Company Urban sets sights on expansive home services initiatives, affirms CEO declaration
Urban Company, India's leading home-services provider, is making strides in the on-demand services sector by offering services within an hour to cater to customers accustomed to instant deliveries. The company's focus on rapid services is part of a broader trend in the online on-demand services market, which is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 22.4% from 2023 to 2030, according to Grand View Research.
The growth of this market is influenced by several factors, including logistics management and the availability of service professionals. Urban Company is not alone in this competitive landscape, as it faces competition from startups like General Catalyst-backed Pronto and Lightspeed-backed Snabbit, both of which promise quickly available, skilled personnel for tasks such as washing, laundry, and cleaning within ten minutes. Angi, a significant competitor in the online marketplace for home services, is also feeling the pressure from Urban Company’s market entry and IPO.
Despite the competition, Urban Company's CEO, Abhiraj Singh Bhal, believes that instant services could create a strong competitive advantage and customer engagement. The company recently launched its "Insta Help" service, allowing users to book domestic workers within 15 minutes.
However, the strategy of offering instant services could put pressure on Urban Company's profit margins, according to Ashish Dhir of 1Lattice. Dhir also pointed out that managing logistics for rapid services could prove challenging, especially if service professionals are unable to take on additional requests. For the logistics and economics of rapid services to work, operations are not easy, Dhir stated.
Elara Capital analyst Karan Taurani, on the other hand, suggested that once the economics of instant services are figured out, they could become the next big thing. If the challenges can be overcome, the market potential for rapid services may be significant.
Urban Company plans to make significant investments over the next two to three years to build a network of service professionals for instant services. For a big player like Urban Company, rapid services could work out in certain phases, such as during festive seasons, according to Dhir. However, he also noted that the growth of the rapid services vertical could be hindered by these challenges.
As of June 30, Urban Company had 7.02 million annual transacting customers. With its focus on instant services and continuous growth, the company is poised to make a significant impact in the on-demand home services market.
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