💚 Founded in 2012 by Mudassir Sheikha, Magnus Olsson, and Abdullah Elyas, Careem is a ride-hailing service that became a major competitor to Uber in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. It started operating as a website-based service for corporate car bookings, and evolved to become a ridesharing company with car hire for everyday use.
The company’s focus on localized services and understanding regional needs played a key role in its success. Careem is led by a powerful purpose to simplify and improve the lives of people making it easier than ever to move around, order food and groceries, manage payments, and more.
Since 2012, Careem has created earnings for over 2.5 million Captains, simplified the lives of over 50 million customers, and built a platform for the region’s best talent to thrive and for entrepreneurs to scale their businesses.
In 2019, Uber acquired Careem for $3.1 billion. Today Careem operates in over 70 cities across 10 countries, from Morocco to Pakistan.
Inspiring, isn't it?
As the co-founder and CEO of Grab—Southeast Asia's super-app for ride-hailing, food delivery, and digital payment services and first decacorn, worth over $10 billion—Anthony Tan is one of the most successful businessmen in the world.
But for him and his co-founder, Tan Hooi Ling, it was never just about turning a profit. Instead of waiting until their fifties or sixties to retire and start giving back, they decided to do it from day one.
They built Grab as a for-profit social enterprise, or double-bottom line business, with the intent of making taxis safer in their home country of Malaysia and around the world, closing the rich and poor divide by serving and lifting the bottom of the pyramid.
They recruited drivers from low-cost modes of mobility, such as tuk-tuks or motorcycles, helping them increase their income while offering customers cheaper and safer rides. Then Grab made it easier for their drivers by starting a digital bank so they wouldn't need to carry cash and worry about getting robbed.
Now they have taken the next step, committing to becoming carbon neutral by 2040, effectively becoming a triple-bottom-line business.
#Entrepreneurship#Equity#Empathy#UniqueVoicesWeLove
When Uber acquired Careem in 2019 (a year after I left Uber), the UAE-based ridesharing platform with a charismatic Pakistani CEO was on a growth tear – including in Pakistan, which was the company's top market when it passed one billion rides in 2022. Since then, Careem has been forced to pull back due to Pakistan's mercurial economic conditions, including a punishing devaluation of the rupee. Competitors InDrive and Yango have surpassed Careem to become the most popular platforms in the country – but Careem isn't done yet. Now the company is experimenting to get its advantage back: Zuha Siddiqui reports from Karachi, for Rest of World. https://lnkd.in/gwVEC3kz
Uber Invests in African Mobility Fintech Moove, Fueling Global Expansion
Moove, the African mobility fintech providing vehicle financing to ride-hailing and delivery drivers, has secured $100 million in Series B funding. Led by Uber in its first African investment, the round includes Mubadala and other investors, valuing Moove at $750 million.
This brings Moove's total equity funding to $250 million. The fresh capital will power Moove's expansion into 16 markets by 2025, building on its current presence in six countries across Africa, the UK, India, and the UAE.
Moove's innovative approach combines vehicle purchases with its revenue-based financing platform. Its credit-scoring system enables drivers to purchase new vehicles, from traditional models to EVs like Teslas, for use in ride-hailing, logistics, and deliveries.
#Moove#Fintech#Africa#Uber#Mobility#StartupFunding
𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑒 | 𝑇𝑒𝑐ℎ𝑐𝑟𝑢𝑛𝑐ℎ
𝐃𝐢𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐎𝐥𝐚 𝐂𝐚𝐛𝐬, 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚'𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞-𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦, 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐚 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭? 😎 The founders, Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati, initially called their 𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 "𝐌𝐮𝐟𝐭 𝐂𝐚𝐛𝐬" – 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 "𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐛𝐬" 𝐢𝐧 𝐇𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢! 🤯 But they soon realized the unsustainable nature of that business model and rebranded it to the catchy name we all know today – 𝐎𝐥𝐚.
🚕 #OlaCabs#StartupStories
What's even more fascinating is that Ola's founders bootstrapped the company's initial operations by renting cabs themselves and personally providing services to customers. 💪 Talk about hands-on entrepreneurship! To differentiate themselves from competitors like Uber, Ola introduced unique offerings like 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐨-𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐰 𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬, 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐩𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫 "𝐎𝐥𝐚 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞" 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞-𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠. 🚗 These innovative strategies, combined with a localized approach like regional language support and cash payment options, played a crucial role in Ola's rapid growth and dominance in the Indian ride-hailing market.
🔄𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 to spread awareness about Ola's entrepreneurial journey.
💬𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬 in the comments below.
📊 𝐅𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐞 for more fun facts and entrepreneurial stories!👇
#InnovativeStartup#LocalizationMatters#Ola#BhavishAggarwal
Head of Marketing and Growth. Marketing Consultant in strategy, digital marketing, media, product marketing, B2B B2C, SaaS, market analysis and customer insights.
How much we can predict growth potential?
When I visited Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, in July 2023, the ride-hailing and (food) delivery industry was still pretty much dominant by Grab- the giant transportation and delivery service in Southeast Asia, who also took over and basically “kicked” Uber out back then in 2018. Aside from Grab, there are Bee, Gojek (which I heard will soon be acquired/merged with Grab), and BaeMin, who recently announced their ending in Vietnam. It's a booming business in Vietnam specifically. Did you know online food orders in Vietnam were worth a total of US$1.4 billion in 2023, or $3.8 million a day, a 30% increase from the previous year🤯 (VNExpress)? I was shocked to see the number at first. Then I remember, when I lived in HCMC before, I did spend quite a bit on food ordering, at least every week 😅 Inflation also plays a role, but the VN locals are pretty much dependent on these services.
In my recent visit to HCMC this month, I couldn't help but notice a new solid competitor, making the battle attractive to observe again. It is a typical sight nowadays, seeing the blue-pastel vehicles of Xanh SM on the streets in HCMC. The most interesting fact is that this Vietnamese company offers electric bikes & cars. After the initial doubt, curiosity took over, and I finally tried their e-car service. I must say, I am impressed with how good the experience is.
The ride was super smooth, thanks to the car 🚖. The drivers were well trained and professional, and though they (the drivers) still wish their share of the fee could be higher vs. what they shared with the company, they're happy with the new “job” and have high confidence in the business. “I strongly believe it will go bigger since we have excellent quality vehicles and service, and it's environmentally friendly. And I'm happy I'm already a part of it.” - one of the drivers told me. That speaks a lot about leadership, management strategy and cultivating motivation in a business.
I’m not active in the industry; I'm just a consumer. Therefore, I may lack insights and data to “predict” how far or how long, or is it even a possibility that this business will be a game changer in the industry and the market? However, I'd take a wild guess and say that the chance is high, and soon, since Vietnam and Southeast Asia generally have a high #growthpotential especially for consumer businesses with mass capacity, especially after the pandemic.
And again, just the fact that it's a Vietnamese company, which belongs to a big- if not the biggest- enterprise, it already is a fantastic thing to be praised for 👏
Uber, when will you make a comeback in Southeast Asia 🔥? And I look forward to seeing Bolt ⚡(and maybe also FreeNow?) enter the scene. Then, consumers will have more options, hopefully motivating these businesses to thrive for the best offer, with excellent customer experience.
"I'm so used to this environment that it's only when I go and visit other companies that I realize how unique it is."
Our CEO Omri Morgenshtern has been with Agoda for ten years, since his startup Qlika was acquired by Booking Holdings.
👉 Read about his journey on our blog: ago-da.co/omri-li#agoda#lifeatagoda
⚡ A reverse acquisition: Uber has shut down its operations in Pakistan and routed all its customers to Careem. Careem entered the Pakistani market in late 2015, followed by Uber in 2016. What ensued was a neck-and-neck competition, with Careem going above and beyond to challenge the giant that had raised $22.2 billion over 20 funding rounds. It was a competition between a company offering bike and car-hailing services and a behemoth with helicopter-hailing capabilities. What a spectacle it was! We all reminisce about the times when one would send us three free rides and the other would incentivise us for inviting our friends.
Fast forward to April 2024, and Uber has decided to shut down its operations completely in Pakistan, directing all their customers to its subsidiary, Careem. This move marks a significant shift. Previously, in 2019, Uber had acquired Careem for $3.1 billion, aligning the two entities as one. Now, they have opted to consolidate operations under the Careem banner.
Here are the lessons I learned as a product enthusiast:
1. The earlier you enter a market, the better the chances of making a mark; you become a reference point.
2. Localized products understand markets better, pivot faster and address customer pain points more effectively due to their knowledge of specific geographical needs.
3. Always stay ahead of your competitors! inDrive, as a significant player, captured a fair share of the ride-hailing market due to its price flexibility and choice of car options. These were the core features that disrupted the market dominated by Uber and Careem. Customers enjoyed the flexibility of selecting their desired car, captain, and fare—a perfect fit for tier 2 and 3 countries.
#Uber#Careem#Yango#ProductManagement#Pakistan#ProductSoch
3 insane stats from Uber's billion-dollar battle in China:
🏘️ In 2015, 4 out of the 10 largest cities for Uber in terms of trips were in China
🚀 Chinese cities like Chengdu or Hangzhou grew 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 than New York City
🚗 Uber quickly reached 𝟭 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗱𝗼𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵
In 2016, China was on track to become Uber's largest market by far. Uber was raising new funds at a $7B valuation with the deck below.
But it wasn't smooth sailing. The competition with the local competitor Didi was so intense that Uber was losing $1B 𝗮 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿. To gain market share, both companies had to spend absurd amounts on subsidies to make trips more attractive to drivers and cheaper for riders.
In the end, Uber exited the Chinese market by selling its business to Didi for an 18% stake in the combined company.
Travis Kalanick, Uber's founder and CEO at the time, commented on the whole thing:
"𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘨𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘦."
Exciting news from the ride-hailing industry! 🚀 Rapido, the popular ride-hailing startup, is revolutionizing the sector with its latest move. The company has extended its software-as-a-service (SaaS)-based zero commission model to auto drivers, empowering them with greater control over their earnings.
Under this model, Rapido relinquishes its role in deciding the price point, ensuring transparency and inclusivity for all stakeholders involved. This shift marks a significant departure from the traditional aggregator-commission-led model, demonstrating Rapido's commitment to fostering a fair and sustainable ecosystem.
The company will charge auto drivers a nominal daily fee ranging from INR 9 to INR 29, providing them with access to the platform's services while eliminating the burden of high commission rates.
With this innovative approach, Rapido aims to empower auto drivers and create a more equitable marketplace for all. This move reflects Rapido's dedication to driving positive change within the ride-hailing industry.
Founded in 2015 by Aravind Sanka, Pavan Guntupalli and Rishikesh SR, the company operates in over 100 cities across the country.
🚦 #Rapido#RideHailing#ZeroCommission#Empowerment#Innovation#FairEcosystem 🌐
Head of Treasury at GlobalCorp | Treasury & Investment Expert | Corporate Finance Strategist | Financial Consultant | CFA Candidate | Certified Credit Professional
Uber's journey to profitability is a well-known story in the business world. For many years, the company operated at a loss, prioritizing growth and market share over immediate profits. This strategy, common for many tech startups, helped Uber establish itself as a dominant player in the ride-hailing industry.
However, by 2019, Uber faced increasing pressure to demonstrate a path to profitability. The company went public in 2017 with a lackluster initial public offering (IPO), and its stock price continued to struggle. In response, Uber implemented cost-cutting measures, streamlined operations, and raised fares. These efforts, combined with continued growth in its core ride-hailing business and expansion into new areas like food delivery, eventually led Uber to achieve profitability in the third quarter of 2021.
Uber's story can serve as a benchmark for other startups in several ways. It highlights the importance of balancing growth with financial responsibility. It also demonstrates the potential benefits of perseverance and strategic adaptation in the face of challenges.
