Do you remember those bike-sharing bikes that used to be all over the country?Those colorful bicycles have brought convenience and happiness to the city, and have also caused fierce competition and controversy.
In this bike-sharing war, there is a person's name, perhaps you have forgotten, her nameHu Weiwei, is the founder and CEO of Mobike. She worked as a tech journalist before founding Mobike, a dockless bike-sharing company. In 2018, she sold Mobike to Meituan for $2.7 billion, earning $1.5 billion.
However, what she left to Meituan was a mess with serious losses and difficult to make a profit. The rise and fall of Mobike, the success or failure of Hu Weiwei, how many stories and secrets are there?Is she a shrewd business genius or a ruthless player of interests?
This article will reveal the true face of Hu Weiwei for you from the following four aspects.
Hu Weiwei, the founder of Mobike, was born in Dongyang, Zhejiang Province, and graduated from the Department of Journalism of Zhejiang City University. She has done science and technology reports in "National Business Daily", "Beijing News", "Business Value" and "Geek Park", etc., and is full of enthusiasm and curiosity in the field of Internet and entrepreneurship.
In January 2015, she established Beijing Mobike Technology *** to start her bike-sharing entrepreneurial journey.
Mobike's innovation lies in its dockless mode, which allows users to unlock and use the bike by simply scanning the QR code with their mobile phone, and park it wherever they are legally allowed to do so. In this way, Mobike not only saves the cost and space of the pile, but also improves the utilization rate and convenience of the bicycle. Mobike has also introduced a credit score system to encourage users to use their bikes in a civilized manner and punish violations.
On April 22, 2016, Mobike was officially launched and put into operation in Shanghai. Subsequently, Mobike rapidly expanded to all parts of the country, and launched a fierce market competition with competitors such as ofo and Xiaolan Bicycle. With its advanced technology, high-quality service, strong capital and extensive cooperation, Mobike has gradually occupied a leading position in the bike-sharing market.
The rapid development of Mobike has also brought with it a series of problems and challenges. First of all, the blind expansion of Mobike has led to the over-loading and accumulation of bicycles, causing congestion and pollution in the city, and triggering social dissatisfaction and resistance.
Second, Mobike's operating costs and maintenance expenses are much higher than its revenue, resulting in continuous losses and financial pressure. Thirdly, the safety and quality of Mobike bikes have also been questioned and complained by users and regulators. Finally, Mobike's competitors have also continued to emerge and rise, such as Meituan, Didi, Haro, etc., posing a huge threat and challenge to Mobike.
In the face of these crises, Mobike has taken some countermeasures, such as adjusting **, optimizing operations, improving quality, and increasing cooperation, but the effect is not obvious. The development of Mobike has been in a dilemma and deadlock.
Late at night on April 3, 2018, Mobike's shareholders approved the Meituan acquisition plan, and Meituan bought all of Mobike's shares for $2.7 billion**, of which 65% was cash and 35% was Meituan**, in addition to Meituan's debt (between $500 million and $1 billion), and the management team was retained.
This is a major change in China's bike-sharing industry and an important turning point for Mobike.
Behind this deal, there are complex factors and motivations. For Mobike, this is an opportunity to stop losses and change lanes in time to overtake. Mobike has encountered bottlenecks and difficulties in the bike-sharing market, and needs to find new ways out and breakthroughs.
As a comprehensive life service platform, Meituan has a huge user base and traffic entrance, which can provide more resources and support for Mobike, and help Mobike achieve diversified and differentiated development.
For Meituan, this is a strategic acquisition and layout, not only to deal with competitors, but also to expand its business and increase revenue.
Meituan, which is about to go public in Hong Kong in 2018, needs to improve its valuation and attractiveness. As a high-frequency travel mode, shared bicycles can bring more users and data to Meituan, enhancing Meituan's platform effect and stickiness. At the same time, Meituan can also achieve synergies with its other businesses, such as food delivery, hotels, and tourism, by integrating Mobike, forming a complete ecosystem.
For Hu Weiwei, the founder of Mobike, it was a successful cash-out and exit, as well as a controversial choice and abandonment. In the deal, Hu Weiwei received about $1.5 billion in cash, making her one of the richest female entrepreneurs in China. She also ended her entrepreneurial journey at Mobike, and although she still serves as the CEO of Mobike, she has lost control and voice of Mobike and has become a subordinate of Meituan.
Her decision also has different voices and evaluations. Some people think that she is a business wizard who can seize the opportunity and find the most suitable home for herself and MobikeOthers believe that she is a ruthless player of interests, betraying Mobike's ideals and mission for her own benefit.
After Meituan's acquisition of Mobike, there have been some changes and transformations in the development of Mobike.
On the one hand, the size and market share of Mobike have declined and shrunk. In order to control costs and risks, Meituan has reduced the amount and coverage of Mobike, raised the threshold and threshold of Mobike, abolished the deposit and credit score system for Mobike, and increased the advertising and promotion of Mobike.
On the other hand, Mobike's business and model have been innovated and expanded. Meituan has leveraged its platform to integrate and synergize Mobike with its other businesses, such as food delivery, hotels, travel, etc., to provide users with more services and choices.
There are still many uncertainties and challenges in the future of Mobike. Will Mobike be able to maintain its position and influence in the bike-sharing market?Will Mobike be able to realize its value and growth on Meituan's platform?Will Mobike be able to leave its mark and emotions in the hearts of users?Only time and the market can provide answers to these questions.
The rise and fall of Mobike, and the success or failure of Hu Weiwei, is a story full of legends and controversies. In this story, we can see the entrepreneurial dream of a female journalist, the chaos and change of an industry, the back and impact of a transaction, and the transformation and future of a platform.
This story also makes us think, what is the essence and purpose of entrepreneurship?What are the ethics and responsibilities of business?What is value creation and realization?What is the criterion and significance of success?
Dear readers, what do you think and feel about this story?Feel free to leave a message in the comment section and share your thoughts and opinions with us. Thank you for reading and following, and we'll see you next time!