Bounce shuts down ride sharing service, downsizes workforce

Bengaluru-based start-up Bounce, which recently entered the two-wheeler market in India, has called it quits in the ride-sharing space for now, according to the company. Currently, Bounce only retails the Infinity E1 electric scooter in our market at Rs 70,499 (ex-showroom, Delhi, after Fame-II subsidy). The Infinity E1, which features swappable batteries, is essentially the Twenty Two KYMCO scooter, as Bounce bought out the company in October 2021.

1. Bounce ride-sharing service discontinued after 8 years
2. Battery-swapping network currently active only in Bengaluru, Hyderabad

Why did Bounce stop its ride-sharing service?

Bounce’s ride-sharing service had been operational since 2014 and was discontinued last year, after suffering business setbacks due to the pandemic. Stopping the ride-sharing service meant that concerned employees had to be laid off but the company claims they were notified well in advance about the transition and that most of them have already found employment elsewhere. 

This announcement comes on the back of the Infinity E1’s rather lacklustre sales. The e-scooter hasn’t exactly hit the ground running and according to the government’s VAHAN portal, every month on average there are only 650 registrations, with the number dropping to under 550 in a few instances. In comparison, much more expensive offerings like the Ola S1 Pro and TVS iQube are now clocking five-digit sales numbers on a monthly basis. 

Bounce’s battery swapping network is currently operational in Bengaluru, where a claimed 2 million swaps have taken place across the 100 battery-swapping stations present. Hyderabad is the only other city with the battery-swapping facility in place, with approximately 40-50 stations, but presently its availability is restricted only to B2B services.