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An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

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Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#131

Post by pdelbarba »

usrusr wrote: post #112
pdelbarba wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just did, check my comment above

I don't think that "(no idea what the margin is)" is what OP meant by running the numbers. Mostly a "pamper early adopters with VC money" operation I think, possibly with a profitability story (that may or may not turn out to be realistic) centered around high real estate value areas: in those places where the ground occupied by a gas pump and its accompanying infrastructure plays a significant role in the local fuel…

I don't disagree at all. My numbers should be in the ballpark but generous. If someone has more data sources they can link to, fire away.

I think the real takeaway here is that even at ~$400 per 25 cars refueled, it's not a super great market to be in. It's also kind of like starting a printing company during the 21st century (cough cough Vista Print). Yes, there's a sliver of margin to be had with aggressive automation and negotiation but at the end of the day, you'll be out of business in a couple decades when the underlying technology changes, in this case electric cars that can be charged at home.

Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#133

Post by phil21 »

degenerate wrote: post #103
Tharkun wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I pay roughly a 50% income tax, and in spite of that municipal garbage collection is, well, garbage. Regular waste is easy enough: weekly collection is OK. Larger items which can be incinerated are OK-ish: need to make an appointment two weeks in advance, and pay by weight. Anything else and I'm screwed. I'd like to get rid of a metal ladder, but it can't be incinerated. I'm supposed to take it to a municipal recycli…

You do, it's called throw it in the front yard. Anything metal will be picked up and melted down for $ by junk seekers. Used motor oil, insulation, car batteries, and other toxic stuff, I could see a door service being useful.

This works in major cities with a self-sustaining population of scrappers.

Chicago trash service is utterly amazing. Literally anything that fits in your house you put in the alley and either the scrappers take it within hours, or the trash men haul it away without complaint.

Other cities I lived in were atrocious. You'd be looked at crazy if you had anything remotely considered an abnormal need. Such as traveling a lot and not being able to put your trash bin out every single week for pickup (as you'd be fined daily for leaving it on the street). Something stupidly that simple is exceedingly hard in most places in the US - and picking up large items is usually an even worse experience.

Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#134

Post by Frondo »

duncan_bayne wrote: post #28
jelder wrote: post #5

This is great but what if, hold on, we paid taxes.

Wouldn't it be better if we were allowed to interact voluntarily? Pay for what we wanted and used, and support people and causes through charity instead of under duress?

No, it wouldn't, because that's the fantasy that libertarians always push that has no historical or contemporary basis for working as a society.

Sorry for being grumpy, but this is as useful a contribution as "Wouldn't it be better if we harnessed the power of house-elves to magic away our trash?"

Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#135

Post by AndrewKemendo »

t0mbstone wrote: post #10

Startup ideas inspired by Always Sunny in Philadelphia? http://itsalwayssunny.wikia.com/wiki/The_Gang_Recycles_Their... What's next? An Uber-like service that will deliver gasoline directly to your car that is parked in your driveway? Hmm... Come to think of it, that would actually be pretty sweet. I would never have to stop and fill up my gas tank! It would just always be full! A gas delivery truck would come in the…

An Uber-like service that will deliver gasoline directly to your car that is parked in your driveway?

There are about a dozen of these.

fuel panda is one that is run by a friend of mine

Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#136

Post by xadhominemx »

mtanski wrote: post #82
t0mbstone wrote: post #10

Startup ideas inspired by Always Sunny in Philadelphia? http://itsalwayssunny.wikia.com/wiki/The_Gang_Recycles_Their... What's next? An Uber-like service that will deliver gasoline directly to your car that is parked in your driveway? Hmm... Come to think of it, that would actually be pretty sweet. I would never have to stop and fill up my gas tank! It would just always be full! A gas delivery truck would come in the…

There's lots of reasons that you have beyond the normal amount of garbage or difficult to deal with garbage. It's really hard to get it removed if you need it on a short notice. A lot of municipalities have limits refuse. For example in NYC you can no longer get rid of electronics in the regular trash. You're supposed to take them to a place that can deal with it. Fair enough. The problem is that there aren't many pl…

>There's lots of reasons that you have beyond the normal amount of garbage or difficult to deal with garbage. It's really hard to get it removed if you need it on a short notice.

Why not use 1-800-GOT-JUNK or a similar service?

Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#137

Post by mjn »

Tharkun wrote: post #90
jelder wrote: post #5

This is great but what if, hold on, we paid taxes.

I pay roughly a 50% income tax, and in spite of that municipal garbage collection is, well, garbage. Regular waste is easy enough: weekly collection is OK. Larger items which can be incinerated are OK-ish: need to make an appointment two weeks in advance, and pay by weight. Anything else and I'm screwed. I'd like to get rid of a metal ladder, but it can't be incinerated. I'm supposed to take it to a municipal recycli…

Everywhere I've lived in the U.S. has a periodic oversized/miscellaneous waste pickup day where they will pick up almost anything that doesn't go in the normal trash, for free. Well, by free I mean for no existing charge above whatever you might already pay as a waste fee or tax. I'm not sure where you live so it's possible this doesn't exist everywhere though (it might only be a U.S. thing?).

The everything-else waste pickup day will take bulky things that don't go in the normal trash or recycling: ladders, washing machines, couches, desks, lamps, tires, bicycles, sewing machines, etc.

For example, Houston has this kind of everything-else pickup 6 times a year. There's once a month pickup of oversized waste of two kinds. It takes tree-related waste in odd-numbered months, and non-tree-related waste in even-numbered months: https://houstontx.gov/solidwaste/treewaste.html

Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#138

Post by AndrewKemendo »

sputknick wrote: post #11

I want this for residential. Instead of having a "trash day" I wait until my garbage can is full, click a button on my app, and tomorrow morning someone comes and picks up my trash.

Would you pay for this service?

Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#139

Post by avs733 »

rubicon33 wrote: post #110
pmalynin wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

http://www.filld.com/

I swear business materialize out of thin air, when someone literally just thinks of them. How else can you explain that it seems like EVERY idea already has an app + business!

quantum startups.

Re: An ‘Uber for garbage’ picks up steam, and $11.7M in Series A funding

#140

Post by temuze »

t0mbstone wrote: post #10

Startup ideas inspired by Always Sunny in Philadelphia? http://itsalwayssunny.wikia.com/wiki/The_Gang_Recycles_Their... What's next? An Uber-like service that will deliver gasoline directly to your car that is parked in your driveway? Hmm... Come to think of it, that would actually be pretty sweet. I would never have to stop and fill up my gas tank! It would just always be full! A gas delivery truck would come in the…

https://www.trybooster.com/
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