Porter announces first-ever international expansion with its foray into UAE

Porter, India’s leading tech-based, on-demand logistics company has announced its first overseas expansion with entry to UAE offering intra-city logistics services in Dubai. The expansion comes under the company’s current plan to explore the GCC regions, and the Indian subcontinent.

The logistics start-up, which is backed by some of the most renowned and active venture capital investors including Tiger Global, Sequoia and Lightrock India had earlier raised $100 million in Series E funding for expanding operations.

Founded in 2014, Porter emerged as a response to the numerous challenges faced by the Indian intra-logistics industry at that time. This industry was highly fragmented, characterized by significant gaps in demand and supply, inefficient matchmaking, and underutilized assets. Recognizing the need for technological intervention to address these issues, Pranav Goel, Uttam Digga, and Vikas Chaudhary established Porter with a strong belief in transforming challenges into opportunities.

The company’s revenues more than doubled from Rs8.62 billion (Dh384 million) in 2021-22 to Rs18 billion in 2022-23.

The company will provide a tech-enabled platform to ensure hassle-free deliveries through its LCVs and 2-wheelers addressing the gap in intracity logistics requirements in the region for small package delivery requirements of both personal and businesses. Presently with more than 20,000 customers onboard, Porter plans to make an investment of $6 million in UAE for the next three years. Additionally, the company is looking to bolster operations in these cities and further double their customer acquisition by 40,000 and increase vehicle base 3.2 times more than to 800 by March 2024.

Pranav Goel, CEO & Co-Founder, Porter said: “Dubai being a global business hub, acts as an excellent facilitator for organisations that aim to establish their footprint in the region. We are thankful for all the business-friendly policies and infrastructure that the region has to offer and we expect to scale our business exponentially in the market. The expansion in UAE will catalyse the holistic growth of intra-city logistics ecosystem globally while also benefitting the local economy. We, at Porter are also actively focusing on generating employment opportunities for driver-partners and offering economical and efficient solutions backed by technology to the customers.”

Porter's logistics solutions facilitate the transportation of goods of all sizes while ensuring transparent pricing and route optimisation. Currently, the company serves over 10 million users throughout and has a registered driver-partner base of over 500,000. The company has set an ambitious goal to reach 2.5 million driver-partners within the next five years, Goel said.

“Porter recognises the immense potential of expanding into the UAE market, driven by the country’s strategic location, world-class infrastructure, business-friendly policies, and emphasis on innovation. These factors create an ideal market for us to offer our services and establish strong global connections. The response to Porter’s services in UAE has been overwhelmingly positive, with users expressing high levels of satisfaction with our reliable and cost-effective logistics solutions.”

• Business