Ryders proves to be disruptor in UK gig-delivery, reaching quad-digit growth in first three months of operations

Ryders, fast becoming a disruptive force in the UK’s last-mile delivery market, today announced it had recorded a staggering 1,000% month-on-month increase in revenue during its first three months of operations.

Launched amid widespread media reports of poor working conditions, low pay, and rigid schedules across Britain’s fast-growing gig economy, Ryders has quickly prospered on its promise to give the sector a makeover. The company has onboarded more than 1,500 couriers and has reached a joining average of 150 per week. Its corporate team has doubled in size each month to meet swelling demand. Across the recent Valentine’s Day weekend alone, Ryders couriers fulfilled more than 1,000 deliveries.

“We set out with a mission to put last-mile-delivery riders in control of more than just their vehicles,” said Ryders CEO Duncan Mitchell, who launched the company with fellow gig-economy veteran Tom Nimmo in early December 2020. “We designed a platform that would reduce reassignments – a huge problem in the industry – and bring fair pay and better conditions to the workforce while reducing urban pollution.”

Mitchell contends that the unique way Ryders pays delivery professionals is a key factor in incentivising them to not drop jobs. Industry incumbents see higher drop rates and so-called “multi-apping”, where couriers shuffle jobs in real time to optimise reward. However, such practices lead to late or unfulfilled orders and unhappy end-customers.

“Riders are not dropping our jobs,” said Mitchell. “They are not churning because they are paid fairly and accurately, with transparency. This huge decrease in reassignments results in happy riders, merchants, and end-customers.”

Ryders recently finished work on the third phase of its Blended Jobs offering. Unique to the industry, Blended Jobs allows riders to optimise their experience by choosing from On-demand, Scheduled and Hourly work within the mobile app.

Blended Jobs is the latest accomplishment in Ryders’ commitment to build a rider-first business model that focuses on flexibility, fair pay, and support. Through the innovative leverage of technology, the company plans to empower couriers to optimise their workdays. The platform is also designed to help companies of every scale deliver more efficiently, all while reducing congestion and pollution in urban areas.

“Our riders-first ethos has made the industry sit up and take notice,” Mitchell added. “Our momentum to date reveals us as a true disruptor, and we believe we could become Europe's leading last-mile logistics company.”

Because Blended Jobs is a unique value proposition in the sector, Mitchell sees it as key to Ryders’ ongoing success. He and Nimmo built the company’s technology to account for the needs of both riders and partners, and Mitchell reports that the approach has led to “great interest” from third parties in integrating with Ryders as their last-mile delivery solution.

“Riders deserve a fair shake,” he said. “so, we decided to shake up the industry. Flexibility, fairness, support – it’s all on our platform, and the industry is responding.”