It’s Uber for Stuff Instead of People

A Pomona businessman is starting a company that will allow people to hire a driver to transport large items from point A to point B. The drivers will use their own vehicles, and both parties will connect via a free smartphone app. Sound familiar?

Sometime last summer, Glenn Todd had a revelation.

If Uber can move people around like a taxicab service, with drivers using their own cars, why couldn’t the same thing be done with hard goods?

A driver could make deliveries from the hardware store or move office, or office supplies for a business. Just like Uber, only without the person who placed the order going along for the ride.

The idea for EZER began when Todd went into a local furniture store where he saw a couch set he liked that was on sale. He wanted to purchase the set but he worried about how to haul the couch home. It wouldn’t fit in his Mini Cooper and the small mom and pop furniture store didn’t have a delivery option. It was then that Todd saw an opportunity to address a growing need.

“I kept imagining people standing outside of Home Depot having just bought something big, like a patio set, that they can’t fit into their car,” Todd said. “How are they going to get home? They aren’t going to fit that stuff in their Mini Cooper.  I thought that that must happen quite a few times every day.”

In September, Todd began working on a business model that became EZER, the automobile transportation company that is scheduled to launch today in the Inland Empire.

Early on in their research, while working on their business plan, Todd and his coworkers determined that EZER probably would apply more to businesses than it would to individuals.

“Every day there are businesses that need to have things moved from one place to another,” Todd said. “[EZER] will work with individuals, but it’s probably a better fit with businesses. We expect the business sector to generate more activity.”

Drivers will respond to requests made exclusively via the free EZER application on their smartphone, which is available via Apple or Google’s app store.

Drivers, who can work either full or part-time, will charge their clients $1.40 a mile and 35 cents a minute, with a minimum rate of $28.

If the business succeeds, Todd has more drivers lined up and is ready to expand quickly into other states.

“We’re going to start in the Inland Empire because we know the market. I really believe that we’re going to find out quickly if this is going to succeed or not,” said Todd.

Todd spoke with IE Business Daily recently about setting up EZER and how he is getting the word out about his new business.

Question: What stands out about Uber is that it’s so simple: people being driven from one place to another. You can’t get more basic than that.

Answer: No, you can’t. And we’re basically doing the same thing, only with products instead of people. That’s why our motto is “Your stuff needs a ride too.” We think that gets across pretty clearly what it is we’re trying to do. But we’re really just an Internet-based business for people who need to move things around.

Q: How are you getting the word out? 

A: Mainly through social media. We’ve set up a Facebook page, and we’ve been using Instagram. The reaction has been pretty strong. We’ve had people working on this since September, not counting our drivers. The reaction has been pretty positive.

Q: How so?

A: People say they need the service, and they want to know when it’s going to start and how they can sign up for it. Remember that these are people who have to call Fed Ex and UPS all of the time when they want to ship something. I think they can tell that what we’re offering will be a little easier for them.

Q: The term “Inland Empire” is defined a lot of ways. Exactly what area will you be covering?

 A: West to Pomona, east to Yucaipa, north to Lucerne Valley – that covers the High Desert – and south to Murrieta.

Q:  Who is your competition? Is anyone else doing this?

 A:  There’s a company called Buddytruk in Santa Monica that helps people move to a new house or apartment. That’s similar to what we’re doing, but all they do is help people move. They don’t really work with anything else.

Q: What are the backgrounds/qualifications of your drivers?

A: They must pass all of the standard security checks, and they must have a regular driver’s license. They have to go through a two-hour orientation meeting, where we give them the materials they need and we tell them what we expect of them. We’re very big on courtesy,  on “yes sir’” and “yes, ma’am.”

Q: What kind of vehicles will they drive?

A: All kinds. Vans, trucks, SUV’s regular-sized cars. We’ll send someone out depending on what size vehicle is needed. All of the vehicles will have a logo attached to the side of their car.

Q: You seem very confident about EZER being a success.

A: I am. I don’t have any doubt that it’s going to succeed. The need is out there, the only thing to do now is go out and make it work.