Bengaluru-based ride-hailing app, Namma Yatri, has just got a significant boost following its announcement of $11 million (approximately 92 crores) in pre-Series A funding. Lead investors were Blume Ventures and Antler. Joining them are tech giant Google, among others.
Image Source: Entractr
Waves in the mobility sector
Namma Yatri represented by Moving Tech Innovations Ltd. has taken the mobility sector by storm. Namma Yatri found its way by servicing the needs of auto drivers without charging them any commissions. Somehow, that clicked with the drivers, and this was the brilliant start to the growth story. In September last year, Namma Yatri introduced subscription fees for its drivers. Then, in April, it expanded into offering cab services in Bengaluru, its biggest market.
This strategic move has positioned it head-on against the growing competition from existing players Ola and Uber. With the new capital coming in, Namma Yatri will therefore try to push the earnings of their drivers further. Empowered drivers mean a value-for-money deal for both service providers and passengers.
Various Investors
Being one of the leading venture capital firms, Blume Ventures looks forward to the potential of Namma Yatri in transforming the ride-hailing domain. Their investment underlines belief in the vision and execution of the startup. The participation by Antler jumpstarts Namma Yatri’s journey. We have seen Antler supporting groundbreaking startups and working to nurture their growth.
The involvement by the tech giant outlines the importance of Namma Yatri in the technology-enabled mobility sector. The intervention of Google may open doors for strategic collaborations and technological advancements.
Challenges faced by Namma Yatri in the ride-hailing market
Namma Yatri still encounters various challenges in the competitive ride-hailing market of Bengaluru. Being a relatively new platform, the number of riders on Namma Yatri is negligible compared to that of more established competitors like Ola, Rapido, and Uber. Building a bigger fleet of riders and creating a larger user base is important for sustaining growth over time. There is a need to have more drivers on board and for them to be consistently active on the platform. This will be quite challenging on the previous platforms as it involves convincing a driver to shift to this platform. To compete with already established ride-hailing apps, Namma Yatri has to be more user-friendly and viable by improving its user experience and functionality. Smoothness and user-friendliness are key as far as rider and driver attraction and retention are concerned.
Overcoming Challenges
Namma Yatri ensures more riders through aggressive marketing campaigns using promotions, discounts, and referral coupons that attract users to their platform. To onboard more drivers, they will be given competitive incentives and a helping ecosystem listing their problems with consistent earnings. Namma Yatri shall be upgrading its mobile application based on the feedback of end-users. The user interface, navigation, and real-time trackability are focal areas. Integration with local businesses, hotels, and event managers can increase the people database for Namma Yatri. Strategic collaboration can also bring add-on services to their core offerings.
Future Prospects
With Global Expansion across 11 European countries in its pocket, Namma Yatri is eyeing crossing beyond Europe and expanding into new cities and countries globally. Beyond auto-rickshaws and cabs, Namma Yatri will expand into a plethora of services like plumbing, electricians, and like trades may soon be part of their array of services. The funding will be spent on technology development, research, and innovation. Namma Yatri will create hassle-free, efficient, and user-friendly solutions for mobility.
Conclusion
This funding milestone takes Namma Yatri closer to a future of making mobility services available, driver-friendly, and tech-driven. Second, Namma Yatri has to strategically get over these challenges for baseline positioning in the Bengaluru ride-hailing market. Namma Yatri is proactive in building a sustainable and user-friendly ride-hailing experience.
Disclaimer – We have collected this information from various trustworthy sources on the Internet, and the facts have been checked manually and verified by our In House team.
