Gett growing fast in NYC due to faster response and predictable pricing
Uber-competitor Gett has reported it has doubled its driver numbers in New York since the Summer, now boasting 4000 cars on its network in Manhattan, which the company claims has enabled it to reduce its response time to just five minutes. According to Chief Executive Shahar Waiser, while Gett’s worldwide revenue is on track to triple to $500m this year, it is growing at an even faster pace in New York, however Waiser did not quantify this. The rapid growth is attributed to the introduction of a flat rate of $10 for rides in certain parts of Manhattan; apparently it is this “predictability” of fares that is luring new customers and keeping them loyal. “Uber spent a lot of time and effort to convince everyone that surge pricing is the only way to make it work,” Waiser said. “We are proving them wrong.”

Gett, a ride-hailing app for black cars that competes with Uber, has doubled its driver ranks in Manhattan since the summer — and the secret sauce is “flat-rate pricing,” its CEO told The Post.

Already the leading ride-hailing app in Europe, Gett now has 4,000 cars on its network in Manhattan, up from less than 2,000 this summer, according to Chief Executive Shahar Waiser.

That, in turn, has slashed Gett’s average response time to 5 minutes — a crucial “psychological” threshold for waiting passengers, according to Waiser.

Gett’s worldwide revenue is on track to triple this year to $500 million, but it’s growing at an even faster clip in New York, Waiser said, declining to give additional specific revenue for the privately held company.

Business shifted into high gear since it began introducing rides in Manhattan for a flat rate of $10 this spring. After initially limiting the deal to Midtown, Gett has since expanded it to the whole island south of 110th Street.

“Since we started our campaign, we’re growing at the fastest rate compared to anything we’ve experienced in any other territory,” Waiser said.

The big point isn’t that Gett’s prices are lower — as much as 35 percent lower than Uber’s, according to the CEO. Rather, he says it’s the predictability of Gett’s pricing that’s luring in new customers and making them stay.

Flat pricing is especially attractive to corporate clients, which make up as much as 30 percent of Gett’s business overseas. Eventually, that percentage could be even bigger in New York, although it’s currently in the low single digits now, he said.

“Uber spent a lot of time and effort to convince everyone that surge pricing is the only way to make it work,” Waiser said. “We are proving them wrong.”

Earlier this week, Gett upped the ante by introducing flat rates to all New York metro airports, including an SUV option to JFK for $75.

Gett “loses a little” on longer $10 rides, and “wins” a little on shorter rides, says Waiser.

Unlike with Uber, Gett’s math isn’t adding up to massive losses that require billions of dollars in venture capital, he says. The New York operation could be profitable in two years, Waiser predicts — a feat Gett has already pulled off in Europe.

Thus far, Gett has raised $220 million from investors including Russian billionaire Len Blavatnik.

Uber is in the middle of raising $2.1 billion at a valuation of $62.5 billion, a financing round that would bring its total cash raise to more than $12 billion.