Watch: Rapido founder on new logistics push, road to recovery

Bengaluru headquartered bike taxi startup Rapido has been one of the few players in the emerging mobility space that has maintained hiring and expanded new business lines despite a Covid-19 induced economic slowdown.

Founded in 2015 by Aravind Sanka, Rishikesh SR, and Pavan Guntupalli, the asset-light mobility startup primarily connects customers who intend to book for a two wheeler ride with third party bike riders, referred to as captains, on a commission basis.

In the period extending from March to April, the company reported zero revenue due to the Covid-19 related lockdowns in the country.

Forward to May, it launched Rapido Local, a new on-demand solution for peer-to-peer delivery. In June, the startup launched Rapido Store, a new service to assist offline and online platforms with business deliveries.

Sanka told TechCircle that 30% of business now comes from the new business lines of logistics. The company will however not pivot and will continue to focus on bike taxis, he added.

In the interview, Sanka shed light on the factors that will push demand for bike taxis, consumer behaviour cases through the lockdown, the pace of product development and cost optimisation efforts at the company.