Hiring a cab or getting a car ride for far-across travel places has always been a massive issue in Indian society. If abandoned in the middle of the road, you have the option to walk to your destination. But, it will be physically draining. The other option is to book a cab nearby your locations at the best fares and have a relaxing ride.
Ola cabs need no introduction. It is India’s first car aggregator company providing the best taxi services at the lowest fares and makes it easy for you to book/rent a cab.
Ola Cabs is on a mission to build a smooth mobility system for billions of people. Its preeminent aim is to provide the best car-riding experience with no fuss.
The car aggregator company connects and partners with drivers and taxi drivers to bring a modern change with the help of technology.
What started as an online cab aggregator in Mumbai resides in the Silicon Valley of India, also known as Bangalore. It has grown exponentially in business and finance, and the multinational ride-sharing company has ventured its services in several outputs.
With its-hyper local approach, the homegrown car aggregator starship changed the dimension of India’s mobility system.
Birth of Ola Cabs
Ola Cabs (stylized as OLA) was founded in 3 December 2010; by Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati. They are alumni of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay.
Before starting his own business Ola Cabs, Bhavish prior was with Microsoft Research for two years.
He wanted to be an entrepreneur. He strongly felt that he should take the risk of trying things even though he failed. Bhavish Aggarwal resigned from Microsoft and started his tour and travel agency – Ola Trips.
With this tour and travel agency, he started offering durations of holiday packages and weekend getaways. Irrespective of his trying hard, Bhavish did not get much luck in the holiday trip offerings. He even did the marketing of this agency but was unable to sell a single package of the tour.
His family was distressed to see that their well-educated son would settle as a ‘travel agent’.
An unfortunate incident aroused the idea of the world’s largest ride-sharing platform, Ola Cabs when Bhavish Aggarwal was traveling by cab from Bangalore to Bandipur.
After traveling half of the distance, the driver abruptly stopped the car and demanded an absonant amount of what he was paying. Bhavish argued with him as this was unjust behaviour because he had negotiated the price before the journey. The bitter experience left him very angry. He concluded that without proper contacts, it is difficult to get cab services at fair prices.
At the movement, he realized that his plight was similar to many other customers., he understood that people do not need tour packages but need proper transportation to reach their destinations.
Hence, the home grown car aggregator start up – Ola Cabs was born.
Ola Cabs initial struggle
Ola has simplified the process of booking a cab. When the idea of making transportation easy came on board, both the co-founder’s parents were displeased. But, when Ola Cabs received its first round of angel investors investors, they realized the change the two-man were bringing in Indian roads.
It was soon after that Bhavish Aggarwal started getting technical with this start up. With Ola Cabs, he did not buy any vehicles but instated reached out to people who had cars and partnered with them. He connected drivers and owners and added modern technology to the whole setup.
Ankit Bhati, the co-founder focused on developing a mobile application that will connect thousands of travellers from nearby locations.
The app would act as a savior for all commuters to hail a cab for their destinations. It would give the commuters to book, an easy payment method, and the vehicle to choose as per their comfort.
Ola Cabs got its mouth publicity when the first angel investor, from Snapdeal. Over time, many new investors invested in Ola Cabs.
It was in 2012 when the car-sharing aggregator garnered decent investments.
Ola Cabs – India’s largest mobility platform
The car-hailing company successfully garnered investors and drivers, but they had to make the customers accustomed to the car ride.
The company focused on its marketing aspect and started an initiative targeting university students and youth, which will give Rs. 50 for referring a friend and offered a free ride fetching new customers. They also offered discounts.
Ola Cabs aimed to provide a comfortable ride with the customers entertained at affordable fares. It grew to be successful in the vertical dimension of making transportation easy.
Ola Cans now offers self-driving cars as well. It has accelerated its mobility system making it apt for your travel. You can choose any car of your choice based on the budget, convenience, and several passengers.
Over the passage, Ola Cabs grew to be India’s largest mobility platform and the world’s largest ride-hailing company, serving 250+ cities across India.
The mobile aggregator service has ventured into different dimensions to provide services in finance, cloud kitchens, and many more.
In January 2018, Ola Cabs extended its first-ever overseas marketplace in Australia and September 2018, in New Zealand.
It also began its operations in the UK in March 2019. It is expectant that they will be moving forward to open its operations in other countries as well.
The parent company is ANI Technologies. It has invested, built, and eased a definitive solution for daily commuters in hailing cabs and sharing rides with easy process booking and payment method solutions.
The founder of Ola Cabs, Bhavish Aggarwal, travels to places by using Ola Cabs, this way he can check the quality management of his transportation service.
Ola Cabs doesn’t own any car. The cars and vehicles are owned by their respective owners. They receive commissions for every ride.
Ola Cabs is currently valued at over $7.3 billion, as of December 2021.
With a mission to empower the mobility system, Ola Cabs has aggregated to provide the best car riding experience across India and is expanding its operations in different countries.
The reason why Ola Cabs became popular in India is that the keen-sighted founders of this car aggregator company recognized that majority of people will not afford cars, even when they could afford them, so, it can be easy to access and rent cars for any travel destination.
It has also introduced Ola Electric, an electric two-wheeler in the lane.
It’s clear that Indian start-ups has gained momentum since the last decade. They have remarkably hopped on to creating a define solutions for the problems faced by commoners. Mad4India looks forward to cover such inspiring stories such as Ola Cabs and becoming the world’s largest ride-hailing company.
To know about Bhavish Aggarwal, check – Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter
To know about Ola Cabs, check – Website, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook
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Ola cabs is not fixing in many places as the cab persons demands more more payment in cash they even cancel the trip and fare directly.