Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi identifies India as one of the most challenging markets for growth, citing customers’ demands for more services with very low spending, a Moneycontrol report stated.
Speaking during a chat with Infosys co-founder and Aadhaar architect Nandan Nilekani, Khosrowshahi addressed the difficulties posed by the Indian market, stating, “India is one of the toughest markets out there; they are so demanding and do not pay for anything. If we can succeed here, we can succeed anywhere else.”
Despite the challenges, Khosrowshahi said the company plans to expand its low-cost service segments, particularly two-wheeler and three-wheeler services in India. “One of the strategic single biggest opportunity is lower cost products like two-wheeler and three-wheeler… We are also getting into bus in some countries,” Khosrowshahi said.
Uber’s core ride-hailing business suffered a significant setback during the pandemic, with lockdowns restricting movement from one place to another.
Khosrowshahi said that the company had to make some difficult decisions, including layoffs, and had to change its approach and strategy. “We were much focussed on consumers and we took drivers for granted but post-pandemic we had to focus on our drivers. So we changed and offered them more incentives,” he added.
The ride-hailing firm posted its first annual net profit last year since the company went public in 2019. Uber had free cash flow of $3.4 billion in 2023, up from $390 million a year earlier.
While announcing the results, Uber said that in the next three years, it expects gross bookings growth in the mid to high teens percentage and adjusted core profit growth in the high 30 to 40 percent.
On January 9, Uber India reported consolidated revenue of Rs 2,666 crore in FY23 on the back of a surge in revenue from rides and supported services in India.
The company’s revenue from rides increased by 74 percent to Rs 678 crore in FY23 compared to Rs 388 crore in the previous fiscal. The firm’s revenue from support services was recorded at Rs 1,977 crore, up 52 percent year-on-year (YoY), as per MCA filings sourced from data and research agency Tofler.