COLDSKY.CN – Mobile Go, an in-car vending machine startup, has raised 60 million yuan from HillHouse Capital (高瓴资本), GSR Ventures(金沙江创投), Didi Chuxing and IDG, 36kr.com reports.
Mobile Go received a total of 12.5 million yuan (13.5 million yuan in some reports) in angel round investment from Zhu Xiaohu’s GSR Ventures and investor Wang Gang, according to 36kr.com. It says its core team members are veterans from Didi Chuxing, Tencent and Meituan.
Amid the fever of “new retail” in China — usually a combination of self-service shelf and mobile payment — the startup installs a box in cars to sell drinks, snacks and other daily necessities, turning the vehicle into a mobile convenience store.
The start-up incentivizes drivers to install the box through several ways – a commission of 20 percent on daily gross sales, extra rewards after a certain number of orders a month, a new driver recruitment reward, free items to please passengers and a fixed 100 yuan per month maintenance fee.
The official website for Mobile Go says drivers can earn 500 yuan more a month from the convenience box. The company has opened nearly 100 supply centers for drivers to replenish goods and has its Mobile Go Box installed in nearly 10,000 taxies as well as Didi Chuxing cars, according to 36kr.com.
Mobile Go is the second high-profile company to test the business model following Shenzhen-based startup Gogo+ (official website gogocheba.cm), which vows to “turn each car a boutique”.
A’Gan, founder of Gogo+, previously told the media that he actually talked with Zhu Xiaohu in early 2017 and felt inspired by Zhu’s insights, but Zhu declined to invest in his company. (source: http://www.donews.com/news/detail/4/2972831.html) Drivers can increase their monthly income by 20 percent from the mini-mall service, says Gogo+.
What does it look like?
Picture shared online (https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1586205978146610154&wfr=spider&for=pc),shows a
GoGo+ places racks on the back of front seats, but they make the space smaller for passengers. In case of emergencies, the configuration could also be dangerous. Perhaps transportation authorities will kill the business model for safety concerns.
In comparison, a Mobile Go box is smaller and placed between the two front seats, making it less intrusive than a rack.
But in a report by Qianjiang Evening News, a Mobile Go shelf is also hung on the driver’s seat. (http://news.sina.com.cn/s/2018-01-17/doc-ifyqtycw8581943.shtml).
Beijing’s taxis are often fitted with a rack with a magazine inside, and in the past a touchscreen to show often boring interactive advertising. The company behind the touchscreen, Shanghai’s Touchmedia, suspended its operations in last July and fired all its employees while facing debts to taxi companies.
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