RSG111: Alison Griswold on Why Juno Failed

I can’t say I was surprised to hear that Juno shut down recently. They offered a lot to drivers and really seemed to do their research, but ultimately it wasn’t meant to be. Today I’ll be talking about Juno as a case study – what happened, what went wrong, and what we can get out of this whole process.

If you’d like to read a transcript of this podcast, please click here.

Intro

  • Today I’ll be chatting with Alison Griswold of Quartz on Juno
  • Covering the sharing economy for as long as I’ve been around!
  • Thanks to George Grama – interviewed him before
  • He white-labels rideshare apps – if you’re interested in starting your own rideshare company, reach out to me: harry [at] therideshareguy.com and I can put you in touch with him!

Intro to Alison Griswold

  • Alison Griswold of Quartz, covers the sharing economy
  • Runs a newsletter on the sharing economy called Oversharing
  • Typically used Via in NYC (but usually uses public transit!)

Juno – The Beginning

  • Became aware of them in 2016
  • Started in beta mode – much lower commission than Uber and offered a higher wage
  • Subsidized on rider side
  • Skeptical early on of their chances – how long could this all last?

Were Drivers Happy with Juno?

  • Overall, they were!
  • RSUs, no shared rides, better pay for drivers
  • Drivers felt they were getting a share of the company

Where Did it All Go Wrong?

  • Did it really go wrong? It all went right – for Juno
  • Juno owner had a pattern of identifying market opportunities, creating a competitor in the space, and then turning it over for a profit
  • Juno sold to Gett in 2017 – deal reported around $2M
  • Drivers lost their stock options

Takeaways from Juno’s Exit

  • Initial branding is very important
  • Uber and Lyft copied a lot of the features Juno had
  • Can a driver-friendly company really unseat Uber/Lyft?
  • Yes! Barriers to entry are not high

Outro

  • Appreciate Ali sharing her expertise as a reporter – she’s doing important work!
  • If you have questions about Juno, reach out!
  • And if you want to start a rideshare company, contact me: harry [at] therideshareguy.com

Show Notes