Drover (company)

Drover is a London-based company providing vehicle subscriptions.

Drover
Privately held company
IndustryAutomotive Industry
Founded2015
Founder
  • Felix Leuschner
  • Matt Varughese
Headquarters
London
,
UK
ServicesCar Subscriptions
Number of employees
120
Websitewww.joindrover.com

Users pay a recurring fee for the right to use a car with insurance, maintenance, tax, MOT and breakdown coverage, and can swap vehicles during the subscription or to cancel their subscriptions outright.[1]

History

Drover was founded in late 2015 by Felix Leuschner, previously CEO of a fashion platform Sylistpick and virtual goods market Gamegoods,[2] and Matt Varughese. They had observed that most of the innovation in the mobility space had been focused on how to get from A to B but that very little had been done around car ownership itself.[3]

In March 2018 Drover received funding of £5.5m from investors including BP Ventures, Partech Ventures and Cherry Ventures. This was on top of a £2m pre-seed investment.[4]

In April 2018 Drover partnered with BMW Group to provide BMW and Mini vehicles on the platform.[5][6]

Service

Drover does not own any cars, but provides a marketplace for vehicle subscriptions.[7][8] Users pay a monthly fee for a car, including insurance, breakdown cover, maintenance tax and MOT. There are no long term commitments so users can swap, upgrade, downgrade or cancel their subscriptions.[9] Felix Leuschner, CEO, claims that by providing a more seamless, online and all-inclusive experience, Drover will be able to improve the typical car purchasing experience.[10]

Some industry predict that the rise of autonomous vehicles will see traditional finance methods superseded by subscription services.[11]

References
  1. "UK Car Renting & Sharing: New movement in mobility". Retrieved 2018-07-02.
  2. Clawson, Trevor. "Want A New BMW? A UK Startup Says You Should Subscribe Rather Than Buy". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  3. "UK car subscription company Drover rides off with funding - PE Hub". PE Hub. 2018-03-15. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  4. "Drover gets £5.5m for its online car marketplace". UKTN (UK Tech News). 2018-03-15. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
  5. "Drover and BMW announce mobility partnership". www.fleetnews.co.uk. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
  6. "BMW Group to offer cars on subscription basis with Drover - Car Dealer Magazine". Car Dealer Magazine. 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
  7. "The Future of Cars: Are flying vehicles just a sci-fi fantasy?". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  8. "Drover picks up £5.5M funding for its car subscription marketplace ñ TechCrunch". techcrunch.com. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  9. "BMW and Mini enter car subscription sector". Fleet World. 2018-04-10. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  10. "One in ten drivers may choose Netflix-style car subscription within decade". Sunday Times Driving. 2018-05-29. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  11. "BMW and Mini launch pay-as-you-go subscription service | Autocar". www.autocar.co.uk. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
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