After Zoomcar announced that its hosts have earned more than 200 crores since the launch of the ‘host program’ in December 2021, the leading car sharing marketplace is expecting its hosts to earn more than 1,000 crores in next 12 months. The company has witnessed steady growth since its launch, with more individuals hosting their cars on the platform to earn an additional passive income.
In conversation with ETTravelWorld, Greg Moran, Co-Founder, Zoomcar said that with the shift to the marketplace model and strong support and participation from 25,000+ hosts, there is a manifold improvement in the quality, choices, and proximity of cars available to guests.
“This has not only strengthened the traditional Zoomcar use cases such as running errands, vacations, local getaways, and business travel but has also opened an array of use cases not seen before such as people trying cars before buying, car replacements, hyperlocal use cases, dream drives in luxury cars etc,” Moran added.
Talking about key trends witnessed since the Covid-19 pandemic eased in the country and people gradually heading out to travel, he said they have already surpassed pre-pandemic booking numbers with car availability with Zoomcar also rising month-over-month. “Since beginning of 2022, we have seen sharp from the Omicron-lull, and we continue to see strong-pent up demand for travel. The shift to the marketplace model has not only provided car owners with a second source of income but has also unlocked a new world of car sharing for Zoomcar guests. Sustained momentum in business travel evident from the increase in airport bookings,” Moran informed.
Considering the current rise in travel demand, zoomcar wants its hosts’ profit to comfortably exceed pre-Covid levels, the company expects hosts to earn 1,000 + crores in the next 12 months.
On average, Zoomcar hosts earn more than INR 50,000 in a month, and several hosts have earned more than INR 3 lakhs in the last six months. The marketplace now also offers a selection of luxury cars from Audi, Mercedes and Mini Cooper, and new 7-seater vehicles like the Tata Safari and MG Hector Plus. Luxury car hosts have earned more than INR 5 lakhs on Zoomcar in the last six months, earning on average more than INR 70,000 a month.Talking about their prime segment of customers- the millennials, which contribute to more than 40 per cent bookings, Moran added that the contribution from Gen Z has only been increasing in the past few years and stands at 48 per cent as of today. “This can be attributed to the decreasing car ownership among Gen Z along with Zoomcar’s core ethos of being a fun & chic lifestyle brand resonating with this age group,” he mentioned.
The top seven Indian cities (Bangalore, Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Pune, Hyderabad) and three international cities of Cairo (Egypt), Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) and Jakarta (Indonesia) contribute 75 per cent to Zoomcar’s total volume while the rest 25 per cent comes from the other Tier-II and Tier III Indian cities the company operate in.
Sharing expansion plans, especially considering pent-up travel for the upcoming festive season, Moran said they have onboarded a wide range of cars to serve this surge in demand across the country. “We expect the momentum from earlier this year to only get stronger in this and the coming months on the back of various festivities in the second half of the year,” he concluded.
