Easy Taxi

Easy Taxi
Industry Transport
Founded Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (June 24, 2011 (2011-06-24))
Founders
  • Tallis Gomes
  • Daniel Cohen
  • Vinicius Gracia
  • Marcio William
Headquarters Sao Paulo, Brazil
Number of locations
 30 countries, 420 cities (December 2014)
Key people
  • Dennis Wang (co-CEO)
  • Jorge Pilo (co-CEO)
Website easytaxi.com

Easy Taxi is a mobile E-hailing application available in 30 countries.[1] The app allows users to book a taxi and track it in real time.[2] The same iOS, Android, or Windows Phone app can be used in all places in which the partner taxis operate.[3] Easy Taxi was founded in 2011 in Brazil and has since expanded globally, covering the network of 30 countries and more than 420 cities.[4] As of December 2014, the company reported it reached the number of 17 million users and more than 400,000 taxi drivers[5] are affiliated with an Easy Taxi network.

The startup is backed primarily by the biggest e-Commerce incubator in the world,[6] Rocket Internet, but also other investors, including Millicom[7] and iMENA[8] secure Easy Taxi's foothold in emerging markets. The four latest series of investment took Easy Taxi to over $77 million in backing.[9]

History

The original idea emerged in early 2011 from the founders, Tallis Gomes and Daniel Cohen. According to Gomes, the main trigger for starting the company was inefficiency of the taxi transportation he experienced in Rio de Janeiro during one of the startup events:

I was attending an event for start-ups in Leblon and I was waiting for a taxi for about half an hour on a rainy night. At that time I was planning to create a bus monitoring application, but I changed my mind and decided to invest in this solution.[10]

The concept was first presented to the public during the Startup Weekend RIO 2011. After winning the entire competition, in the same year the company won Startup Farm Rio contest and entered the group of five finalists selected from scores of entrants in the IBM-backed SmartCamp competition.[11] Together with other finalists, Easy Taxi was invited to the high-tech conference in Rio, which brought together business leaders and government officials interested in solving urban problems.

The application was launched in beta version in August 2011,[12] following two-month-long introductory phase.[13] Daniel Cohen, Vinicius Gracia, Bernardo Bicalho, and Marcio William joined Gomes at company’s early stages, forming its first team.[12] [14] Rio de Janeiro served as a test market for Easy Taxi, with an official launch of the app in April 2012.[15] The initial business model was based on charging the driver R$2 per each completed ride.[16] Within the first year of operations, the company managed to acquire more than 5000 drivers and 200,000 users.[17] Upon entering São Paulo, Alex Tabor, an angel investor from Peixe Urbano, supported the company with first major funding.[12] The real turning point came with the first round of investment of $4.9 million from Rocket Internet in October 2012.[15] The fresh inflow of funds allowed Easy Taxi to expand abroad to its first international market, Mexico.[14] On 24 June 2013, Easy Taxi received Series B investment from Latin America Internet Holding (LIH) a joint venture between Rocket Internet and Millicom, securing another $15 million.[18] At that time the company stated it had more than 1 million downloads and 30000 drivers in the network. The new funds were intended for international expansion in Asia and LATAM, improved customer service and new features. Following the capital injection, the company entered several new markets, including Malaysia (July 2013),[19] Philippines and Thailand (August 2013),[20] and Hong Kong.[21]

Another $10 million round of funding and a plan to tackle a new market – Africa, were announced in July 2013.[22] The joint venture responsible for the investment was Africa Internet Group, backed by Rocket Internet and its 35% owner, telecoms operator Millicom.

In October 2013, Rocket Internet and iMENA Holding partnered together, launching the app in the Middle East and North Africa. The investment amounted to $7 million and was intended for the app's regional rollout, which started in Saudi Arabia.[23] On launching in Nigeria, the company has also announced its plans to enter Ghana, Egypt, Morocco, Ivory Coast, and South Africa towards the end of 2013.[24] The original concept of prioritizing markets that have urban mobility problems and experience inefficiency in their transportation systems[10] still constitutes an integral part of the expansion strategy of Easy Taxi with nearly all of its markets belonging to the group of emerging economies.

Awards

The company won multiple awards as a pioneer in taxi call service in Latin America. This includes Startup Weekend RIO 2011, IBM SmartCamp Brazil 2011, Startup Farm RIO 2011 and TNW Brazil Awards.[25]

It was featured as Best App of 2014 in App Store[26][27] and Google Play.[28]

Social Responsibility

Easy Taxi is supporting the social responsibility programs for the taxi industry worldwide. In Brazil it implemented a system of the so-called “Bibliotaxis”, through which passengers can borrow books available inside Easy Taxi cabs, returning them on the next trip.[29] In other Latin American countries it partnered with local bars and restaurants to promote the “Don’t drink and drive campaign.” In the Philippines, in turn, the company implemented a series of education and physical training for the drivers, aiming at improving the image of the transportation industry in Manila and portray it as safe and efficient.[30]

References

  1. ↑ Gazzoni, Marina (April 20, 2014). "De startup brasileira a multinacional presente em 30 países". O Estado de S. Paulo. Retrieved Apr 14, 2015.
  2. ↑ Velasco, Marvin (October 18, 2013). "Easy Taxi app is now in Manila". HardwareZonePH. Retrieved Feb 16, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Easy Taxi To Hit 2 Million Rides Globally". MoshPH. November 5, 2013. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  4. ↑ Hannan Tago, Abdul (February 1, 2014). "Easy Taxi comes to the Kingdom, making trips hassle-free". Arab News. Retrieved Feb 16, 2014.
  5. ↑ Guimarães, Saulo (December 17, 2014). "13 números que mostram o sucesso do Easy Taxi em 2014". Exame.com. Retrieved Apr 14, 2015.
  6. ↑ Grant, Rebecca (December 20, 2013). "Rocket Internet plans to channel $410 million into e-commerce in the Middle East". Venture Beat. Retrieved Feb 18, 2014.
  7. ↑ Kuepper, Michael (June 24, 2013). Venture Village "Rocket Internet provides $15m to boost Easy Taxi’s global expansion" Check |url= value (help). Retrieved Feb 16, 2014.
  8. ↑ Kelly, Meghan (October 22, 2014). "Easy Taxi — a Samwer brothers app — launches in the Middle East with $7M". Venture Beat. Retrieved Feb 16, 2014.
  9. ↑ http://techcrunch.com/2014/07/26/rocket-internets-easy-taxi-raises-40m-series-d-to-expand-in-asia-latin-america/
  10. 1 2 Corrêa, Marcello (July 22, 2013). "Start-up carioca Easy Taxi recebe investimentos de R$ 30 milhões e planeja expansão internacional". Tecnologia. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  11. ↑ McConnel, Kathryn (November 23, 2011). "Brazilian Entrepreneurs Innovate with Smartphones". IIP Digital - U.S. Department of State. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  12. 1 2 3 Lam, Camila (July 10, 2012). "Com Easy Taxi, passageiro localiza o táxi mais próximo". EXAME. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Sobre Easy Taxi". Easy Taxi Mexico. 2013. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  14. 1 2 Scheller, Fernando (October 13, 2012). "'App' de táxi recebe aporte de R$ 10 milhões". Estadão. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  15. 1 2 Stewart, Emily (October 16, 2012). "Easy Taxi Receives US$4.9 Million Rocket Internet Investment". Pulso Social. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  16. ↑ Zuini, Priscila (June 24, 2013). "Easy Taxi recebe aporte de R$ 30 mi para manter crescimento". EXAME. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  17. ↑ "Easy taxi alcança 5 mil taxistas cadastrados". Mobile Time. February 5, 2013. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  18. ↑ Racoma, J. Angelo (June 24, 2013). "Updated: Rocket to drive Easy Taxi to more countries with US$15M funding round". e27. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  19. ↑ "Easy Taxi app makes debut in Malaysia". Malaysian Reserve. July 23, 2013. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  20. ↑ Terence, Lee (August 21, 2013). "Easy Taxi by Rocket Internet arrives in Philippines, to launch in Thailand". Tech in Asia. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  21. ↑ Magdirila, Phoebe (October 23, 2013). "Driving fast in Asia, Easy Taxi now expands to Hong Kong". Tech in Asia. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  22. ↑ Lunded, Indgrid (July 24, 2013). "Easy Taxi, Rocket Internet’s Latin American Hailo, Comes To Africa With Another $10M In Funding". Tech Crunch. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  23. ↑ Shu, Catherine (October 13, 2013). "Rocket Internet’s Easy Taxi Lands $7M From iMENA To Expand In The Middle East". TechCrunch. Retrieved Apr 14, 2015.
  24. ↑ Sotunde, Oluwabusayo (November 25, 2013). "Easy Taxi Partners WIth Samsung Nigeria On App Integration". Ventures Africa. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  25. ↑ "Easy Taxi Garners $15M". VC News Daily. June 24, 2013. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  26. ↑ "O Melhor de 2014".
  27. ↑ Grego, Maurício (December 11, 2014). "Os 27 melhores apps de 2014 segundo a Apple". Exame.com. Retrieved Apr 14, 2015.
  28. ↑ "Melhores de 2014".
  29. ↑ Bremmen, Nur (June 24, 2013). "Rocket Internet’s Easy Taxi secures $15m funding round". Venture Burn. Retrieved Dec 4, 2013.
  30. ↑ Balicano, JM (November 7, 2013). "Easy Taxi: The Taxi Hailing Service That Cares". MobileTechPinoy. Retrieved Apr 14, 2015.
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