French ride-sharing startup Blablacar is launching in Turkey, the company announced this week. After launching earlier this year in Russia & Ukraine & surpassing 10 Million registered users recently, Turkey will mark Blablacar’s 8th office & its 11th market, all of which are European.
When Blablacar raised $100 Million earlier this year, they made it clear that they were planning to go global. Their success in the Russian market showed them (& investors) that emerging/unfamiliar markets – Turkey, India, Brazil – were doable, and they clearly aren’t wasting any time getting going.
Interestingly enough, while Blablacar has a tendency to acqui-hire their way into new markets – finding local teams who are working on ride-sharing – the company is still looking for a Country Manager in Istanbul. It will be interesting to see how this change in strategy affects their adoption across Turkey.