Rappi formalizes entrance to Ecuador, continues Latin American expansion plans

Contxto – Ecuador may be known for its Quechua roots, condors, its zero-degree latitude and Darwin’s Theory of Natural Selection, but now it has another asset – Rappi. 

Following Rappi’s premier in Costa Rica, the Colombian last-mile delivery app debuted in the Andean country that recently experienced massive anti-austerity protests over a proposed increase in gasoline prices. 

While Rappi landed in Ecuador two months ago, the new branch revealed the big news on November 7 during a brand presentation. 

Rappi in Ecuador 

All things considered, Rappi’s decision to launch operations in Ecuador reinforces the scale-up’s determination to simplify users’ lives. In other words, uninhibited access to supermarkets, restaurants, pharmacies, plus an assortment of other multifaceted services. 

In the process, the company ensures optimized price, quality, not to mention speed. 

“Ecuador joins the eight countries in Latin America where users live with more time to do what they want and not what they have to do,” said Alejandro Freund, Country Manager of Rappi Ecuador, during a brand presentation on November 7.

“We are very happy to arrive in this country where the growth opportunities of the new startups are booming. In addition, our application adds to the offer of services that facilitate the life of the user.”

Some reports say that Rappi Ecuador already has approximately 1,300 delivery partners between Quito and Guayaquil. From this number, 800 can be found in Quito while 500 are available in Guayaquil. Even more impressive, the SoftBank-backed business contends that it already has about 100,000 customers. 

Moving forward, Rappi will encounter competition with the Ecuadorian last-mile delivery app, Parallevar. Glovo from Spain and Uber from the United States are also active in the country. 

Rappi expansion in Latin America

With Ecuador in the mix, it has become the latest Latin American market as part of Rappi’s regional expansion. Gradually, the company has invested over US$1.4 billion in nine countries throughout the region since 2017. Today, the aspiring super-app is active in more than 50 cities.

Based on these figures, Rappi has also created over 2,500 direct jobs for its famous Rappitenderos, in addition to collaborating with north of 20,000 affiliated partners. 

Despite legal issues over lack of safety provisions in certain markets, particularly Argentina, many praise the startup as a reliable source of income and development for delivery drivers. 

Nonetheless, even in its native market, Colombian customers have reportedly issued over 750,000 complaints against Rappi in 2018. To address these matters, Rappi installed rest stops and began offering more benefits to its employees to ensure smoother operations.

-JA