Rivigo - Fastest and Safest Tech-enabled Logistics Company

Rivigo - Fastest and Safest Tech-enabled Logistics Company
Rivigo - Fastest and Safest Tech-enabled Logistics Company

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Only when we thought that logistics can no longer get more interesting and is at the top of its game, Rivigo was set up in 2014 by former Mckinsey consultants Deepak Garg and Gazal Kalra to change the game. With the sole idea of creating a relay truck model, where no vehicle driver would drive for more than four-to-five hours at a stretch and also would return home the same day, Rivigo was born.

In September 2019, Rivigo entered Unicorn club with a valuation of $1.05 billion.

Interesting isn't it? This is why StartupTalky has brought this Rivigo success story for you to know all about Rivigo app, its Founders, Valuation, Funding and Investors, Growth, Challenges, Competitors, and more.

Rivigo - Company Highlights

Startup Name Rivigo
Headquarters Gurgaon, Haryana, India
Sector Logistics
Founder Deepak Garg, Gazal Kalra
Founded 2014
Website rivigo.com

Rivigo - About and How it Works
Rivigo - Industry
Rivigo - Founders and Team
Rivigo - Startup Story
Rivigo - Logo and Tagline
Rivigo - Business Model and Revenue Model
Rivigo - Startup Challenges
Rivigo - Funding and Investors
Rivigo - ESOPs
Rivigo - Growth and Revenue
Rivigo - Competitors
Rivigo - Future Plans

How does Rivigo works?

Rivigo - About and How it Works

With the launch of its relay model of trucking and utilization of cutting edge technology, Rivigo is transforming the nation's logistics sector. This innovative method not only improves travel routes but also puts truck drivers' welfare first, guaranteeing that they may sleep soundly in their own beds every night instead of having to endure the long, 20–30 day trips that were previously the norm.

A truck relay! Sounds interesting right? Let’s see how this platform caters to its target audience.

The mobile application of Rivigo is built for the drivers to make their life simpler by providing a one-stop solution for all their needs. This application is more image-based than text and is available in 11 different languages. Also, it tracks everything a driver needs to do, from notification of duties to surveys.

The pilot gets the duty alert on the phone and he reaches the pit stop. There, he scans his unique QR code which is a testament that he has reached the required destination. This way the incoming pilot gets the alert on his application to the subsequent pilot that he needs to hand over.

The interesting part is that there is a technological handshake through QR codes on the two pilots’ apps. The pilot who is taking over has a checklist regarding the truck’s condition and shipments, which he needs to verify through the Rivigo application. All this takes less than five minutes following which the pilot can drive off to his next pit stop.

This whole magnanimous process of routing and the assigning of pilots is taken care of by Rivigo algorithms. Rivigo’s trucks are all IoT-enabled with the feature that tracks the vehicle in real-time. This ensures reliability and avoids breakdowns.

This smart and real-time monitoring took off to another level when Rivigo launched refrigerated trucks for the fresh eatables producing sector of the economy. Here, the clients can check the thermostat and regulate it through the mobile application.


Rivigo Pilot Story

Rivigo - Industry

According to a recent survey of the economy, the Indian road freight market is estimated to be worth around $150 billion. However, Rivigo believes that they are operating in a monopoly market with no other company that is in direct competition with the company. The model of Rivigo is one of a kind in a large enough market with room for multiple players and there are multiple different problems to solve in the sector.

Rivigo - Founders and Team

Deepak Garg and Gazal Kalra were the Founders of Rivigo. Gazal left the company in 2018 but Deepak is still there, aligned with Rivigo.

Deepak Garg

Deepak Garg | Rivigo Founder
Deepak Garg - Rivigo Founder

Deepak Garg graduated from IIT Kanpur and then obtained his MBA degree from IIM, Lucknow. Deepak started as a software developer at Geometric Ltd. and by the time he launched Rivigo. Deepak had spent close to a decade at McKinsey & Company as an Associate Partner and was deeply involved in the logistics and automotive sector. After this, Deepak founded Rivigo, where he is serving as the pilot.

Gazal Kalra

Gazal Kalra | Rivigo Founder
Gazal Kalra - Rivigo Founder

Gazal has an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business after completing her Master’s degree in Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School. Before launching Rivigo, Gazal was a Consultant at the World Bank Group. Interestingly, she was also a parliamentary associate of Lok Sabha for close to two years. Gazal was a Business Analyst at McKinsey & Company and eventually became the Co-founder of Rivigo. Gazal resigned from Rivigo in October 2018 and is currently the Founder & CEO of a company that is in stealth mode, as of May 2022.

The Rivigo employee strength is listed as somewhere between 1000-5000 employees, as far as its Linkedin profile is concerned

Rivigo - Startup Story

All of this started when McKinsey and the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) happened to conduct a joint study to identify where are India's most needed skilled jobs. And to everybody's surprise Logistics and construction emerged as the top sectors. That's exactly when Deepak Garg decided to take some time off from work, and flea on a road trip to interact and connect directly with the truck drivers to understand the reasons behind the shortage of drivers.

“It all started with a road trip, listening to the truck drivers and realizing that they have been marginalized and looked at as outcasts, which needed to change,” says the founder of one a kind Truck Relay.


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While Deepak was just getting acquainted with the idea of the startup, he met with the future co-founder of Rivigo, Ghazal Kalra over coffee. That time, she had just gotten back from the US after finishing her joint program and was looking to put together a startup. Deepak and Gazal had not worked together yet, but Deepak knew Gazal through her husband who happened to be his colleague at McKinsey. To get a primary idea of what was happening on-ground, Gazal decided to hit the road herself. She was looking to understand the underlying reason behind Indians not taking up paid jobs like truck drivers. And the most surprising fact was this was the condition despite the massive unemployment ratios in the country.

Reminiscing, she said, “At a village in Rajasthan some three-four unemployed men were sitting around playing cards. I asked them, "Why don’t you consider the option of becoming a truck driver?" They took great offense to the question. One guy said no one would marry him if he took that option, while another said he had studied till Class 8, not for such a job.”

Analyzing this stigma on the mindsets of the people, this duo realized that there were several reasons why the “truck driving” profession has traditionally been frowned upon. Among these reasons, the biggest one was owing to drivers staying on the road for a stretch of days. So this meant that truck drivers go home three-four times a year. Also, this profession was perceived to be a high-risk job mainly because of factors like poor living conditions, vulnerability to contracting HIV, drug, and alcohol addiction, and pressure from truck owners to drive more often and faster. Somehow both these co-founders knew that if they work out an arrangement where they could send the driver home the very same day, the whole scenario could be reversed.

Rivigo - Logo and Tagline

Rivigo's Tagline is 'Making Logistics Human'

Rivigo Logo
Rivigo Logo

Rivigo - Business Model and Revenue Model

Rivigo to date has always declined to reveal the pricing modules that it charges to its app users. Rivigo's net worth is unknown but the company made it a point by saying that its clients see a saving of 12% to 20% in overall logistics costs when they use the Rivigo application. However, Rivigo has not been able to pass on the entire cost-benefit to clients.

Rivigo - Startup Challenges

Theoretically, this system sounds simple enough. But in reality, this process is very cumbersome. Rivigo has created a network of over 70 pit stops across the country, which translates to a driving distance of around 250 km or around five hours for a driver between pit stops. However, to make this as effortless as imagined, the team has to ensure full control and monitoring of the mechanism.

This is not it. The pilot who is handing over the truck again needs to board another truck that is coming in the opposite direction. So, essentially the trip planning and routing are required to be done optimally so that trucks are traveling in both directions at about a similar time.

Also, one of the major challenges faced by Rivigo is finding the right set of drivers and, therefore, requires huge investments to build an effective HR process. Both the co-founders have tried to create a hiring process for drivers that is as stringent as the management hires involving checks for behavior, attitude, and technical skills. All drivers go through strict and regulated training programs at Rivigo.


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Rivigo - Funding and Investors

In September 2019, Rivigo entered the Unicorn club of Indian startups with a valuation of $1.05 billion. Rivigo has raised a total of $268.7 mn in funding to date via 11 funding rounds. The valuation of Rivigo is currently over $1 bn. Rivigo now aims to raise between $50-$100 mn in a Pre-IPO round before conducting an IPO in the next 18-24 months, as of May 2022.

Rivigo Funding Details are as follows:

Date Amount Series Investors
December 1, 2015 - Debt Financing Trifecta Capital
December 17, 2015 $30 Million Series B Elevation Capital
October 6, 2016 $75 Million Series C Warburg Pincus
March 8, 2017 $12.84 Million Debt Financing -
January 12, 2018 $41.11 Million Series D Elevation Capital
July 10, 2019 $65 Million Series E SAIF Partners, Warburg Pincus
September 25, 2019 $4.97 Million KB Global Platform Fund
December 2019 $20 Million Series F SAIF Partners, Spring Canter Investment Ltd.
January 6, 2020 $3.46 Million Debt Trifecta Capital
January 7, 2020 $3.21 Million Series G Elevation Capital (Formerly SAIF Partners
November 2, 2020 $10 Million Series G Elevation Capital

Rivigo - ESOPs

Rivigo adopted a new stock option compensation plan for its employees on May 16, 2022. This has been done under Rivigo Stock Option Plan 2022, for which the Rivigo board has already passed a resolution. This new plan of Rivigo will have 22,730 options each convertible into one equity share and is estimated to be valued at around $15 mn.


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Rivigo - Growth and Revenue

Hailed as the fastest-growing surface transport services company in India, Rivigo has seen many ups since its establishment in 2014. Some of the major growth highlights of Rivigo are:

  • Owns a fleet of 5,000+ high-tech trucks
  • Reached over 4000 cities
  • Driven over 1 billion kilometers
  • More than half a mile trips are confirmed
  • Covers over 29,000 pin codes across the country
  • Boasts of having more than 200,000 fleet owners
  • Curated an undisturbed network of over 70 pit stops and 200 branches.
  • Recently launched National Freight Index (NFI) to provide live freight rates for different lanes and vehicles across the country.

Rivigo's revenue rose to INR 1,028 crore in FY19. It had a loss of INR 600 crore for the fiscal year 2019, compared to a loss of INR 270 crore in 2018. The revenue of the Deepak Garg-headed company has increased by 5% in FY20, rising to INR 1,080 crore.

The expenditure of Rivigo also witnessed an increase of 5%, which was previously recorded at INR 1,532 cr in FY19 and became INR 1,622 cr in FY20. This made the losses of Rivigo increase by 6%. Rivigo's losses were recorded at INR 511 crore (FY19) and surged to become INR 541 crore during FY20.

Rivigo Financials FY18-FY20

Rivigo - Competitors

Although Rivigo believes they do not have any direct competition in the industry with their relay logistics, in recent years we could see truck marketplaces such as Blackbuck, Lobb, and Trukky entering the market. Not just that, there are ventures like Delhivery and Ecom Express, operating in the same segment, who offers a holistic combination of warehousing, line haul, and last-mile delivery services. Some of the top competitors of Rivigo include:

  • Blackbuck
  • Lobb
  • Trukky
  • Delhivery
  • Ecom Express

Rivigo - Future Plans

Gazal said: “Rivigo is only getting started: Our philosophy from day one has been that this is a large sector to solve for. We want to build Rivigo into an institution that will last beyond our lifetime. Our aspiration keeps growing every year. But the main aspiration is quite simple – make India number one in logistics in the world.” Rivigo is currently planning to launch an IPO within the next 18-24 months after seeing a Pre-IPO round.

FAQs

What is Rivigo?

Rivigo is a technology-enabled logistics platform provider that offers transport services. The company's full-stack logistics offering includes relay-led trucking and freight marketplace.

Who are Rivigo Founders?

Deepak Garg and Gazal Kalra are the Founders of Rivigo.

Who are the Top Competitors of Rivigo?

Rivigo faces competition from:

  • Blackbuck
  • Lobb
  • Trukky
  • Delhivery
  • Ecom Express

What is Rivigo valuation?

Rivigo has a valuation of over $1 bn.

How can you book a Rivigo truck?

A Rivigo truck can be booked by simply going to their website

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