Roadie is a startup that wants to take on the likes of FedEx and UPS using the power of crowd-sourced shipping. However, there are some safety issues with picking up packages from a strangers house which is why the startup has found an unlikely partner to help provide a safe, neutral pickup area for packages: Waffle House. It’s certainly an unusual partnership but who knows, it may prove effective.
In the latest bid to disrupt FedEx Corp. and United Parcel Service Inc., startup Roadie Inc. aims to entice college students and other travelers to earn some extra pocket money by delivering packages on the way to where they’re already going. Waffle House Inc. will unveil a partnership Tuesday to become part of the network of pickup points for the service, offering a place for drivers to rendezvous with both senders and receivers. Roadie, which launched late last month and aims to become the Uber of package delivery, is still tiny. So far, the app has been downloaded about 7,500 times, while drivers have been recruited to deliver about 50 items. But big investors have signed on for the over $10 million initial investment round, including Square Inc.’s co-founder Jim McKelvey, TPG Capital founder David Bonderman and even UPS, according to Roadie.
