During his senior year at Texas A&M University, Matthew Iommi identified a gap in the transportation market for groups of people. At the time, there were no convenient, affordable, or accessible on-demand ride-hailing options for groups, similar to those offered by Uber and Lyft. This realization sparked the idea for a new business venture.
Iommi, now 25, explained to TechCrunch that when a group exceeded six or seven people, they had to either split up and take multiple cars, which was inefficient and not sustainable, or reserve a charter vehicle days or weeks in advance. The latter option often resulted in paying for more hours than needed, with no easy way to split the payment among friends.
In 2020, Iommi and his co-founder Justin Rath decided to purchase a party bus and experiment with creating an on-demand group rideshare service that could accommodate between seven and 14 passengers. They named the company Fetii, a French Oceanic term that means an extension of one’s family.
According to Iommi, the mantra of the rideshare service is “bringing people together.” This philosophy has guided the development of Fetii, which has now expanded to operate in 68 cities across six states, including Dallas, San Antonio, Houston, Atlanta, Nashville, Phoenix, and Scottsdale, transporting over 200,000 passengers each month.
While Fetii does offer the option to reserve rides in advance, the majority of its bookings – 75% to 80% – are on-demand. The Austin-based startup has recently closed a $7.35 million seed round led by Mark Cuban, with participation from Y Combinator, Goodwater Capital, and other investors. The funds will be used to expand into new markets, including Florida, California, and Massachusetts.
For young people, by young people
Fetii is not the first company to attempt to build a business around group rides. In the past, there was Chariot, a commuter shuttle startup that Ford acquired in 2016, only to shut it down in 2019. Iommi notes that Chariot’s focus on employee and commuter rides was a challenging model, as it only required service for a couple of hours in the morning and evening.
In 2022, Uber launched Uber Charter in partnership with US Coachways, allowing riders to book party buses and passenger vans through the app. However, this initiative ultimately failed.
These failures served as valuable lessons for Iommi and Rath, who, as a couple of bootstrapping college kids, had to figure out a way to launch their service in a city without burning millions of dollars. This approach allowed them to develop a unique and sustainable business model.
Rather than targeting corporate events, weddings, or other use cases that charter companies typically focus on, Fetii concentrated on college students. Iommi believes that creating a service and brand geared towards young adults and people who tend to congregate in groups more often is the key to success.
The majority of Fetii’s riders are between 21 and 30 years old, and the platform’s use cases range from nights out and bachelorette parties to weddings and sports games. Additionally, Fetii provides rides for groups attending corporate events, conferences, and festivals.
Iommi noted that users often utilize the service multiple times a week, whether it’s for social events or formal occasions. This frequent usage has helped Fetii develop a loyal customer base.
One of the unique challenges for Fetii was designing a payment system that would work for groups. Iommi explained that when a van arrives, riders can pay by scanning a QR code, allowing each person to pay their fare individually. The typical fare is around $5 per person.
By focusing on college students first, Fetii has developed a scalable playbook. The company starts by partnering with university organizations, sports teams, fraternities, and sororities, teaching them how to use the product.
The first ride is always free, which helps Fetii build a foundation in the college community. This approach enables the startup to attract drivers and ensure a supply-demand equilibrium. Fetii also uses a program called “Fetii VSP” (vehicle service provider), which allows entities with their own fleets and drivers to put their vans on the platform.
Once Fetii establishes a base in colleges, it expands outward. As people see branded Fetii vans driving around, word of mouth spreads, and each rider can be converted into a customer, resulting in healthy and cost-efficient growth.
It was actually rave reviews from Mark Cuban’s daughter that attracted the billionaire investor to Fetii’s seed round. Cuban told TechCrunch that his daughter used Fetii nonstop with her friends and raved about it, prompting him to reach out to Iommi and learn more about the company.
When asked if Cuban’s investment in Fetii was an attempt to make up for rejecting an offer to invest in Uber in 2009, he responded that Uber was a different market at the time, and Fetii has the potential to be global and achieve amazing things.
Iommi initially considered an Uber or Lyft acquisition as a potential exit strategy, but this thinking has evolved over time. While Fetii would still be open to partnering with the ride-hail giants, Cuban seems less enthusiastic about the idea of Fetii being acquired.
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