Case Study: Black-and-yellow message bearers
PRAGUE TRIBUNE 25th October 2001
CASE STUDY: BLACK-AND-YELLOW MESSAGE BEARERS
By Rene Jakl
Ten years ago, the mention of couriers brought historical or adventure stories to mind. Today, the delivery services of Messenger are a common sight on Czech roads, sidewalks, and in office lobbies.
YOU MIGHT BE SURPRISED to see no couriers at the Messenger service headquarters. 33-year-old David Voverka, the short-haired co-owner sporting a black T-shirt, explains that couriers hardly ever come to the office, and never go directly from the office to a client. The courier is already at work when he gets up in the morning, dons his company uniform and pack, and turns on his two-way radio. They use bicycles, mo-peds, or cars – and some just walk through the cramped city center.
David Voverka founded Messenger service in 1991, with one secretary and one partner. Later he and his older brother, Ales Voverka, bought the former partner's share. Ales is currently the company's director, and David is the operational director, overseeing its daily operations.
London inspiration The idea of founding a courier service was born when Voverka's friend, an architect, complained that when he needed to show a proposal to a client, he had to interrupt his work and slog across town. He said that in London, there are special "little people" to do the travelling. That caught Voverka's interest. "We started out with CZK 300,000 that we borrowed and two basement rooms, which we had to fix up ourselves," he recalls. "For CZK 500 we bought a desk from a second-hand shop, put a map of Prague under the glass, and scratched the glass with prices by the centimeter. We bought ten bicycles, two motorcycles, and ten two-way radios. Then we hired a man to distribute promotional leaflets," says Voverka, describing the beginnings of his successful business.
After the initial start-up loan, the company didn't borrow any more money. "We plowed all the profits back into the company," Voverka explains. The numbers of packages and the turnover grew rapidly year-by-year (see sidebar, this page). In 1993, the company invested into computers and introduced the logo of a man in a hat carrying an envelope. A year later, the small business became a general commercial partnership and started using the familiar black-and-yellow combination for company colors.
Office space also grew, and today the company administration in Stresovice is connected to the operations center on the southern slope of Strahov via an on-line microwave link. Intra-company communications on an ICQ network has saved significant sums on phone calls.
The couriers There are two basic groups of couriers. One travels by bicycle, moped, or on foot within the city center and nearby environs, delivering packages that fit in a satchel. The others travel by motorcycle, car, and van, carrying larger deliveries to the suburbs and out of town. "In the beginning, mainly athletes rode the bicycles. They liked the idea of staying in shape and getting paid," explains Voverka. "That is no longer the case. I know one courier who rides more like a tourist than an athlete, but he manages an unbelievable number of deliveries." There is sometimes a physical aspect to managing as well. When things got tight last May, David Voverka himself mounted a motorcycle and took a package to somewhere beyond Cesky Krumlov.
Services created on the fly New services are often born spontaneously. When a client came and needed to ship something quickly to Olomouc, the once local company launched its nation-wide service. Today, the company has subsidiaries in Brno, Pilsen, Hradec Kralove and Ostrava. Currently, Messenger is promoting its "to the door" service, whereby its couriers will deliver the wares of cooperating merchants, restaurants and so forth directly to your home. However, the service is not heavily used yet, as it requires a change in consumer habits. While Messenger spends about CZK 1.5 million annually on advertising, the best promotions are the couriers themselves, and a lot of the advertising is realized on a barter basis.
The competition The first competitor arrived in 1992 – EBS. The Sprinter messenger service was founded as late as 1997, but according to Ales Voverka, it is now the strongest competitor. He says that Messenger still controls the decisive share (40-50%) of all deliveries in Prague – in spite of the fact that last year about five new courier services were created. "At the beginning we were running on fumes; there were times I couldn't even go shopping," recalls David Voverka. "But we thought if we could persevere in such times, then things change. And they did."
Client comments "We are satisfied with Messenger. So far we have had no major problems with them, either in prices or delivery punctuality."
Monika Hlavnickova, Radio 1 producer "They are reliable. When we need confirmation of delivery, they give it to us over the phone or in writing. At the beginning of vacation this year, it seemed to us that Messenger was short-handed, so we tried another courier service. I can't remember its name, but now we are back to using Messenger."
Dita Krausova, Ford Motor Company receptionist "They are the best for us. I have been here for six months, and we have not had any bad experiences with them during that time, and we have not tried any other services."
Lucie Vasinova, Colliers International real estate agency receptionist
In numbers… When starting out in August 1991, Messenger made about 20 deliveries a day. A year later, the average was around 100 deliveries daily. With stable 100% annual growth, daily averages jumped to over 1,000 deliveries per day in 1996. Today, about 2,400 deliveries are made each working day.
The courier season peaks at the end of the year, around Christmas. Last year, the company made about 3,000 deliveries per day during this period.
Since its inception, Messenger has made about 3,000,000 deliveries. The company's turnover growth curve closely follows the number of deliveries curve. Currently, annual turnover is in the range of CZK 80 to 90 million.
Messenger estimates its courier service market share at 40-50%. The shortest guaranteed delivery term is 30 minutes. This applies to express deliveries in the centers of Prague, Brno Pilsen, Hradec Kralove, and Ostrava.
Messenger makes its cheapest "economy deliveries" in the center of Prague for CZK 49, with a term of up to four hours.
About 240 self-contracted couriers work for Messenger, and 50-60 people work in management.
Benchmark – coverage of the entire Czech Republic, with special focus on Prague and large cities
– guaranteed delivery terms – from the moment the service is ordered, not from pick-up
– option of monitoring delivery routes – expansion to include other services, such as door-to-door deliveries of goods and services Copyright 2001 Prague Tribune. Source : World Reporter (Trademark)
