[rohan_iitr]

Does Shoffr have an Android app ?

I was not able to find in the Play Store.

[capnemo]

I used Shoffr's services yesterday and here's my experience:

1. They sent an MG ZS EV. The driver said it was a "demo car" - maybe he just meant they were trying it out. This was the Exclusive variant with the panoramic sunroof. My family liked it. But one downside, Shoffr never asked how many passengers, how many luggage bags we were carrying. On my side, I assumed they would always send a BYD E6. We were actually carrying 1 large, 2 medium, and 1 carry on bag apart from a backpack and 2 ladies bags, with 3 adults and 1 toddler. We had to eventually remove the parcel tray and place it against the driver seat's backside.

2. It's easy to spot your Shoffr car from afar because of the rarity of the make/models they use. So you don't have to preen and look at the number plates of every white / silver etios or dzire or innova.

3. They sent a spanking new car - But - and this might just be me, the footwell was still soiled and dusty. My regular cab service guy provides exemplary levels of cleanliness with his Etios, Innova, Ertiga fleet. It remains to be seen how much of a stickler for clean cars Shoffr turns out to be over the the next few years.

As for Uber and Ola, for airport service, I have stopped using them since the last 2 years in Bangalore. Have had numerous bad experiences - rattling cars, ineffective air-conditioning, drivers constantly yakking on the phone while driving at high-speeds, unclean and smelly cabs, dangerously fast driving - the last two things were dealbreakers because my toddler son used to throw up with such driving and my wife used to face feel nauseous due to the smelly cars / ineffective ac.

[Theyota]

At ~1200 INR per airport run, I don't think these guys will make money after deducting all the capital costs, depreciation, fuel, salaries, admin, maintenance, taxes, interest, etc. This is not a sustainable business.

There is a reason why the 1000 INR charging regular Ola/Uber cabs are the way they are. If you calculate the business model in a systematic way, you will see that even an owner operator cab driver barely makes 25K per month. Many of these airport run drivers drive 72-96 hour shifts by taking naps in between trips and then rotate their car with another driver for the next 72-96 hour shift. What we pay these cabs is a steal. If they had other options, most of these guys would not be driving cabs.

[abtyagi]

I have used them yesterday. It was a BYD E6. Whole family liked it. All of car, the seat, the floor and especially the seat belts were cleans, and family was super happy. We had 3 airport trolley bags, several other bags including laptop bags. No problem. I will be using them again.

Used BluSmart at Delhi airport to Gurgaon. Driver was very courteous. But boot of Tiago with spare laying around was problematic. Also the car was not in great shape.

[neerajku]

Their prices are fine, same as Uber but availability for a drop to the airport is challenge. Tried several times, did not work, fell back to quick ride, uber etc. From airport tried the blue smart once. Was nice, AC was switched on for a change and cab did not smell.
In the long term I dont see them viable at all, until and unless they get deep pocketed financiers who will not ask for ROI for the next 8-10 years and keep pumping in lots of money. With the funding winter I am not sure if they will get one.
Though fervent hope they do. Cabs are bad here; unreliable, expensive, awful drivers and really dirty. There is a classic demand supply gap.

[rohan_iitr]

I tried the Shoffr cab for Airport drop last week.

They do not have an Android app and the website felt very basic. Still decided to give it a try based on the good reviews here.

The vehicle was a BYD. The boot space swallowed our luggage easily and the driver was courteous.

The vehicle was nice, but the driver was more interested in his driving pleasure, than the comfort of the passengers.

Also, at the end of the ride, the driver asked for the Devanahalli toll to be paid extra (even though it was already included in the fare). I got it refunded later by writing to their customer care, but it left a sour taste in the mouth. This kind of scams are not expected from a "premium" service.

In the return journey, I booked an OLA sedan (well maintained Etios) from the Airport. I felt that it was equally comfortable.

Since Shoffr does not have an Android app, it gives the drivers a chance to fool the customers.

How difficult is it to develop an Android app ? College kids are developing apps these days.

Rohan

[Kosfactor]

I decided to give this thing a try but I got a cancelled message afterwards, thankfully I saw that SMS before I went off to sleep. I booked an Uber as usual for next day morning and reached Airport on time.

I also tried another service from BLR airport, Its called BluSmart. They have EVs, Tigor EVs to be specific. The service was alright, cost was reasonable too but the vehicle is not very comfortable to travel in comparison to an Etios or Dzire, it has something to do with the rear suspension.

Note - If you book Uber the previous night, they apparently assign only their top rated drivers, so the overall experience was very good too.

[amahale]

Originally Posted by Kosfactor

I decided to give this thing a try but I got a cancelled message afterwards, thankfully I saw that SMS before I went off to sleep. I booked an Uber as usual for next day morning and reached Airport on time.

I am getting nervous now as I have booked 2 cabs (for 7 passengers + luggage ) to the airport; pickup at 1:30AM. I tried reaching out to them via chat/whatsapp to confirm the rides, but haven't got any reply yet. I am contemplating booking Uber as well just to be safe.

[ritesh_44]

If anyone looking for affordable rides, try Quick ride. They have mostly Tigor EV and costs almost half to 2/3rd of normal cabs. I have tried twice in last month, from Banaswadi to Airport. I think due to low running cost, they are able to provide lower price. PS: Unlike Blusmart, these Tigor EVs don't max at 60km/hr. Both times (one early morning and second one in afternoon), driver came around 30min earlier from the scheduled pickup time.

[kavu75]

Tried Shoffr cab for Airport drop March last week. The previous day I did the booking and got the confirmation.It was BYD e6.
The driver reported 15 minutes ahead of the time and easily accommodate all our luggage, 2 check in baggage and 4 cabin baggage. The driver mentioned about MG ZS EV demo car and it seems they will not be going with MG as they are not getting expected range. That's what driver told me.
The fare was Rs:1555 including tolls. It was all good experience.
While coming back I couldn't book for airport pickup in advance. My mobile network was not available to receive OTP for complete the booking.
Just tried after landed in Bangalore, after 10 minutes got the message saying my booking is canceled.
It's better if they provide OTP in email as well.

Later today got the below email from Shoffr and they have mentioned about team-bhp coverage.

[akshaymahajan]

Shoffr's Co-founder, Vikas, is a friend and wanted me to post here on his behalf to help answer some questions or address some concerns.

Apologies to everyone we had to decline a trip for. We’re currently a small set-up with 5 cars, and the response has been overwhelming post the mention on The-Ken and here on TeamBHP. I have to admit, we weren’t ready to handle the coverage this brought us. We’re adding 3 more cars in the coming week, and are also in the process of raising funds - so hopefully, we will be able to provide a Shoffr to everyone who books one.

We’re building Shoffr not only because the current experience is broken (cancellations, poor maintenance, impolite & unprofessional drivers) - but more importantly because we see an opportunity to build a sustainable business. The unit economics of EVs allow that - the 85% lower operating cost of EVs more than offsets the higher initial cost, if one has high utilisation. Hence the focus on the BLR airport route. We’re already gross profitable, and even at a tiny scale of 20 cars we’ll be profitable at a corporate level.

Since this forum also has car enthusiasts, let me share why we use BYD e6. Not all EVs are the same, just like all ICE cars aren’t the same. The underlying battery tech is the most integral (and expensive) component of an EV, and BYD are experts in making batteries. In fact, they started as battery OEMs in 1994, and only acquired an auto OEM in 2004. In 2008 they raised money from Warren Buffett, and in 2010 they launched their first EV. The model we use has been tested on-ground for 10+ years. 1 full charge takes about 1 hr, and gives a real-world range of ~440kms. Unlike the Tata Tigor EVs that pretty much everyone else uses, these cars do not need to be slow-charged. Slow charging is critical because it restores the alignment of individual cells in the battery, else the reliability of the battery reduces in the short-run (e.g. car will show 80% charge but not start), and the battery health degrades in longer run.

I come from an investments background, and we’re only doing this because of the business case made possible by EVs. They allow us to invest some of the profits in paying drivers well and maintaining the cars. Providing a premium experience while still charging regular fares. We do have a lot of work ahead in terms of improving our tech, launching an app, etc. Our current prioritisation of the limited resources (we’re fully bootstrapped right now) is focused more towards ensuring the best in-cab experience.

PS: apologies also for the toll incident. This was a system error due to which a double toll amount was included on the driver app, hence the driver asked for that. We fixed this that day itself. Note that our drivers are our contractual employees. They get a fixed base salary + incentives based on good behaviour alone, not trips done. And after running operations for 5 months, I can say that this is working - this incentivisation ensures that processes like not talking on phone, helping with luggage, etc. are being followed to ultimately provide a superior experience.

I have used Shoffr a dozen times by now for both airport pickups and drops and my experience so far has been superior than any other option available out there. The clean, comfortable and quiet cars and the courteous drivers make this airport trip less painful than it is otherwise.

[ajmat]

My daughter booked one to pick her up last Thursday MC she was impressed. She tried to book one fo4 330 this morning but none were available.

[amahale]

Originally Posted by amahale

I am getting nervous now as I have booked 2 cabs (for 7 passengers + luggage ) to the airport; pickup at 1:30AM. I tried reaching out to them via chat/whatsapp to confirm the rides, but haven't got any reply yet. I am contemplating booking Uber as well just to be safe.

Update: They did get back to me and assured that both the cars are confirmed.

On the day of the pick-up both cars arrived 10 mins before time, the drivers were courteous and very accommodating. The cars (BYD E6) themselves were very clean and maintained well.

Attaching the photo of one of the cars:


For the return back from airport, I could get only one booking confirmed as I tried to book it only one day prior to the trip. Again the Chauffeur was on time and very courteous. We helped ourselves to couple of water bottles which were in the car which he did not charge us for saying it's complimentary.

Overall a great experience.

[callmeneo]

Shoffr can go the leasing route until they build up their capacity ie allow people to attach their E6's to Shoffr's fleet for a monthly guaranteed amount.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by akshaymahajan

Shoffr's Co-founder, Vikas, is a friend and wanted me to post here on his behalf to help answer some questions or address some concerns.

Still no app is a bummer (BluSmart is a competitor and they have it). The website isn't a great experience, please share the feedback with your friend.