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Lyft tries to drive past embattled Uber with the launch of its own luxury car service
Lyft Inc. is launching its own luxury car services, Lyft Lux and Lux SUV, which will roll out in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, New York and Chicago.
The service follows similar Lyft initiatives to give people a wider variety of cars. In 2014 the ride-hailing company launched the premium SUV service Lyft Plus, and last year added Lyft Premier. The difference between Premier and Lux is that Lux will offer fancier cars, which could be BMWs, Porsches, Cadillacs or Rolls-Royces, among many other choices.
Cars will also be black, with leather or leather-like interiors, making this move a direct assault on Lyft’s embattled competitor, Uber Technologies Inc. According to Uber, its own luxury car service, UberBlack, is in low demand.
Despite this, Lyft is launching Lux in three markets where Uber has put hiring UberBlack drivers on pause. A spokesperson for Lyft told Recode that such a service had been a popular request from its community. “This allows drivers who meet the requirements to earn higher wages, and passengers to arrive in style to any business meeting or formal event,” said the spokesperson.
In a message to potential drivers, Lyft stated, “Your black car is your moneymaker,” and as long as drivers have a 4.7 or higher rating and one of the many luxury cars listed, then they are good to go. According to Lyft, drivers can earn more than double that of Premier drivers and three to five times more than regular Lyft drivers.
The move is seen as significant, in that offering a similar alternative to Uber while the latter constantly deals with negative press could pay dividends. While Uber fights court battles over alleged intellectual property theft and waits for the dust to settle over sexism and sexual harassment charges, Lyft President John Zimmer has said the company has one thing in mind: to rule the U.S. market and leave the rest of the world to Uber.
Following the #DeleteUber campaign and various other woes Uber has faced, Lyft saw its market share rise in almost all U.S. major markets, according to TNXSolutions. While there is certainly enough space for more than one or even a few ride-hailing companies in the U.S., Lyft is certainly making hay while the sun doesn’t shine on Uber.
Image: shanelevi via Flickr
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