Andrés Gutiérrez
Co-founder, Tappsi
Tappsi was created as a solution to the safety issue when hailing taxis. It was a valuable proposition as taxi companies were not doing any background checks. For example, certain taxi companies share the passenger’s phone numbers with the driver, and women do not like that. We could not also force people to pay with credit cards, as only 25% of the population has one. As a start-up, our first objective was to survive; around 60% of new companies fail within their first two to three years. Over the next several years, we must continue to transform transportation in Latin America. We were the first taxi app in Colombia, and we then became the largest app in North Latam; we employ over 140 people, which for a technology company is extremely hard. We focused on high-end consumers at first, who have the money to order two to three taxis per week; however, our next focus will be the base of the pyramid.
Camilo Sarasti Samper
General Manager, Cabify
We are extremely proud to be a unicorn company; part of the secret of Cabify was to enter a market that was not getting a value proposition according to what customers wanted. It will be difficult to own a car in the future; Cabify allows customers to request for a car, share it, and decide their preferred method of travelling. Cabify grew five-fold between 2016 and 2017; last year was an extremely successful year. In Colombia, we launched P2P in cars that have a regular license plate for private use. We launched a new category called Cabify Light as well as a cash payment solution. We have many difficulties with the government because we are neither illegal nor regulated; there are different government agencies trying to figure out what we are doing and trying to shut us down. We have been in talks with the government. Most Colombians are in favor of us, which will help us to be regulated since this is the future of Colombia: mobility and entrepreneurship.
Felipe VillamarÃÂn
Co-founder, Felipe VillamarÃÂn
We invented software that allowed users to add items to their cart and scroll through the supermarket. We went for an on-demand model and the project started to grow; we added restaurants to the platform and entered into an alliance with Grupo Éxito in Colombia. We started putting shoppers in supermarkets and it grew to other cities and subsequently Mexico and Brazil. One of our competitive advantages is that we are multi vertical. Having an open text feature allows us to understand and hear what the market wants. We decide to work with stores, improve the conversion, and make it easier for people to buy through opening this new vertical. As well, people order cash online as customers playing poker may have run out of cash, so they need a cash delivery, similar to an ATM to one’s door. One competitive advantage of Rappi is focusing on hearing what users want and adapting the business to them by truly focusing on service and improving the way couriers deliver orders.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
You may also be interested in...
