A SUCCESS SAGA OF HYD START-UP

The volume of cars on Indian roads has increased rapidly in recent years, and so did the dependency on cars. A safe and guaranteed commuting has become essential as the cities grow, but how far do we trust our cars? A regular service and periodic diagnosis is all it takes to maintain a good-running car. But when we leave our car at the service centers, how confident are we that the car we left is the one that we are driving back and not a troubled car?

A Hyderabad-based startup Carzip finds answers to these queries.

If one doesn’t have a regular, trusted service center, then the hassles of identifying a reliable one are too many. Moreover, there is always a concern about the quality, trust, and price of the service provided.

Simply put, Carzip is quick and convenient, and provides quality assurance. It is affordable and also transparent. Above all, the app gives back the confidence on the ride that a car owner lacks. The users can make in just simple steps using the Carzip app. They have to schedule a service/repair and confirm order. The car will be picked up from the customer and serviced at the Carzip’s verified service centre. Sensing the wide market potentiality for the application, European accelerator Spark10 has chosen Carzip as one of the 9 startups from among 500 and odd companies after thorough filter.

Having seen the importance of a trusted service center, co-founder and CEO Raghuram Kondubhatla and co-founder and CMO Chandrasekher, found an opportunity to provide service that would address the difficulties faced by car owners. They have come up with a car-care app known as Carzip, which helps car owners book any car service from the network of verified multi-brand car service centers. The Carzip customers receive periodic alerts on their service, pollution, insurance due dates, etc. They also receive offers and discounts on general service and value added service.

A team with a mix of technology and marketing background backs Carzip. Raghuram has worked in this space earlier in the US, where the models and offerings have been validated over the years. Chandra brings in his diverse experience from sales and marketing, helping Carzip launch sooner than expected. Together, they enjoy an experience of over three decades in multiple roles and with multiple startups.

In the first year of operations, Carzip aims to refer more than 50,000 cars to the affiliate service centers.

The Carzip application has drawn the attention of Minister for IT and Industry K Tarakarama Rao. When Carzip CEO K Raghuram explained, KTR felt that the city requires such kind of services, where the citizens could get trusted verified car service centers.

The Carzip’s growth strategy is to capture over 40% of Hyderabad’s existing market. This would give a huge boost to venture into two other cities in the south. Carzip also wish to extend the portfolio of services – bring in end-to-end solutions like challan payments, insurance renewals, etc for the customers.