Zoomcar – Company Profile

Zoomcar is a leading self-drive car rental service provider in India. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Bengaluru, Zoomcar has operations in all top cities and several of the Tier II and Tier III cities as well. Zoomcar primarily caters to people who consider owning a car as a hassle. It’s for people who do not need to use a car every day. Zoomcar makes it easier for customers to have a car at their service whenever they need it, without worrying about the cost of ownership and maintenance. The company offers convenience, mobility and independence to customers in India, who have been till date have been managing with taxis or rental cars from the unorganized sector. Zoomcar has taken the initiative to transform the self-drive car rental segment in India through smart, app-based technology solutions.

History:

Zoomcar’s story is a bit different from other startups in India, as it was launched by US citizens Greg Moran and David Back. Both were friends and had their education at the University of Pennsylvania. They wanted to do something different and were keenly interested to start a business in India or China. Greg Moran quit his job as an investment banker in the US and came to India along with David to explore business opportunities. They had various ideas and one of them was about launching a company in the renewable energy space. However, after spending some time in India, they realized that there’s a huge untapped potential in the self-drive car rental space. The idea clicked and Zoomcar was launched in 2013. There were several challenges along the way, but Greg persevered and today Zoomcar is growing rapidly and achieving new milestones every year.

Funding:

Zoomcar has good potential in India, which is why many investors have started showing interest in funding the company. Zoomcar has received funding worth around $104 million through 10 rounds of funding. Top investors include Sequoia Capital, Trifecta Capital Advisors, Mahindra Rise, Cyber Carrier, Ford Smart Mobility, and Empire Angels. The company has also forged partnerships with Ford, Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra.

Acquisitions:

Zoomcar has not made any acquisitions till date, but it is open to any bankable opportunities that may emerge in future.

Competitors:

Zoomcar’s primary competitors include Volercars, Drivezy, Revv, Selfdrive, Myles, etc. Leading cab aggregators such as Ola and Uber have also forayed into self-drive car rental segment, which will further intensify competition in this sector.

About the Founders:

Zoomcar was founded by Greg Moran and David Back in 2013. Greg currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Zoomcar. He has studied at the University of Pennsylvania and USC’s Marshall School of Business. Prior to launching Zoomcar, Greg had worked at International Power, Cerberus Capital, Fieldstone Private Capital Group and the City of New York. Zoomcar co-founder David Back used to look after the company’s business development and marketing, but he quit in 2015, citing personal reasons. However, he remains to be a board member of parent company Zoomcar Inc., in US and also retains his stake in the company.