Car Rental Service WEHA Launches Mobile Booking App, Website to Attract Customers
Jakarta. WEHA Transportasi Indonesia, formerly known as White Horse taxis, has launched a booking website and a mobile phone application to make it easier for customers to order rental buses, as the part of the company's efforts to boost its market share.
WEHA Transportasi, which is a subsidiary of the Panorama Group, a travel service company, has been transforming its business into an online-based car rental service due to difficulties in attracting customers amidst tough competition with app-based ride-hailing services, such as Go-Jek, Uber and Grab.
Aside from gaining a larger market share, the transport operator's newly launched booking website and app will also provide customers with various payment methods, such as credit cards and virtual accounts.
WEHA Transportasi will initially only offer the online booking service in the greater Jakarta area, with plans to expand it to Central Java and Bali soon.
The company also plans to open and operate branch offices in larger cities and in popular tourist destinations, while also teaming up with local transportation partners in these areas over the next three years.
WEHA Transportasi currently operates a regular bus service labeled Deluxe, a premium service, Premiere, and a luxury service, WEHA One. The company also operates charter bus, intercity shuttle bus, car rental and sightseeing tour bus services.
As previously reported, the company has set aside around Rp 45 billion ($3.4 million) for capital expenditure to acquire a super-high-deck bus and to revitalize 40 of its buses, among them 12 intercity shuttle buses. At least 50 percent of the capex has been allocated towards the revitalization of big buses.
The company is funding this with internal cash and revenue from its rental operation.
WEHA Transportasi booked Rp 74.66 billion in net income in the first half of this year, after an Rp 8.2 billion net loss in the corresponding period last year. The profit increase was mainly due to a 40 percent divestment in February between Panorama Group and JTB Group, Japan's largest travel agent network.
Panorama Tours Indonesia, an online travel service and affiliate of Panorama Group, previously agreed to sell a 30.1 percent stake in JTB Group for Rp 369.7 billion.
WEHA Transportasi has meanwhile also sold a 9.9 percent stake in Panorama Tours to JTB Group for Rp 121.6 billion.
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