Solving the urban commuting problem with ?lan

Lokesh Bevara of 360Ride talks about his venture and how it is addressing the problems related to commuting while positively impacting the environment.

We face commuting issues everyday and the traffic and pollution scenario in metros is getting worse. There is a severe need for ride-sharing concepts as commuting is a hassle for people in India. Take any urban city, commuting is one of the daily activities there. Considering the existing infrastructure and the issues that the industry is facing, many ride-sharing platforms may have to address the urban transportation problem.

Before 360Ride, Lokesh Bevara had started two start-ups (Myprepaidtaxi.com, 360cabs.com) in travel space which, he says, has not only given him a good understanding about this industry but has helped him understand the pain points of the commuters well. “I really feel that the next big thing that will happen in this industry is ride sharing. This compelled me to start 360Ride,” said Bevara in an exclusive chat with Retailer media. Here are some excerpts from Bevara’s interview.

What is your business model?
360Ride is a free ride-sharing platform. We don’t take money from anyone whether they are offering or requesting a ride. We are two founders and currently have 19,000+ app downloads, 8000+ customers and record 400+ rides daily.

Who is your target consumer? Could you please share how you have detailed your consumer?
We are targeting the urban population. So anybody who is commuting in the urban cities is our consumer. Whether you are travelling within the city, outside the city or to the airport, you can offer or take a ride and get to meet like-minded people. By sharing a ride or requesting a ride on 360Ride one can save money and can also save the environment.

Have you raised any funding so far? What are your plans to use this funding for?
We have raised INR 1Cr recently and will be using it for acquiring customers, educating people on what 360Ride is offering and how it can actually solve their problems related to daily commuting.

What has been your biggest challenge so far in scaling -up? How are you addressing it?
The biggest challenge is reaching out to the customers and telling them that the 360Ride can solve their problems related to commuting like never before. A majority of people take ride sharing as car pooling. Using 360Ride not only one can share a ride in their personal 4/2 wheeler but can also share their taxi and auto ride. Making them understand how 360Ride can make a difference might take some time. We are addressing this challenge by taking up different and innovative marketing campaigns.

How do you see growth scenario in this business? What are your future scale-up plans?
There are no second thoughts about the fact that ride-sharing is going to be the next big thing in the transportation industry. Therefore, we want to cover all the major metropolitan cities in India by the end of 2016.