"Executives Taking Taxis Instead of Drivers"... Kakao Mobility Surpasses 50,000 Corporate Members

Rapid Growth of Kakao Mobility's Corporate Service
Increase in SoCar Corporate Members
Replacement of Executive Vehicles... Cost Reduction Effects

Executives at Company A commute using Kakao Mobility's premium taxi service, Black. Instead of their usual drivers, professionally trained Kakao taxi drivers pick up the executives in luxury sedans at the required times and locations. Company B recently disposed of all corporate vehicles used by its employees. For business trips or external work, they use Kakao Taxi's corporate service and settle payments through the corporate Kakao T application, significantly reducing costs.

Corporate Membership Grows 566% in One Year

According to the IT industry on the 24th, more companies are using mobility firms' corporate-exclusive services instead of corporate vehicles or drivers. As of this date, Kakao Mobility has 50,000 corporate members. Compared to 7,500 in January last year, this represents approximately 566% growth in one year. Kakao Mobility offers a corporate-exclusive service called 'Kakao T Business.' Corporate members of Kakao Mobility use the Kakao T app to call taxis, and taxi fares are automatically charged to pre-registered corporate cards. Taxis are mainly used for commuting or external work by corporate executives and employees, while designated drivers are primarily used for client entertainment during sales activities. The premium taxi service, Black, is often used for protocol purposes at large conferences or for external buyers.

Socar is also experiencing continuous growth in corporate memberships. From 24,000 corporate members in January last year, the number increased to 27,000 this year. Especially after COVID-19, with the rise of remote work, companies are increasingly using Socar nationwide instead of operating fixed company vehicles. A company that recently became a Socar corporate member reduced its corporate vehicles from about 50 to 30. Employees of this company use Socar for transportation during external work.

Significant Cost Savings and Convenience

Companies turn to mobility services because of the significant cost-saving effects. Operating expenses such as driver salaries, parking fees, and vehicle maintenance costs are reduced. Moreover, information such as usage time, departure and arrival locations, and fares are automatically organized and sent to the company via the app, saving time and costs related to accounting and other administrative tasks. One steel company saved up to 2 billion KRW in vehicle operating costs by using Socar.

A representative from a company using Socar said, "We can minimize the costs of owning and managing vehicles directly and transparently manage employees' business travel." From the perspective of Kakao Mobility and Socar, securing large corporate members ensures stable revenue. Professor Choi Kyung-jin of Gachon University stated, "With the COVID-19 situation and other factors, the mobility corporate market will grow much more. As Kakao Mobility and Socar expand their domains, there is also a possibility of competition between the two services, such as Kakao Mobility entering the rental market or Socar forming strategic partnerships with taxi services."