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Shyft on Ted Ings Fixed Ops Roundtable
·
Oct 26, 2020
Watch Shyft talk about how their product benefits service facilities.
Problem
Consumers do not like having their car serviced
Auto repair shops are losing customers and revenue
And, Covid-19 has accelerated the need to have contactless vehicle service
There needs to be a radical restructuring of the vehicle repair industry, both for the repair shops and the customers. They are losing revenue because of lengthy wait times, and because the experience isn't excellent they have poor satisfaction scores, limiting business and culminating in lost revenue.
On the consumer side, needing vehicle repairs means anxiety, inconvenience, and stress at nearly every aspect of the repair process. Waiting in a crowded lobby is not ideal in today's climate but having quality service on your car gives you peace of mind.
Solution
Repair shops come to you, saving you time and helping them create loyalty
We turn your auto repair shop into a valet service department with full digital interaction
Shyft Auto has created a mobile and web solution that connects consumers to automotive service facilities for a frictionless experience. We save consumers time, keep them updated during the process, and allow them to communicate and pay right in the application. For repair shops, we give them a platform they can use to facilitate pickup and return appointments, track their assets, message, and request payments to any of their customers. Our solution allows auto repair shops to increase their retention, satisfaction scores, and revenue by removing the friction.
Product
Turnkey facilitation and consumer engagement platform for auto repair shops
Shyft was created by a former automotive service manager who dealt with facility operations and consumers every day for 12+ years. After studying consumer experiences as well as facility processes, we developed a solution that streamlines vehicle service or repair for both sides. Shyft is a mobile iOS, Android, and web application that is free for the consumer to download. For repair facilities, we provide a white-label web application and a web booking management tool to help them conduct business better.
Traction
Partnered with a major global oil company that has over 12,000 locations
We've secured partnerships with a major global oil company and have seen up to a 120% increase in revenue on pickup appts. The average dollar amount scheduled through our application is 27% more than when someone calls in or schedules without using our platform. Since the end of February 2020, pickup appointments facilitated by partner facilities have generated over $974,000 in revenue for service facilities or $9,000+ per facility/month. We were a spring 2020 NC Idea seed grant recipient and graduates of Cohort IV RiOT and Winston Starts accelerator programs in 2020.
Customers
Anyone who needs vehicle service or anyone who owns an auto repair shop
Shyft’s consumer demographic is anyone who drives a car or works in a vehicle repair shop. We help make repairs, maintenance and recalls as simple as possible for both sides. We currently have 18+ repair shops working with us with a commitment from 60+ stores. Our app is FREE to the consumer on iOS, Android, and web. Our paying customers are service facilities who subscribe to our platform, they can charge their customers a fee to pick-up & return vehicles if they desire. We target automotive dealer groups first, as they have multiple facilities. Our typical user is any busy professional, parent, student, hospital worker, or teacher.
Business model
A B2B SaaS+ platform
Free for the consumer to use
We earn revenue through one of our four packages. Our car pick-up & return platform is our flagship product. We charge a recurring fee starting at $499/mo/facility up to $1,049/mo/facility and each package has a one-time setup fee. The consumer can use our app for free. We have additional add-ons that can drive a total package cost of $1,495/mo/facility. We have products on our roadmap that will also drive additional revenue in the near future.
Market
A $528M market with a 30% closing rate
The auto industry is huge. Over $106B is spent annually on auto repair, and there are 229K+ auto shops in the US. Despite this, industry surveys show that the market is ready for a disruptor. With our current model, we hope to target a $544M/year market with a 30% closing rate.
Automarket growth citation; Automotive repair shops citation; Vehicles on the highway citation
Competition
We built our product like Amazon, connecting consumers and auto repair shops
We bridge the gap. Our competitors do not.
Unlike our competitors, Shyft has never lost track of the partnership between a repair shop and their consumer. We are one of the only companies that give auto repair shops the ability to facilitate pickup and return appointments using their people and our software. Another competitive edge we have is that we have a turnkey facilitation and consumer engagement platform that starts and completes the process for both the consumer and the auto repair shop. Unlike our competitors, we aren't just a software company, our founder has domain experience of 12+ years that developed this solution.
Vision and strategy
Signing 100+ facilities by EOY 2020
Our immediate vision for the future is to bring on more hires, especially in key areas such as development and sales. With this, we plan to sign on an additional 100 facilities by the end of 2020. Completing integrations needed to prevent double entry at the service facilities is the key to signing more stores. We are close to completing integration with one partner that will open us up to 13,000+ locations to sell into. Our 5-year plan is to have 2000 auto repair shops signed up. Most recently an automotive software company was acquired after having only 100 paying customers.
Funding
$600K raised to date + participation in major accelerators
To date, we have raised $600k. Shyft certainly wouldn't be where it is today without the support of great people and programs. We were a spring 2020 NC Idea seed grant recipient and graduates of Cohort IV RiOT and Winston Starts accelerator programs in 2020. We were a finalist in the Consumer Technology Associations "Startup of the Year" held in Boston, MA. We were also named by ECU as one of the hottest startups in NC. This current round of funding will be put towards operating expenses, new hires, marketing, and development to help complete integrations needed to secure more customers and add new features.
