Sidecar closes down
Sidecar, one of the early trailblazers in the burgeoning ride hailing industry, has admitted defeat in its battle against the Uber-Lyft dominance and will close today.
Co-founders said the company’s demise is a ‘bittersweet victory’ but plan to ‘lay the groundwork for the next big thing’.
In the meantime Sidecar will close down at 2pm PST on December 31.
The company had been unable to compete with the huge fundraising efforts of Uber and Lyft, which gave it near unlimited cash for marketing and aggressive lobbying.
Also, Sidecar did not employ contentious surge pricing during peak demand – which has proven to be a big earner with both Lyft and Uber.
Sidecar raised a reported $35 million since its inception in 2012, compared to Uber’s estimated $8 billion.
Amid fierce competition for passengers, Sidecar launched a same-day delivery service earlier this year which included the delivery of medical marijuana, and its business model was evolving towards this area away from conventional ride hailing.
“Shutting down the Sidecar service is a disappointment to our team and our fans,” said CEO Sunil Paul.
“The impact of our work however will be felt for generations to come.”
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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