Shuttlers, a major provider of affordable, multi-staff bus and ride-sharing solutions for people and corporate travellers via an app, has raised $4 million in equity capital to support the expansion of its transportation services in Nigeria.
The mobility startup raised $1.6 million 18 months ago under the leadership of the Chicago-based and Africa-focused investment firm VestedWorld in order to expand both inside and outside of Nigeria.
The funding round was led by Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV), a pan-African venture capital firm. VestedWorld, SheEquity, CMC 21 & Alsa, and EchoVC all invested. VestedWorld has put money into about 30 companies in East and West Africa and has helped Shittler along his journey.
The company’s CEO and co-founder, Damilola Olokesusi, said this round will create infrastructure.
VKAV, VestedWorld, SheEquity, CMC 21 & Alsa, and Echo VC are great partners in our mission to improve mass transit worldwide.
This grant will allow us to create mass transit infrastructure and reach more Nigerian communities. We want to alter society with shared mobility.
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Indicating that the Shuttlers team had never done any marketing or publicity before collecting its initial money, despite having the largest market share in bus hailing and sharing. This money should be used to upgrade the company’s infrastructure, particularly in competitive sectors.
We differ from competitors in customers, technology, and routes. We have built an infrastructure that supports partners, drivers, marshals, and government organizations in Nigeria and beyond. She added, “Our ultimate ambition is to take over the bus-sharing sector and create this big corporation that’s very profitable.”
Shuttler’s development
Woman Leads Africa invested in a non-equity funding round for Shuttlers in July 2016 (SLA). Also, it was one of the ten early-stage companies admitted into the 2016 SLA Accelerator Programme.
In November 2021, it accelerated. According to the Lagos-based mobility company, it has over 100 buses running 30 routes in the city and almost 260 buses running 300 routes between Lagos and Abuja every day.
Shuttlers has increased its fleet by 150%, its routes by 25x, and its daily passengers by 280%, according to a news release. It supplies over 9,000 tickets to individuals and corporations daily and has 80+ business clients, including Interswitch, MainOne, and Paga. It claims 70,000 users and 3 million trips.
Shuttlers may change global transportation. VestedWorld has invested in approximately 30 East and West African firms and is happy to support Shuttlers.
The organization has already established a solid customer base in Lagos and is fast expanding to other cities in Nigeria. The mobility firm intends to expand its services to more than five additional U.S. cities by next year.
About Shuttlers
Damilola Olokesusi founded Shuttlers in 2016 to solve the issue of inefficient transportation expenditures and to provide enterprises in Lagos with improved mobility options for their employees.
Corporate travel and commutes inside and around Lagos are the company’s primary focus. It provides professionals with their own personal car, bus, or okada transportation to work, allowing them to avoid heavy traffic congestion in Lagos.
Additionally, the app offers real-time bus tracking, traffic-based routing, digital payments, and route scheduling. It provides three alternatives for funding: Businesses pay full fares for employees; firms divide fares with employees; and individual customers pay fares independently, unconnected with partner companies. The costs range between N850 ($1.96) and N1300 ($2.60).
