06/ 17/ 2004
Zipcar Inc.
Cambridge,Mass.
Scott Griffith, president and CEO
www.zipcar.com
Quick. You’re in Boston, and you need a rental car you can take to New York. If you’re a member of Zipcar, you’re in luck. The 25-employee company provides, insures and maintains cars for round-trip self-service use. Currently the business has parking lots along the Northeast corridor, and CEO Scott Griffith estimates there is a Zipcar within a five-minute walk of 2 million people.
The entire reservation service is automated, allowing customers to book and pick up cars at any hour of the day. Members arrive at the car at the reserved time and hold a membership access card over the card reader on the windshield. The card and reservation is electronically matched, and the car unlocks automatically and the ignition is enabled, allowing the member to start the car
On being a small-business owner: Small-business owners know a good idea when they see one. In 1999, Zipcar co-founders Robin Chase and Antje Danielson were traveling in Berlin when they noticed the interesting concept. Instead of owning vehicles, members used cars parked around the city when they needed wheels. The two brought the idea back to the United States, and Zipcar was born. Chase headed the company its first three years, and now currently serves as a staff consultant.
On technology: "The Zipcar concept could not exist without technology," saysGriffith. "Our brand is built around the customer experience and technology allows us to do two things: offer an excellent customer experience and receive continuous feedback on how to improve that experience."
The biggest challenge to the business is that it's such a new concept in the car rental market. "To the technophobe, the idea of wireless technology allowing access to any car at any time – without interacting with anyone– can be baffling and even cause anxiety," says Griffith. "Our biggest challenge is in communicating how easy, and liberating, interacting with the technology is."
