Uber’s business in South Africa is about to be challenged by a local upstart start-up‚ Ryda‚ which plans to launch soon and expand its reach later.
The online business was co-founded by Tim Pearson‚ who became a financial planner after graduating from Unisa with a BComm‚ although he has always considered himself entrepreneurial at heart.
“I started a few ventures after I matriculated‚” says the 28-year-old Joburger. “I always wanted to do my own thing‚ but never quite knew what it was.”
Four years ago‚ he realised his passion was for the online world. With Johan Ferreira‚ he co-founded wheretobank.co.za‚ marketed as SA’s first banking comparison website.
The venture grew and taught the pair “many hard lessons” that they used when they began thinking about their latest online venture last year.
“That was the time Uber started getting traction in the country‚” Pearson recalls.
“Watching their growth‚ we realised they were disrupting the metered cab market.
“So we thought we’d build a platform to level the playing field for the metered cab and registered drivers in SA. That’s how we came up with Ryda.”
After developing a rough platform‚ they had a soft launch by uploading the app to the Google Play store.
“We’ve now had nearly 700 downloads with minimal marketing‚” he says. “And with every trip‚ we learn something‚ like new features to add or other ways to improve the app. “Now we feel we’re ready to do a proper roll-out.”
They are focusing initially on Johannesburg’s northern suburbs. Launching in a limited radius is part of the plan to “start small and take it from there”.
“We’ve got about 60 drivers on the platform‚” Pearson says. “We feel that’s sufficient for the next few weeks.
“As soon as we get a bit of traction‚ we hope to up those numbers. Obviously‚ the more drivers there are on the system‚ the more value there is to the user because of reliable pick-ups and shorter pick-up times.
“But we’re not going to expand anywhere else until we’ve got it right in one market.”
Getting it right will be tough.
Pearson maintains that Ryda will differ from Uber in several ways.
“On the supply side‚ we’re partnering with licensed metered cab companies and don’t allow vehicles older than 2008 models on our platform‚” he says of Ryda’s partnerships with companies including QuickCab and CityCab SA.
“A lot of drivers have come to us from Uber because they want the option of not just working for one company. A lot of independent drivers who aren’t part of Uber or a metered cab company have also partnered with us.”
Ryda’s biggest selling point may be its pricing. Many passengers might not worry much about the driver or the car – as long as the former is friendly and the latter is clean – but do care about the price.
Uber has received heavy criticism for “surge pricing” – fares are increased at peak periods to encourage more drivers to make themselves available to meet demand.
“Surge pricing on New Year’s Eve becomes crazy‚ but our prices are always the same‚” Pearson says.
Another feature of Ryda is the option of “cabs for women” – female passengers can request female drivers. Ryda will also offer a “take me home” service‚ where boozers can request a car with two drivers: one to drive them home in their own vehicle and another to follow.
“Because we’re local‚ we want to always have brilliant customer service and put the customer first‚” Pearson says. “Any problem they encounter‚ we’ll sort it out.”
The plan is to push hard over the coming months to compete with Uber on a par basis in selected markets. If they get that right‚ they will expand across Johannesburg and Pretoria‚ followed by Durban and Cape Town.
“We’re still struggling every day to learn the lessons we need to learn.
“But you have to grit your teeth and follow your vision‚” Pearson says.
The first 200 readers to sign up to www.ryda.co.za using the promo code BDLIVE will get R50 off the first ride. — BDLive
Way back from Uber for metered cabs
The online business was co-founded by Tim Pearson‚ who became a financial planner after graduating from Unisa with a BComm‚ although he has always considered himself entrepreneurial at heart.
“I started a few ventures after I matriculated‚” says the 28-year-old Joburger. “I always wanted to do my own thing‚ but never quite knew what it was.”
Four years ago‚ he realised his passion was for the online world. With Johan Ferreira‚ he co-founded wheretobank.co.za‚ marketed as SA’s first banking comparison website.
The venture grew and taught the pair “many hard lessons” that they used when they began thinking about their latest online venture last year.
“That was the time Uber started getting traction in the country‚” Pearson recalls.
“Watching their growth‚ we realised they were disrupting the metered cab market.
“So we thought we’d build a platform to level the playing field for the metered cab and registered drivers in SA. That’s how we came up with Ryda.”
After developing a rough platform‚ they had a soft launch by uploading the app to the Google Play store.
“We’ve now had nearly 700 downloads with minimal marketing‚” he says. “And with every trip‚ we learn something‚ like new features to add or other ways to improve the app. “Now we feel we’re ready to do a proper roll-out.”
They are focusing initially on Johannesburg’s northern suburbs. Launching in a limited radius is part of the plan to “start small and take it from there”.
“We’ve got about 60 drivers on the platform‚” Pearson says. “We feel that’s sufficient for the next few weeks.
“As soon as we get a bit of traction‚ we hope to up those numbers. Obviously‚ the more drivers there are on the system‚ the more value there is to the user because of reliable pick-ups and shorter pick-up times.
“But we’re not going to expand anywhere else until we’ve got it right in one market.”
Getting it right will be tough.
Pearson maintains that Ryda will differ from Uber in several ways.
“On the supply side‚ we’re partnering with licensed metered cab companies and don’t allow vehicles older than 2008 models on our platform‚” he says of Ryda’s partnerships with companies including QuickCab and CityCab SA.
“A lot of drivers have come to us from Uber because they want the option of not just working for one company. A lot of independent drivers who aren’t part of Uber or a metered cab company have also partnered with us.”
Ryda’s biggest selling point may be its pricing. Many passengers might not worry much about the driver or the car – as long as the former is friendly and the latter is clean – but do care about the price.
Uber has received heavy criticism for “surge pricing” – fares are increased at peak periods to encourage more drivers to make themselves available to meet demand.
“Surge pricing on New Year’s Eve becomes crazy‚ but our prices are always the same‚” Pearson says.
Another feature of Ryda is the option of “cabs for women” – female passengers can request female drivers. Ryda will also offer a “take me home” service‚ where boozers can request a car with two drivers: one to drive them home in their own vehicle and another to follow.
“Because we’re local‚ we want to always have brilliant customer service and put the customer first‚” Pearson says. “Any problem they encounter‚ we’ll sort it out.”
The plan is to push hard over the coming months to compete with Uber on a par basis in selected markets. If they get that right‚ they will expand across Johannesburg and Pretoria‚ followed by Durban and Cape Town.
“We’re still struggling every day to learn the lessons we need to learn.
“But you have to grit your teeth and follow your vision‚” Pearson says.
The first 200 readers to sign up to www.ryda.co.za using the promo code BDLIVE will get R50 off the first ride. — BDLive
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