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They already pickup peoples items. However they are not setup logistically to handle 5-20min pickup times. They do something called a milk run which requires th

They already pickup peoples items. However they are not setup logistically to handle 5-20min pickup times. They do something called a milk run which requires them to pre-schedule their routes before hand. They absolutely could offer this service in the future, it would just be logistically very difficult to build it into their current operations. Our unique advantage is our product/experience UX and our focus on packaging. UPS, Fedex, USPS and our other partners all love us. They see us filling a much needed gap in the market. Just as stripe does for visa/mc/etc. What these shipping companies are the best at is moving many packed items over large distances. Their logistics networks are unparalleled to no one. We just see a large gap in the first mile.

ErikRogneby 12y ago
Great explanation of your value prop. Do you have a timeline for roll-out to other cities you can share?
- kevingibbon 12y ago
  We are launching NY in October. Then looking to stamp out cities as quickly as possible. We have the barrier of a warehouse in every city + packers but just like anything once you do something enough times you get really good at it. Looking to be extremely aggressive on city rollout.
  - larrys 12y ago
    "We have the barrier of a warehouse in every city" I'm assuming when you do you are going to be locating your warehouse near Fedex/UPS depots then?
    - kevingibbon 12y ago
      it really depends on a number of things. Fedex and UPS proximity play a part but other things like availability of a suitable warehouse in a reasonable amount of time is more important.
  - Serow225 12y ago
    Looking forward to seeing you in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area ASAP for my own use, we have a great hub airport here - lots of cargo planes! :D
  - Serow225 12y ago
    You folks would be my absolute heroes if you could partner(?) with another company so that I could take a picture of something in my house/garage that I want to get rid of, and then frictionlessly have it picked up/photographed/sold/shipped!!! I would kill for this service, and I'm guessing a lot of other people would too. I've got so much stuff that is not really needed anymore, but is too valuable to just throw/give away because I'd like to recover some money from it, but I'm too busy to sell it on eBay with all the time that it takes...
    - avalaunch 12y ago
      How much would you pay for this service? It's exactly one of the ideas I've been toying around with, but not one of the ones I'm currently working on.
      - Serow225 12y ago
        That's the $64k question :) There seem to be a fair number of local people/shops that will do this for you (usually advertised as "we'll sell your stuff on eBay for you!"), but they take a really hefty cut, so much so that it usually isn't worth it for me to haul all my 'stuff' over to them... I'm hoping that a larger automated system like shyp would be able to reduce the seller cut to something more reasonable :)
        avalaunch 12y ago
        Yeah, the eBay drop centers aren't a very good deal. As you mentioned, you have to take your stuff to them, and then they might not accept it. Most won't take anything under $50 in value, or anything over a certain size. Then they do very little effort in determining the right price, instead opting for no reserve auctions with really low starting bids. Then they keep 50% commission on average. So their value prop is essentially: bring us your stuff, we'll take some of it, sell it for less than it's worth, and then keep half of that. I think creating a business that resold on Amazon would be smarter. It's less work, easier to price, and the customers there are willing to pay more than on eBay. You would be limited to only taking items that Amazon has in their system though. I was going to work on this (actually selling on a combo of Amazon/Craigslist/eBay), but I had the most hellacious back and forth string of emails and phone calls with Amazon's tech support only to confirm that they require $500/year developer fees for the privilege of developing software that works with their marketplace web services api. And unlike Apple where you only have to start paying once you wish to deploy an app into their app store, with Amazon you have to pay while developing the app too.
  - anigbrowl 12y ago
    Why NY when you have other cities like Oakland, Berkeley, San Jose on your doorstep and huge territories like LA within the same state? Do you need a certain minimum residential density to break even?
    - kevingibbon 12y ago
      We break into a city starting in a tight geography and expand outwards. We don't consider Berkeley or Oakland as new cities as we can provide service from one warehouse. We will be overing service to those areas very shortly.
vmarsy 12y ago
so your plan is basically Uber but transporting goods instead of people? Interesting idea, the "milk run" has the advantage of being energy/cost efficient for UPS, but if you have Uber-like drivers that are willing to put a package in their trunk and drop it to a Shyp warehouse for a cheap price, why not!
free2rhyme214 12y ago
This is great. Your organization is fulfilling the instant gratification need that the bigger guys aren't delivering on which is the value and revenue opportunity. Did you start this company with the Uber ah ha moment? ie. why can't I push a button to do this or was it a pain point that evolved into a business model?
- kevingibbon 12y ago
  I used to be a very successful eBay power seller. I knew the pain-point myself very well. Wanted to solve it for others.
cylinder 12y ago
How can it possibly be profitable to courier packages like this? That is, without adding on $10+ in fees?
- patio11 12y ago
  It has approximately the same economics as pizza delivery, minus everything that goes into making the pizza.
  - cylinder 12y ago
    So the drivers will rely on tips? How much am I supposed to tip?

ErikRogneby 12y ago

Great explanation of your value prop. Do you have a timeline for roll-out to other cities you can share?

kevingibbon 12y ago
We are launching NY in October. Then looking to stamp out cities as quickly as possible. We have the barrier of a warehouse in every city + packers but just like anything once you do something enough times you get really good at it. Looking to be extremely aggressive on city rollout.
- larrys 12y ago
  "We have the barrier of a warehouse in every city" I'm assuming when you do you are going to be locating your warehouse near Fedex/UPS depots then?
  - kevingibbon 12y ago
    it really depends on a number of things. Fedex and UPS proximity play a part but other things like availability of a suitable warehouse in a reasonable amount of time is more important.
- Serow225 12y ago
  Looking forward to seeing you in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area ASAP for my own use, we have a great hub airport here - lots of cargo planes! :D
- Serow225 12y ago
  You folks would be my absolute heroes if you could partner(?) with another company so that I could take a picture of something in my house/garage that I want to get rid of, and then frictionlessly have it picked up/photographed/sold/shipped!!! I would kill for this service, and I'm guessing a lot of other people would too. I've got so much stuff that is not really needed anymore, but is too valuable to just throw/give away because I'd like to recover some money from it, but I'm too busy to sell it on eBay with all the time that it takes...
  - avalaunch 12y ago
    How much would you pay for this service? It's exactly one of the ideas I've been toying around with, but not one of the ones I'm currently working on.
    - Serow225 12y ago
      That's the $64k question :) There seem to be a fair number of local people/shops that will do this for you (usually advertised as "we'll sell your stuff on eBay for you!"), but they take a really hefty cut, so much so that it usually isn't worth it for me to haul all my 'stuff' over to them... I'm hoping that a larger automated system like shyp would be able to reduce the seller cut to something more reasonable :)
      - avalaunch 12y ago
        Yeah, the eBay drop centers aren't a very good deal. As you mentioned, you have to take your stuff to them, and then they might not accept it. Most won't take anything under $50 in value, or anything over a certain size. Then they do very little effort in determining the right price, instead opting for no reserve auctions with really low starting bids. Then they keep 50% commission on average. So their value prop is essentially: bring us your stuff, we'll take some of it, sell it for less than it's worth, and then keep half of that. I think creating a business that resold on Amazon would be smarter. It's less work, easier to price, and the customers there are willing to pay more than on eBay. You would be limited to only taking items that Amazon has in their system though. I was going to work on this (actually selling on a combo of Amazon/Craigslist/eBay), but I had the most hellacious back and forth string of emails and phone calls with Amazon's tech support only to confirm that they require $500/year developer fees for the privilege of developing software that works with their marketplace web services api. And unlike Apple where you only have to start paying once you wish to deploy an app into their app store, with Amazon you have to pay while developing the app too.
- anigbrowl 12y ago
  Why NY when you have other cities like Oakland, Berkeley, San Jose on your doorstep and huge territories like LA within the same state? Do you need a certain minimum residential density to break even?
  - kevingibbon 12y ago
    We break into a city starting in a tight geography and expand outwards. We don't consider Berkeley or Oakland as new cities as we can provide service from one warehouse. We will be overing service to those areas very shortly.

vmarsy 12y ago

so your plan is basically Uber but transporting goods instead of people? Interesting idea, the "milk run" has the advantage of being energy/cost efficient for UPS, but if you have Uber-like drivers that are willing to put a package in their trunk and drop it to a Shyp warehouse for a cheap price, why not!

free2rhyme214 12y ago

This is great. Your organization is fulfilling the instant gratification need that the bigger guys aren't delivering on which is the value and revenue opportunity. Did you start this company with the Uber ah ha moment? ie. why can't I push a button to do this or was it a pain point that evolved into a business model?

kevingibbon 12y ago
I used to be a very successful eBay power seller. I knew the pain-point myself very well. Wanted to solve it for others.

cylinder 12y ago

How can it possibly be profitable to courier packages like this? That is, without adding on $10+ in fees?

patio11 12y ago
It has approximately the same economics as pizza delivery, minus everything that goes into making the pizza.
- cylinder 12y ago
  So the drivers will rely on tips? How much am I supposed to tip?