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Nothing reminds you of California on Huttenstrasse in the middle of the city of Zurich. We are in a quiet residential area not far from the ETH, walking past idyllic old residential buildings with colorful facades until we discover the inconspicuous Züri garage on the corner of Schmelzbergstrasse. Already in the middle of Limmatstadt, garages are rare. But there’s something special about this neighborhood garage that may seem small at first glance.
On the outskirts of Zurichberg, Züri garage owner Fadel Bouhouch (44) founded drivemycar AG in the summer of 2020 with Metin Kabay (40), Pascal Kienast (41) and Jürg Burger (40) and has since developed the ride-sharing platform drivemycar. Official launch today – the celebrations will be quite traditional: colorful balloons, techno music and grilled sausages. “More for less,” explains Bouhouch, who is not only the co-founder but also CEO of Drivemycar, the platform’s unconventional motto. “We are committed to providing fewer cars, less traffic jams, less lack of parking and less pollution. All this is possible without giving up”.
unique in Europe
A Silicon Valley pioneer’s vision for the future seems ultimately to be a well-thought-out business idea: Private customers should use the platform to lease their own cars to other private individuals, companies should handle fleet management, or major development administrations should offer tools for residents in the sharing system.
“Drivemycar customers don’t have to worry about anything: we do everything from the setup of the telematics box to billing, payments and appointment control, insurance solutions and claims management,” says Bouhouch.
Smartphone as car key
We can try on the spot how easy it is to rent a car through the app: download the app, create a profile and scan the necessary documents such as driver’s license and ID, enter your credit card for the invoice – done. After a few minutes we can reserve one of the cars provided by the Züri Garage. We prefer the recently released mini-publisher Microlino. Previously equipped to unlock, lock and start the car by the Züri Garage or one of the future 90 partner companies in Switzerland, the vehicle is now unlocked via the app, similar to well-established e-scooters.
To celebrate the day, test drive today is just one franc, otherwise rental prices start at 3.90 francs per hour, including insurance, depending on the model. Renters can earn an average of 400 francs per month from their vehicles if they purchase their vehicles on holidays or on days they do not need. 30 percent of the revenue will go to the platform, which not only further develops the app, but also supports customers around the clock when needed. “You also benefit from vehicle security and a fuel or charge card, including theft monitoring, parking damage protection, and a discount,” Bouhouch explains. Entire company fleets can also be digitized via drivemycar to use them more efficiently and automate processes.
Use years of experience
But how does a so-called small garage manage to build a highly complex platform almost on its own, seeking to create a new “mobility ecosystem” in German-speaking countries? “We’ve had telematics installed in the Züri garage for the ridesharing company Sharoo for seven years — an average of eight to ten cars a month,” Bouhouch says. When news of the platform’s demise suddenly reached him in April 2020, Bouhouch and his colleagues decided to set up their own ridesharing platform. “We didn’t want to just give up on our many years of experience and accumulated knowledge”.
You want to focus primarily on the Swiss market. Then expand the offer to Austria and Germany. Fadel Bouhouch believes drivemycar is in the spirit of the times: “Today we have too much of everything. The environment is suffering. At the same time, everything is getting more expensive and resources are scarce. When we share what we have, we can have less and still use more. More for less need not be a contradiction.” In his closing speech, Fadel Bouhouch emphasized that there are pioneers not only in Silicon Valley but also in Zurichberg.
Source: Blick
I’m Ella Sammie, author specializing in the Technology sector. I have been writing for 24 Instatnt News since 2020, and am passionate about staying up to date with the latest developments in this ever-changing industry.
