‘Our partners can make N500, 000 on a monthly basis’

Andrew Edwards is the founder and chief executive officer of Tule Taxi. In this interview with JOSEPHINE OKOJIE, he talks about Nigeria’s transportation sector and what car owners would benefit partnering with Tule.

Can you tell us about Tule Taxi and its mode of operation?

Tule taxi is a customer centric on-demand transportation app that provides easy access to cab services at a fast, convenient way to Nigerians at their doorsteps in Lagos and its environs with plans to roll out in Ghana and Senegal. Tule Taxi is registered in Dallas, Texas in the United States with operations in Nigeria and Tony Ndikanwu is the chairman. To access Tule Taxi, a customer has to download our app to book for our services. Tile taxi is more of social enterprise that supports orphans through the provisions of quality education. Anytime a customer makes use of our services, they indirectly pay for an orphans school fees.

What informed your foray into the Nigeria’s transport industry and why Lagos in particular?

Lagos is a huge market and for Tule transportation is a necessity. The Nigeria’s transport network is poorly developed and highly unorganised. It is also a sector that a lot of people do not understand. It is s social project that can transform the lives of people tremendously. For me when I was thinking about Tule Taxi, I was looking at bringing a project that could be a solution to the Nigerian populace at large by making life easier for them through the provision of comfortable transportation while providing a platform for drivers to generate income and improve their livelihood.

How do you intend to compete with other major players in the industry?

The market is highly competitive but part of the strategy we have put in place is to make our transportation service cheaper compared to that of our competitors. We have also equipped our drivers with world class training to enable them provide excellent service to customers. The company has introduced a series of value propositions that has to hit home quickly among consumers, given the increase in competition in the market.  Tule has an SMS enabled function that is interfaced with its call centre where registered users can schedule a ride without the use of internet.

  How affordable is Tule Taxis?

Our fares are extremely affordable for any Nigerian compared to the regular taxi and that of our competitors. We have the classic, premium and luxury rates which are very affordable to Nigerians irrespective of their income. Our fares depend on the distance and the class of ride our customers want and weather it is peak period or off peak period. The classic is the least plan in terms of cost while the luxury is for top executives and business class. We have checked the market and we are currently 20 and 25 percent cheaper than others. For our classic ride on peak periods you pay about N2,300 while you pay much less for off peak periods.

What are your expansion plans to other major cities like Abuja, Port-Harcourt?

We are planning to launch our services in other major cities across the country in the first week of December. We would start with Abuja followed by Port-Harcourt after which others will follow.

How do you get your taxi drivers?

Our modality for selecting our drivers is by doing a background check and taking them through a driving school where they are properly trained and equipped with adequate skills for the job. We also demand a surety from our drivers to reduce our risk.

In terms of Capex, what has Tule committed to the Nigerian market?

We have brought in a lot of investments into the country because we have partnered with a company to establish a mechanic workshop and school to equip our drivers with necessary skills. We also established a car wash where all our cars would be washed at subsidised rates. In the next six months we would be launching the Tule mechanic workshop across Lagos and other major cities. This is a huge investment and it will help create employment in the country. We would also train a lot of mechanics; some would be retained by us while others will be hired out to other organisations that need their services. We also would be partnering with some filling stations to give our drivers fuel at a subsidised rate. Tule is currently calling on investors to partner with us especially now that we are entering peak periods were a cab owner can make up to 500,000 per month.

There are situations where drivers of major players have gone on strike for irregular payments. What is Tule doing differently to avoid this situation?

We are very interested in our drivers because without them we would not be in business in the first place. We are going to pay our drivers promptly. We want to provide comfort for our passengers and improve the life and livelihood of our drivers. Tule has partnered with Arkbridge Integrated Limited to provide homes for its drivers, an initiative that allows our drivers to own a home. The payment would be spread over time and would be deducted from their salaries on a monthly basis.

What culture is Tule building that would make it unique?

Our culture is imbedded in our win-win strategy. Here the drivers can make more money while delivering excellent services and our customers are satisfied with the services. We want to add value in terms of social development. And also serve as the first company with a great value of social responsibility by helping orphans and the less privileged. We want to inculcate partnerships from every part of the country to be part of Tule Taxi. Our aim is to use part of our profit to create empowerment schools across the country, to give scholarships to orphans and train people with technical skills. We are different from others because we are more of a social enterprise. Tule hopes to become the first social enterprise that supports excellent service to our customers. We intend to achieve this by paying our drivers promptly.

What are some of the challenges the organisation has faced since its debut in Nigeria?

Part of the challenges we have been facing is bureaucracy in the Nigerian system and the government and our team have been able to overcome this challenges.

Nigeria has an infrastructural gap estimated at $33 billion, how is Tule going to help in bridging the gap?

  Tule sees itself as one of the change agents in terms of business in Nigeria. One of the things we want to do is to see how we can partner with the road transport association and to look out for ways we can develop some of the roads in Lagos. We also hope to partner with the government to achieve this but we have to commence our operations first before we start these processes.

We have also partnered with the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) to train our drivers and ensure appropriate documentation and registration. Patronising Tule taxi will help a student pay her school fees and also help a child out of the street. We are setting up a foundation where part of our profit goes in to help and assists orphans.