"Taking that customer-centric approach would be my advice to all businesses."
Steve Orenstein is the CEO and founder of Zoom2u Technologies Limited, which is the parent company of three brands, Zoom2u, Locate2u and Drivers2u. His journey into the delivery sector was unintentional, but it led him to create a tech-enabled delivery platform that connects businesses and individuals with local couriers.
Zoom2u is a delivery marketplace that uses GPS technology to match hyperlocal drivers with jobs and track parcels throughout their journey, ensuring a superior delivery experience.
Locate2u is a B2B SaaS solution that helps businesses to optimise their logistics through live tracking and estimated time of delivery for customers.
The company’s newest offering, Drivers2u, is an online marketplace that allows individuals and businesses to connect with local drivers in their area.
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Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Steve Orenstein: I’m Steve Orenstein and I’m the CEO and founder of Zoom2u Technologies Limited (ASX:Z2U), which is the umbrella company for our three brands – Zoom2u, Locate2u and Drivers2u. I founded Zoom2u in 2014, and it was listed on the ASX in September 2021.
My journey into the delivery sector was not intentional. I have a logistics background but also a firm belief and interest in my tech skills. Zoom2u was born off the back of a poor delivery experience where both the driver and I became particularly frustrated at how difficult it was to simply get a package to the right person, at a set time. I could see there was a way to leverage technology to streamline this process, which is how Zoom2u came about.
I was aware of the roaring success of Uber-style delivery models – the idea of ordinary people using their own vehicles to get people from A to B and knew that there must be a solution for products and packages, too.
Rather than a driver platform, Zoom2u is a delivery marketplace. The software I have built not only uses the latest in GPS technology to match hyperlocal drivers with jobs, but also to track the parcel throughout its journey. This covers the “when will my parcel arrive?” issue. The second breakthrough was direct contact with the driver. Parcel recipients have a direct line of conversation with the driver while it’s on its journey. When paired together, it essentially makes lost, delayed or missing parcels virtually impossible.
Locate2u was launched in September 2020 as a global solution for business that already have their own delivery drivers. This B2B SaaS solution helps businesses to bolster their logistics through live tracking, estimated time of delivery for customers, and optimised delivery routes. Locate2u is currently being used by more than 400 customers in 10 countries worldwide.
We also just launched Drivers2u in January 2023, which enables customers to hire a driver for a set period by posting a request on the marketplace. These requests could be for deliveries for a small business or restaurant, or for an individual or group of friends to secure a personal chauffeur for the day.
Customers post a budget for the job and then drivers can place return bids to win the work. We see this as a way for small local businesses to self-manage their own deliveries and take back control of their relationship with the customer from other mainstream third-party delivery apps they might be relying on
If you were in an elevator with Warren Buffet, how would you describe your company, your services or products? What makes your company different from others? What is your company’s biggest strength?
Steve Orenstein: Zoom2u is a tech-enabled delivery platform that connects businesses and individuals with a network of local couriers. Not only is it faster than many other delivery options, but our real-time tracking feature also means customers can see exactly where their package is at any given time.
Zoom2u integrates seamlessly with all the major e-commerce platforms, including Shopify, WooCommerce and Magento, making it simple for businesses to streamline their shipping processes and offer a superior delivery experience to their customers. It’s our deep understanding of technology coupled with a customer-centric approach that really sets Zoom2u apart from our competitors.
Locate2u – our SaaS B2B model – was launched in September 2020 off the back of Zoom2u’s success. It uses the same seamless technology as Zoom2u but is available for businesses to plug into their back office, enabling them to optimise the routes of their own driver fleets.
Locate2u now has over 400 delivery partners, including everything from electrical services to florists and even picnic vendors, all of whom have been able to save time and create efficiencies for their customers as a result of implementing our software.
We now also have Drivers2u (launched January 2023), an online marketplace that allows individuals and businesses to connect with local drivers in their area. It aims to bridge the gap between businesses and customers, and help businesses to save money on delivery fees by allowing them to manage their own delivery service, instead of relying on mainstream third-party delivery apps.
Quiet quitting, The Great Resignation, are an ongoing trend causing many businesses to struggle keeping talent engaged and motivated. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued and misunderstood in the workplace. In your experience, what keeps employees happy? And how are adapting to the current shift we see?
Steve Orenstein: At Zoom2u we have a laser focus on delivering a superior service to our customers, and we take a similar approach internally with our employees, with a strong focus on employee engagement and satisfaction. We also make a really concerted effort to encourage a positive company culture, which resulted in Zoom2u being named one of the Best Places to Work in Australia by ‘Great Place to Work’ in 2021.
To foster that positive culture, we work hard on initiatives that support employee wellbeing, including providing mental health resources, encouraging flexible work arrangements, and holding social events that build a genuine sense of community within our Zoom2u team.
We now offer a hybrid work model, where employees can work both in the office and/or remotely, depending on their own preferences and their job requirements. Our tech-centric culture has enabled us to truly embrace the benefits that virtual and remote working can bring. We actually see higher productivity as we have greater levels of employee satisfaction.
Online business keeps on surging higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for the year to come and how are you capitalizing on the tidal wave?
Steve Orenstein: Without a doubt, the digital economy will continue to grow exponentially, with e-commerce a huge part of that.
During the pandemic, we saw a seismic shift to online sales and service from all sectors; and while some industries are slowly returning to a face-to-face model, the convenience and cost-effectiveness of online sales means that a great many businesses will still offer their products and services in an online capacity.
This means there will continue to be increased demand for Zoom2u’s fast and reliable delivery service. To capitalise on this ongoing growth in e-commerce, we’ll continue to expand our network of delivery partners and also strengthen our partnerships with large retailers.
With Locate2u, we’re expecting substantial growth over the next few years as the technology continues to prove it’s worth and value in Australia and around the world.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as THE real challenge right now?
Steve Orenstein: While the world is in recovery right now, we’re still experiencing a host of pandemic-related issues, including long-term supply chain disruptions, delays in shipping and higher costs for transportation and logistics. This has had a significant impact on e-commerce businesses, with many unable to maintain their stock levels and meet customer expectations for delivery.
At Zoom2u, we leverage our ongoing investment in the latest technologies to improve operations and enhance the end-user experience. We rely heavily on tech like data analytics to track delivery performance and optimise delivery routes, as well as predicting demand.
We also pride ourselves on our relationships with our partners – both e-commerce retailers and logistics providers – which enables us to better coordinate operations and streamline processes.
So while challenges like disruptions in supply chains are really out of our control, we are leveraging the best in technology to do what we can to tackle them.
2020, 2021, 2022 threw a lot of curve balls into businesses on a global scale. Based on the experience gleaned in the past years, how can businesses thrive in 2023? What lessons have you learned and what advice would you share?
Steve Orenstein: The last three years have been transformative for a lot of businesses, with new opportunities opening up as conditions have changed and evolved.
Personally, I’ve learnt just how important it is to be flexible and agile in business and be open to changing direction as the market shifts – I hate to say the word ‘pivot’, but there’s absolutely no benefit in having a rigid business model.
My other key learning is appreciating the integral role that technology plays in all facets of business in today’s environment; not only can technology help to streamline your business processes, deliver superior service and stand out from the competition, but it is also the most effective way to enhance the customer experience.
Focusing on the customer by providing personalised products and services is invaluable in both maintaining existing customers and attracting new ones. Taking that customer-centric approach would be my advice to all businesses.
What does “success” in the year to come mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision.
Steve Orenstein: Over the next 12 months we are focused on continuing to sell Locate2u globally. I have recently completed trips to the US and India to have talks with key opportunities there, the outcomes of which are very exciting for Locate2u’s growth.
To do this, our marketing efforts in these markets will also see substantial growth, as well as other overseas locations.
In our first year of operations for Locate2u (2020-21) we earned around $30k in revenue, which was then followed by a $500k revenue year. Seeing these figures is a relief, but proof that we were right in our conviction, and that there was demand for this technology in the sector.
While this revenue is still small in comparison to Zoom2u, we are expecting substantial growth over the next few years as the technology continues to prove it’s worth and value in Australia. Locate2u’s global capability will also contribute greatly to the growth of the business. Establishing this, and beyond, would mean success for us.
Jerome Knyszewski, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Steve Orenstein for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Steve Orenstein or his company, you can do it through his – Linkedin Page
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