TFIPOST हिन्दी
TFIPOST Global
Tfipost.com
Tfipost.com
No Result
View All Result
  • Premium
  • Politics
    • All
    • Analysis
    • Opinions
    • Trending
    PM Modi in Bihar After Pahalgam Terror Attack: Pays Tribute, Announces Major Projects Worth ₹13,480 Crores

    Modi Government’s 72-Hour Operation Redefines India’s Counter-Terror Doctrine

    Donald Trump Announces Surprise India-Pakistan Ceasefire, Credits American Mediation

    Donald Trump Announces Surprise India-Pakistan Ceasefire, Credits American Mediation

    Pakistan Bloody Trail: A Chronicle of Terror from Bombay to Pahalgam (1993–2025)

    Pakistan’s Bloody Trail: A Chronicle of Terror from Bombay to Pahalgam (1993–2025)

    Will India Push Pakistan Back to the FATF Grey List?

    Will India Push Pakistan Back to the FATF Grey List? A Timeline of Its Previous FATF Setbacks

    • Analysis
    • Opinions
    • Trending
  • Economy
    • All
    • Business
    • Economy1
    • Finance
    Designing For Impact: Create Exceptional Small Businesses Marketing Materials

    Designing For Impact: Create Exceptional Small Businesses Marketing Materials

    Things You Need to Consider Before Choosing an L&T Finance Two-wheeler Loan

    Things You Need to Consider Before Choosing an L&T Finance Two-wheeler Loan

    Crypto Trading Signals Explained: A Comprehensive Guide

    Crypto Trading Signals Explained: A Comprehensive Guide

    Crypto Arbitrage Trading

    Crypto Arbitrage Trading

    • Business
    • Finance
  • Defense
    • All
    • Defence
    • Strategy
    • Weaponry
    The Demand of ‘de-escalation’ Is a Shield for Terror, Not a Call for Peace

    The Demand of ‘de-escalation’ Is a Shield for Terror, Not a Call for Peace

    Operation Sindoor

    How Operation Sindoor became a Grand Success: Over 100 Terrorists Eliminated in 25-Minute Blitz

    Operation Sindoor: India Destroys JeM Base, Kills Masood Azhar’s ten Family Members

    Operation Sindoor: India dismantles JeM terror infrastructure, neutralises Masood Azhar’s ten family members

    Operation Sindoor

    Why Operation Sindoor? Because No One Touches the Sindoor of an Indian Woman Without Consequence

    • Defence
    • Strategy
    • Weaponry
  • Geopolitics
    • All
    • Africa
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Europe
    • South Asia
    • West Asia
    Operation Sindoor still on: India neutralises Pakistan’s Chinese-made HQ9 Air Defence System in Lahore

    Operation Sindoor still on: India neutralises Pakistan’s Chinese-made HQ9 Air Defence System in Lahore

    UNSC

    UNSC Rejects Pakistan’s Anti-India Narrative, Demands Accountability for Pahalgam Terror Attack

    Credit: ANI

    India Japan Defence Meet: Pahalgam Attack Sparks Renewed Solidarity

    Khalistanis take out Anti-Hindu rally in Canada

    Canada: Khalistani extremist parade PM Modi, HM Amit Shah, Jaishakar’s effigies in mock jail; calls for deportation of 8 lakh Hindus

    • Africa
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Europe
    • South Asia
    • West Asia
  • Knowledge
    • All
    • Culture
    • Education
    • History
    • Indology
    How to Decide Between Amity and Manipal for Your Online MBA Journey

    How to Decide Between Amity and Manipal for Your Online MBA Journey

    Mughals, Delhi Sultans Out, Fresh Chapters on Indian Rulers, Mahakumbh Introduced: NCERT revises Class 7 books

    Mughals, Delhi Sultans Out, Fresh Chapters on Indian Rulers, Mahakumbh Introduced: NCERT revises Class 7 books

    Role of Consultants to Study in Ireland: How to Choose the Right One?

    Role of Consultants to Study in Ireland: How to Choose the Right One?

    The Complete Guide to Education Loan Interest Rates in 2025

    The Complete Guide to Education Loan Interest Rates in 2025

    • Culture
    • History
    • Indology
  • Law
  • Lounge
    • All
    • Books
    • Cinema
    • Entertainment
    • Food
    • Games
    • Health
    • Lifestyle
    • Satire
    • Sports
    • technology
    • Travel
    The Best Foods to Increase Your Libido and Enhance Your Life

    The Best Foods to Increase Your Libido and Enhance Your Life

    FIFA World Cup 2025: Which Teams Have the Best Shot at Glory?

    FIFA World Cup 2025: Which Teams Have the Best Shot at Glory?

    Download MCW App in Bangladesh and Start Winning

    Download MCW App in Bangladesh and Start Winning

    How Does Sports Betting Work in India?

    How Does Sports Betting Work in India?

    • Books
    • Cinema
    • Food
    • Health
    • Sports
    • technology
    • Travel
    • Satire
Tfipost.com
  • Premium
  • Politics
    • All
    • Analysis
    • Opinions
    • Trending
    PM Modi in Bihar After Pahalgam Terror Attack: Pays Tribute, Announces Major Projects Worth ₹13,480 Crores

    Modi Government’s 72-Hour Operation Redefines India’s Counter-Terror Doctrine

    Donald Trump Announces Surprise India-Pakistan Ceasefire, Credits American Mediation

    Donald Trump Announces Surprise India-Pakistan Ceasefire, Credits American Mediation

    Pakistan Bloody Trail: A Chronicle of Terror from Bombay to Pahalgam (1993–2025)

    Pakistan’s Bloody Trail: A Chronicle of Terror from Bombay to Pahalgam (1993–2025)

    Will India Push Pakistan Back to the FATF Grey List?

    Will India Push Pakistan Back to the FATF Grey List? A Timeline of Its Previous FATF Setbacks

    • Analysis
    • Opinions
    • Trending
  • Economy
    • All
    • Business
    • Economy1
    • Finance
    Designing For Impact: Create Exceptional Small Businesses Marketing Materials

    Designing For Impact: Create Exceptional Small Businesses Marketing Materials

    Things You Need to Consider Before Choosing an L&T Finance Two-wheeler Loan

    Things You Need to Consider Before Choosing an L&T Finance Two-wheeler Loan

    Crypto Trading Signals Explained: A Comprehensive Guide

    Crypto Trading Signals Explained: A Comprehensive Guide

    Crypto Arbitrage Trading

    Crypto Arbitrage Trading

    • Business
    • Finance
  • Defense
    • All
    • Defence
    • Strategy
    • Weaponry
    The Demand of ‘de-escalation’ Is a Shield for Terror, Not a Call for Peace

    The Demand of ‘de-escalation’ Is a Shield for Terror, Not a Call for Peace

    Operation Sindoor

    How Operation Sindoor became a Grand Success: Over 100 Terrorists Eliminated in 25-Minute Blitz

    Operation Sindoor: India Destroys JeM Base, Kills Masood Azhar’s ten Family Members

    Operation Sindoor: India dismantles JeM terror infrastructure, neutralises Masood Azhar’s ten family members

    Operation Sindoor

    Why Operation Sindoor? Because No One Touches the Sindoor of an Indian Woman Without Consequence

    • Defence
    • Strategy
    • Weaponry
  • Geopolitics
    • All
    • Africa
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Europe
    • South Asia
    • West Asia
    Operation Sindoor still on: India neutralises Pakistan’s Chinese-made HQ9 Air Defence System in Lahore

    Operation Sindoor still on: India neutralises Pakistan’s Chinese-made HQ9 Air Defence System in Lahore

    UNSC

    UNSC Rejects Pakistan’s Anti-India Narrative, Demands Accountability for Pahalgam Terror Attack

    Credit: ANI

    India Japan Defence Meet: Pahalgam Attack Sparks Renewed Solidarity

    Khalistanis take out Anti-Hindu rally in Canada

    Canada: Khalistani extremist parade PM Modi, HM Amit Shah, Jaishakar’s effigies in mock jail; calls for deportation of 8 lakh Hindus

    • Africa
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Europe
    • South Asia
    • West Asia
  • Knowledge
    • All
    • Culture
    • Education
    • History
    • Indology
    How to Decide Between Amity and Manipal for Your Online MBA Journey

    How to Decide Between Amity and Manipal for Your Online MBA Journey

    Mughals, Delhi Sultans Out, Fresh Chapters on Indian Rulers, Mahakumbh Introduced: NCERT revises Class 7 books

    Mughals, Delhi Sultans Out, Fresh Chapters on Indian Rulers, Mahakumbh Introduced: NCERT revises Class 7 books

    Role of Consultants to Study in Ireland: How to Choose the Right One?

    Role of Consultants to Study in Ireland: How to Choose the Right One?

    The Complete Guide to Education Loan Interest Rates in 2025

    The Complete Guide to Education Loan Interest Rates in 2025

    • Culture
    • History
    • Indology
  • Law
  • Lounge
    • All
    • Books
    • Cinema
    • Entertainment
    • Food
    • Games
    • Health
    • Lifestyle
    • Satire
    • Sports
    • technology
    • Travel
    The Best Foods to Increase Your Libido and Enhance Your Life

    The Best Foods to Increase Your Libido and Enhance Your Life

    FIFA World Cup 2025: Which Teams Have the Best Shot at Glory?

    FIFA World Cup 2025: Which Teams Have the Best Shot at Glory?

    Download MCW App in Bangladesh and Start Winning

    Download MCW App in Bangladesh and Start Winning

    How Does Sports Betting Work in India?

    How Does Sports Betting Work in India?

    • Books
    • Cinema
    • Food
    • Health
    • Sports
    • technology
    • Travel
    • Satire
No Result
View All Result
Tfipost.com
Tfipost.com
No Result
View All Result
  • Premium
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Defense
  • Geopolitics
  • Knowledge
  • Law
  • Lounge

How the humble desi Ola defeated the global giant Uber

Amit Agrahari by Amit Agrahari
19 June 2019
in Business
How the humble desi Ola defeated the global giant Uber

(PC: Medium)

Share on FacebookShare on X

A caveat is given to all management professionals and the companies which are not aware of India – ‘doing business in this country is drastically different from any western country’. The western theories of ‘management’ could not be applied to India. One needs to understand ‘ground realities’ of country, study the people, government, and institutions to succeed and run a successful business in the country.

A good example of a company’s failure despite having resources and technological efficiency is American giant- Uber. The company is losing the cab-sharing market war to homegrown Ola which earlier used to be dubbed as a copycat of the American giant. Together both companies account for more than 95 percent of the Indian market. But the share of Ola grew to double that of Uber, as per latest reports.

RelatedPosts

Operation Sindoor Phase 2: India foils Pakistan’s late night missile barrage

“Highhandedness”: Supreme Court Rebukes Punjab Govt Over SYL Canal Dispute

PM Modi begins Pahalgam response: India cancels Indus treaty, scraps Pakistan visas, seals borders

Load More

 Bhavish Aggarwal, CEO of Ola said that it tackled Uber’s entry with a guerrilla-like plan and will “fight the nooks and corners” to win the war against the American giant. “We did not have a huge head start against them in India … [however], we were clear about our strengths… we know India better, we ended up building our business model customized around Indian reality in every aspect,” said Agrawal while speaking at IIT Bay Area Alumni meet in California.

According to Agrawal when the competition between Ola and Uber was at the peak, the cash-rich American giant used to outspend 5:1 and still had not been able to get a dominant position in the market.

Uber entered the Indian market in 2013, two years after Ola. At the time Ola operated only in two cities and had ‘half a million dollars in the bank’. On the other hand, Uber has top class managers with years of experience around the globe, deep pockets, and pre-established technological infrastructure.

So, what went wrong? Why Ola won the race despite all odds? Ola understood the Indian ethos and built the business to suit Indian consumer preferences while Uber tried to expand using western managerial techniques.

Ola’s management understood the behavior of Indian consumer very well, accepted cash payments right since inception, on the other hand, Uber took two years to offer services in cash. Some other smart moves by Ola was to offer the booking services through text messages and support nine regional languages for cab and auto drivers, as the majority of them do not understand the English language.

Ola raced ahead in terms of expansion and got first mover advantage in many tier 2 and tier 3 cities. As of 2018, Ola services are available in 110 Indian cities compared to only 31 by Uber. Given the sheer expansion, Ola has more than 10 lakh drivers compared to 4.5 lakh of Uber. The reach of Ola among Indian smartphone users is double-digit more than Uber in all cities.

Ola operates through different services (premium (prime, lux, rentals), low-cost (including autorickshaws), and car-pooling) and auto-rickshaw business is expanding exponentially. “We see a lot of growth coming from these three buckets,” a company spokesperson told Quartz. “Auto rickshaws are doing really good in tier-2 cities where distances are shorter,” he added.

The market share of Ola expanded from 53 percent in July 2017 to 56.2 percent in December while Uber’s share declined from 40 percent to 39.6 percent. In term of downloads, more than 40 percent of people had Ola app compared to 28.7 percent of Uber.

Uber has not lost the game only in India but across the Asian markets. The company sold its Southeast Asian business to rival Grab. The company exited from the Chinese market and surrendered the business to Didi Chuxing. “Having already surrendered China to Didi Chuxing, beating a retreat from Southeast Asia is a precursor to perhaps losing India, the lone remaining jewel in Uber’s once-flourishing Asian empire,” wrote Bloomberg columnist Andy Mukerjee in 2018.

“Even though the service itself is inspired by Uber, Ola hasn’t constantly been looking over Uber’s shoulders to build its playbook for India,” said Kartik Hosanagar, a professor of technology and digital business at University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.

As Uber exits from many Asian markets, Ola is expanding to the international market. It has already established an international outpost in Australia and would expand to other Asia-Pacific countries very soon.
“Expanding into new geographies where people have a higher paying capacity will definitely help Ola generate better revenues,” said Vaibhav Arora, associate general manager at consulting firm RedSeer.

The case of Uber could be a case study for academicians and management professionals on what not to do when doing business in a country which has altogether different cultural dynamics.

Tags: IndiaOlaUber
Share146TweetSend
Previous Post

K Suresh gets scolded by Sonia Gandhi for taking oath in Hindi

Next Post

Indian Railways To Make Big Push Towards Privatising Passenger Train Service

Related Posts

Designing For Impact: Create Exceptional Small Businesses Marketing Materials
Business

Designing For Impact: Create Exceptional Small Businesses Marketing Materials

4 May 2025

Marketing can make or break a startup or small business. As a small business owner, you may worry that...

How to Improve Your Human Resource Recruitment Process for Better Hiring
Business

How to Improve Your Human Resource Recruitment Process for Better Hiring

28 April 2025

The art of hiring the right people can make or break a company. A good human resource recruitment process attracts,...

Centre approves Rs 10,601 Crore for Assam’s Namrup-IV Fertilizer Project
Business

Centre approves Rs 10,601 Crore for Assam’s Namrup-IV Fertilizer Project

19 March 2025

The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved a proposal to establish a new brownfield ammonia-urea...

Load More

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms of use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Currently Playing

Pakistan needs money from IMF to feed their people

Pakistan needs money from IMF to feed their people

00:15:20

Vacate PoK and more: Steps Pakistan needs to take to avoid Indian military action

00:06:36

Taking The Wire’s Propaganda Piece on VP to the Cleaners – Feat. Prof. Kapil Kumar

00:09:19

Rahul Gandhi Undermines India’s Electoral Integrity as Trump Applauds It

00:07:09

Why Pakistan army chief reminds two nation theory| what is the plan| Waqf Bill |Asim Munir| Jinnah

00:13:02
Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube
tfipostTfipost.com
Right Wing | News Analysis | Indian Opinion
  • About us
  • Careers
  • Brand Partnerships
  • Terms of use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap

©2025 TFI Media Private Limited

No Result
View All Result
  • Premium
  • Politics
    • Analysis
    • Opinions
    • Trending
  • Economy
    • Business
    • Finance
  • Defense
    • Defence
    • Strategy
    • Weaponry
  • Geopolitics
    • Africa
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Europe
    • South Asia
    • West Asia
  • Knowledge
    • Culture
    • History
    • Indology
  • Law
  • Lounge
    • Books
    • Cinema
    • Food
    • Health
    • Sports
    • technology
    • Travel
    • Satire
TFIPOST हिन्दी
TFIPOST Global

©2025 TFI Media Private Limited