Known as the top competitor to Uber in South Africa, Taxify is hailing the future of transport with a new name they believe “brings the brand identity in line with the company’s broader vision of transportation.1”
Taxify began five years ago in humble Estonia. 19-year-old Mark Villig at that time aimed to solve urban transport problems by making transport more accessible and affordable. Thus, he birthed the e-hailing service now considered a strong market competitor in Europe and Africa.
In its five short years of operation, Taxify has grown to serve more than 25 million customers in around 30 countries. The company at first offered clients a taxi dispatch solution from which its name originated. Looking to the future of transportation, the company recently announced that they will be changing their name from Taxify to Bolt.
Why Has Taxify Changed its Name to Bolt?
According to CEO Mark Villig, the company has started to outgrow its original name. The name Taxify limits the way they can innovate new solutions for urban transportation because the name contains the word “taxi”. The company wishes to be associated with a broader spectrum of transport solutions than cars alone.
“Given our ambition to solve transportation problems on an increasingly broader scale, we want the brand to reflect the company’s future rather than the past,” said Mark in a statement. The company is said to be eyeing the electric scooter market to broaden their future offerings from only cars to options they believe are the future of urban transportation.
Why Bolt?
The Estonian company first launched an additional service to their car e-hailing service called Bolt in Paris, and in September last year they launched the same service in Australia. This service offers customers the use of electric scooters at a cost per minute as a solution for short-hop travel in the city alongside the e-hailing service already available on their app.
“One in five Taxify rides are less than 3 km,” said Mark Villig, “which is the perfect distance to cover with an electric scooter. It’s likely that some of our ride-hailing customers will now opt for scooters for shorter distances, but we’ll also attract a whole new group of customers with different needs. This means we’ll be able to help more people with their daily transportation problems.”
How Will Taxify’s Name Change Affect You?
You can expect brand name and logo changes to roll out gradually to different countries, including South Africa. You’ll find your same trusted Taxify drivers with the new look and feel Bolt (Taxify) app. Hailing a ride will be as easy as ever, and we expect that the app will offer you more options for transport in the near future than only taxi hailing.
In addition, the company aims to remain competitive and has stated that they will not overcharge customers in spite of the fuel price increase. Bolt drivers will not lose out on profit either. According to the national manager for Bolt in South Africa the company continues to monitor local market conditions to ensure drivers remain self-sustaining. This means you can order the same service at the same cost in the same way.
To limit the inevitable confusion, Bolt has chosen to remain known as Bolt (Taxify) on app stores for now. If you have never used the Taxify app, you can download the new look and feel Bolt (Taxify) app from your Android or Apple application store. Using the app will remain as easy as before.
Users and drivers who already have the app do not need to download a new application. The app will update itself. Your biggest challenge will be familiarising yourself with the new look of the app icon on your mobile screen.
Sources: Taxify; Business Insider;
Information quoted are correct at the time of publishing this article. The information in this article is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal, or medical advice.
