Used-car leasing app Fair is expanding rapidly through partnerships rather than spending funds on advertising straight to the consumer, Founder and Chief Executive Scott Painter, told AFN.
“Given our partnership with Uber Technologies Inc., our expansion is not based on [brand building], so we don’t have to worry about marketing dollars,” Painter said.
By having what Painter calls a “partnership model,” Fair differs from other online marketplaces such as AutoGravity, Carvana, and Vroom, which have to make appeals to the consumer for online purchases.
Fair’s expansion focuses on leveraging its partnerships to onboard more vehicles, subscribers, and roll into new markets. Just this month, Fair launched in Chicago, Nashville, Philadelphia, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
The company is targeting other dense markets with ambitions of serving consumers nationwide by yearend, Painter said. The company’s fleet grew with the acquisition of Uber’s Xchange Leasing book in January, and it’s volume of cars continues to expand through its partnership with dealer groups such as Penske Automotive Group, Painter said.
Fair also partners with Ally Financial Inc.’s dealer base, which sends consumers looking for alternatives to traditional financing to Fair.
“Ally is turning down hundreds of loan applications a week,” Painter said. “If [a consumer] doesn’t qualify for the car loan, they qualify for Fair.” Currently, the app has an estimated 15,000 paying subscribers, Painter said.
