by Ryan Daniel R. Dablo

A story about small parcels and big boxes…

SOMEWHERE IN HONG KONG, AT any hour of the day, hundreds of engineers are downing coffees and tapping keyboards to address concerns or calculate kilometers and kilograms for the vast network of Lalamove drivers. They map new cities with massive amount of information that addresses motorcycles or 6-wheelers, and any possible scenario from point a to point b.

Lalamove started as Easy Van in Hong Kong in 2013 by its visionary founder Stanford graduate Shing Chow. At the time, Shing saw the boom in mobile internet and the potential in the sharing economy and decided to capture the opportunity to create value for the logistics industry in Asia, which was quite traditional at the time. He made the decision to build an app to make on- demand and same-day delivery possible for everyone at the touch of a button.

Just like any start-up, beginnings are always bumpy. At first, Shing had the target to build the app in four weeks and a group of engineers were working around the clock in hopes of achieving this. The app was produced in eight weeks in the end and the story began from there. Easy Van was rebranded shortly after as Lalamove and expanded quickly into over 30 markets in South East Asia and Latin America.

So who is Lalamove and how does it differ from other logistics companies? According to the company, its vision is to become synonymous with “delivery” and to empower local communities by making deliveries fast and simple.

Hong Kong was the ideal incubator. Small businesses risked missing delivery all the time. The supply chain was reliant on getting quotes from traditional logistics firms which tend to be unreliable. The Lalamove app proved to be the solution, offering an on-demand, same day or advanced order or long distance delivery with up to the minute tracking.

The easy-to-navigate app offers flexibility in terms of vehicle preference, cost and schedule, ensuring that its customers have full control from start to end.

Lalamove is more than a courier service. It can deliver small envelopes or huge parcels, personal belongings like sofas and pianos, as well as construction materials. Its fleet of vehicles include motorcycles to two-ton delivery vans.

For many businesses recovering from the pandemic, Lalamove answers the necessity of maintaining a full time driver or a delivery vehicle. For drivers and transport owners, the flexibility in schedule can be a lifeline as it enables them to earn and do work as needed.

LALAMOVE OFFERS lucrative opportunities for both drivers and independent transport operators with its flexible schedules.

As a tech company, Dannah Majorocon, Managing Director for Lalamove Philippines, highlights the company’s culture of preparedness and solution-based approach, allowing it to stand its ground amidst the global pandemic and destructive typhoons.

To achieve this, Lalamove puts a premium on their drivers who they refer to as the company’s stakeholders. They purposely designed flexible earning opportunities to fit several time slots.

A training program of two hours are required before drivers can enter the workforce and refresher courses are offered periodically. A typical driver can earn P20,000 to P34,000/month depending on his load. For truck deliveries, drivers can earn a fixed rate of P2,800 for the whole day. The Cebu operation also recently expanded to include transports to Toledo, Balamban, and Pinamungajan. Robbie Tecson, the Cebu office Driver Operator Lead is constantly looking for more stakeholders so they can soon be able to service the whole island of Cebu.

Nelson Judaya, the manager for Lalamove Cebu asserts that the company values local knowledge as one of the requirements among their drivers. They must also be tech-savvy, as the operation is mainly run by the app. Most recently, Workbean, a Southeast Asian company directory, recognized them as the Most Attractive Employer Brand in 2021 for prizing a culture of excellence among its employees. This extends to providing a supportive and collaborative atmosphere in their workplaces, whether on-site or virtual.

Similarly, a customer can send a small parcel via motorcycle delivery, or a grand piano, at a reasonable rate. Anything that can be transported and will fit into their delivery vehicles, Lalamove can move it – except for live animals and prohibited drugs. Payments are made seamless via the app, where customers can top-up their Lalamove wallet via debit or credit cards, GCash, or Maya.

LONG TERM

Paul Loo, Chief Operating Officer for Lalamove, is looking for new markets to expand, at the same time overcoming challenges of the post-COVID landscape. He joined the company in 2019, after an exemplary resume garnered from more than 25 years at Cathay Pacific, rising to the top as the airline’s Chief Commercial Officer. He is bent on the customer experience, and conducts daily face to face with his managers in the key cities. Working with local government units is also vital, and he makes sure Lalamove is compliant in all aspects.

LALAMOVE IS AN ON-DEMAND COURIER SERVICE available through the mobile or desktop app. From enveloped documents, plants, microwave, to sofas and construction materials, anything that will fit its fleet of vehicles, can be moved from one point to another across Cebu.

As it moves to further expand globally, the tech company will have to adapt to changing demands where technology dominates. Onboarding and maintaining customer confidence will continue to be the company’s top priorities. This, of course, is a good thing. Despite being one of the top technology-driven operators globally, Lalamove’s biggest investment would still be its human capital.

OF PARCELS AND PACKAGES

After being in the courier business for quite a few years now, you can expect Lalamove to have shuttled a few odds and ends here and there. From bits and baubles to big and bulky whatnots, the company has seen its fair share of deliveries and cargo items. Pry as we might, though, Lalamove stays mum on the topic. They’re professional, and we love them for it. But they did say that it’s an interesting week when they’re asked to deliver something “enormous”. These past few months, they’ve noticed a heavy traffic of building and construction materials following the wake of devastation from typhoon Odette. The city is rebuilding, and Lalamove is glad to be involved in the rehabilitation efforts.

Price ranges for standard deliveries are as follows:

• Motorcycle Can handle small items of up to 20 kg; starts at Php 48
• Sedan Ideal for medium-sized items of up to 200 kg; starts at Php 102
• MPV Ideal for multiple small deliveries or items of up to 300 kg; starts at Php 120
• Small truck Best for big and bulky items & long-distance deliveries
  weighing up to 1000 kg; starts at Php 310
• Big truck Fitting for heavy and long-distance deliveries
  weighing up to 2000 kg; starts at Php 1450

Requests come in multiple levels of customization, such as by adding on purchasing or queuing services, setting up additional stops for multiple deliveries, or adjusting additional tips for more immediate service.

LALAMOVE GOT YOU COVERED!

With a pool of 1.5 million partner drivers serving over 8 million users across 30 global markets, the distinctive orange hummingbird logo of Lalamove efficiently moves envelopes to hollow blocks, on- boarding partners from Cebu to Rio.

When the devastating typhoon Odette struck last December 16, Lalamove drivers were already available 6 days later even when most of Cebu’s roads were still unpassable. From the global to the national to the local level, Lalamove made it easy to support its stakeholders. In Hong Kong, they shuttled medical supplies and launched advertising services for their small and medium business partners to staunch the economic bleeding. In the Philippines, they pivoted to livelihood and community projects and partnered with CIMB Bank to offer loan assistance to their partner drivers. In Cebu, they put in motion the “Bangon Ta Bai” campaign to assist with recovery and rebuilding after the recent disasters.