generous terms which did not include a repayment