Online Automotive Retailer Vroom Offers Last Mile Concierge Experience to Detroit Locals

Rhea-AI Summary

Vroom (Nasdaq: VRM) has launched its local hub in Detroit, enhancing e-commerce tech and design. The office's headcount has nearly tripled since opening in 2019, now employing around 50 staff. Car purchases in the Detroit area surged by 163% year-over-year, while vehicle sales to Vroom increased by 189%. The initiative aims to provide a personalized driveway delivery experience for customers, with a total of 1,000 deliveries made. Led by logistics experts, Vroom emphasizes customer service by hiring personnel with hospitality backgrounds.

Positive

• Car purchases by Detroit-area Vroom customers increased by 163% year-over-year.
• Cars sold to Vroom by consumers increased by 189%.
• Local office headcount has tripled since 2019, enhancing workforce capabilities.
• Successful implementation of 1,000 Last Mile deliveries shows operational efficiency.

Negative

• None.

Headcount of Company’s Local Downtown Detroit Office, Focusing on Ecommerce Tech and Design, Has Nearly Tripled Since It Opened in 2019

DETROIT, May 06, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vroom, Inc. (Nasdaq:VRM), a leading ecommerce platform for buying and selling used vehicles, today announced the launch of its local Detroit hub and more customized driveway experience for 3.4 million people in 740 zip codes within a 40-mile radius. Vroom has delivered in the Detroit area since the company was founded in 2012 and is now offering an experience that includes a more personalized concierge service where customer advocates transport cars directly to car buyers’ driveways on Vroom-branded trucks and show them how to use their new vehicles. Vroom’s Detroit Last Mile hub is located in Flat Rock.

Vroom’s mission is to offer the best driveway experience possible for both delivery and pickup, especially as the pandemic has increased consumer appetite for remote car buying and selling. Car purchases by Detroit-area Vroom customers increased by nearly 163% year-over-year from the previous year, and cars sold to Vroom by consumers increased by 189%. With an emphasis on customer service, Vroom is taking a unique approach by recruiting employees with hospitality and client service experience. Bolstered by Vroom’s Chief Logistics Officer, Mary Kay Wegner, and her logistics leadership team, led by new VP of Transportation, John Piatak, who joined Vroom after leading transportation at Carvana, and VP of Hub Operations, Steve DeVoe, who spent the last six years creating supply chain management solutions at Veritiv, the company recently made its 1000th Last Mile delivery.

“With our valued customers in mind, creating a more personalized driveway experience and rolling out more local hubs across the country has been a priority for us at Vroom, so we’re excited to launch this offering in Detroit,” said Vroom’s Chief Logistics Officer Mary Kay Wegner. “The Motor City has a rich automotive history and a growing tech presence, and we’re thrilled to be a part of the next generation of auto innovation here.”

Vroom is also expanding its Downtown Detroit office, which now has a team of nearly 50 engineers, designers and product managers responsible for improving the digital experience of the automotive ecommerce platform. The office’s headcount has nearly tripled since it opened in August 2019 and the team is led by Vroom’s Chief Conversion Officer & Chief Product Officer John Caine. Vroom is based in New York and Houston and the team was eager to establish a local Detroit presence, as the company sits at the intersection of the city’s historical automotive industry legacy and its recent evolution as an innovative tech hub. In addition, Detroit native and lifelong Michigander Bob Mylod, managing partner of Annox Capital Management who sits on the boards of Booking Holdings, Redfin, Dropbox and Bloomscape, is the longtime chair of Vroom’s board of directors.

“We’re proud to be a part of the local tech and automotive communities here, and we are excited that our Detroit customers will see more of our red and white trucks and experience our more personalized delivery process,” said John Caine, Chief Conversion Officer & Chief Product Officer at Vroom. “It has been great to grow with the community since 2019 and we’re looking forward to growing our teams here even further.”

Through its ecommerce platform and data-driven technology, Vroom offers thousands of low-mileage, reconditioned vehicles with delivery to consumers wherever they are in the U.S. It also arranges financing through leading lenders and offers warranty, insurance and other value-added products that provide convenience for customers. In addition to providing a better way to buy a car, Vroom’s Sell Us Your Car^® offering allows customers who wish to sell or trade in their vehicles to receive appraisals within minutes, attractive market-based pricing, hassle-free loan payoffs and convenient vehicle pickup.

For more information on Vroom’s car buying and selling options, visit Vroom.com.

About Vroom:
Vroom is an innovative, end-to-end ecommerce platform designed to offer a better way to buy and a better way to sell used vehicles. The company's scalable, data-driven technology brings all phases of the vehicle buying and selling process to consumers wherever they are and offers an extensive selection of vehicles, transparent pricing, competitive financing, and at-home pick-up and delivery. Vroom is based in New York and Houston and also operates the Texas Direct Auto and CarStory brands. For more information, visit vroom.com.

Media Contact:
Moxie Communications Group
Alyssa Galella
vroom@moxiegrouppr.com
(562) 294-6261

Source: Vroom, Inc.