Entrepreneurship

Critical evaluation of entrepreneurial motivations

and characteristics, of a self-selected entrepreneur
Garrett Camp – the silent technologyst
who dreamt about Uber

MODULE CODE: M5X01926

Mihaela Costea
1815099

Lecturer: Efua Adams

Written Assignment Part 1

UNIVERSITY OF WALES TRINITY SAINT DAVID

 Table of Contents

Executive Summary......................................................................................................2
1. Introduction.............................................................................................................2
2. What is an Entrepreneur?......................................................................................2
2.1. Who are the founding entrepreneurs of Uber?..................................................3
2.2. How did the Uber business start?......................................................................
2.3. What kind of person is Garrett Camp?...........................................................
2.4. How did Camp discover the opportunity? What was the
motivation?................................................................................................................
3. How did Garrett Camp think and plan the business? Logical thinking or Lateral
thinking....................................................................................................................... 5
4. Competitive strategies...............................................................................4-5
5. Competitors........................................................................................................
6. Porter’s “Five Forces” for UberCab Company................................................7
6.1. New entrants.................................................................................................8
6.2. Substitute products....................................................................................8-9
6.3. Power of supliers....................................................................................9-10
6.4. Power of customers.................................................................................10.
6.5. Rivalry.................................................................................................10-11
5. Conclusion............................................................................................................12
6. Reference List......................................................................................................13

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 Executive Summary

Garrett Camp is an entrepreneur who has revolutionized the way people transport.
He created the Uber application - car rental with driver, a novelty in the field of
transport.
The story started in Paris in 2008 and continues today. Garret Camp is said to be an
idea factory.
Although there were many rivalries and problems after the business was successful,
today millions of people rent cars with driver, at low prices, by simply using the
phone, thanks to a man, passionate about technology and innovative thinking.

Man with lateral thinking, he used all three types of strategies for implementing his
application on the market and his success exceeded expectations.

1. Introduction

The purpose of this esay is to make a critical evaluation of an entrepreneur, to

analyze his characteristics and entrepreneurial motivations. One of the Uber
founders, Garrett Camp, will be analyzed, one entrepreneur that not everyone knows
much about, but whose idea is used by people from all over the world. (Uber, 2020)

2. What is an Entrepreneur?

The entrepreneur is an innovative person, who discovers an opportunity to win in

everything, optimistic and quite brave. An entrepreneur always sees the full half of
the glass, is creative and prefers to work for him and not be hired. The entrepreneur
always finds more solutions for a single problem, thinks outside the patterns and
puts passion in every opportunity to develop it. (Krogue, 2020)

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 2.1. Who are the founding entrepreneurs of Uber?

Travis Kalanick Garrett Camp

Uber founders are two millionaires, friends, Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick. Travis Kalanick
already had the company set up and Camp came up with the big idea. Garrett Camp is a Canadian, a
true serial entrepreneur, having several successful businesses and then selling them with huge
amounts. (Moruș et al., 2020)

2.3. How did the Uber business start?

The Uber story started in Paris in 2008, when the two friends, Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp,
attended an annual technology conference named LeWeb

The name "Uber" comes from the German word meaning “the best”, "above all the rest".

At first it was a simple idea: what if you could order a car from your phone? But a simple thought has
quickly turned into a global brand committed to providing transportation services to opportunities in
the world. UberCabs came into being in March 2009 in San Francisco, California, United States. The
service was tested in 2010 in New York, starting with three cars. (The Story of Uber, 2020).

Camp thought the application to be something "cool" that will save his friends time in San Francisco.
He never thought about the magnitude of his idea.

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 2.2.What kind of person is Garrett Camp?

Born in 1978 in Calgary, Camp inherited from his parents the entrepreneurial spirit.
His mother was an artist and economist father, they decided to give up their careers
and take care of the design and construction of the houses (Interview with Garrett Camp,
2020).

He is a successful entrepreneur. He had sold few businesses that he had

successfully brought so he was ready to find a new opportunity. (ANON 2020)

He is a person with original, visionary thinking; he took risks to start something new
that he didn't know if it would be successful;
He also set high goals and worked with enthusiasm to reach and exceed them. The
Uber business far exceeded the goals set by the two co-founders.
He don’t have good managerial skills. He preferred to focus on developing new
businesses based on technological innovations rather than coming out as an image
of Uber. (Garrett Camp: Canadian entrepreneur - Biography and Life, 2020)

He is IT programmer so he had the technical skills to realize the Uber application.

(Forbes, 2020)

He is a person with lateral thinking. In all his businesses, he found more solutions for
a single problem. He focuses on the idea, not the implications or risks. He is also a
man full of enthusiasm and creativity.
He is said to be a factory of ideas and he hates confrontations.

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Camp's main concerns are related to how he can solve important problems of
people, problems they face daily, with the help of technology.

2.4. How did Camp discover the opportunity? What was the
motivation?

He created an application for phones and tablets where customers could order
limousines with a driver or taxis, at lower prices. The idea of the application started
from a need of the two entrepreneurs, because of which they had to make an
exaggerated expense. They needed a taxi when they were at a conference in Paris,
it was winter and night and they couldn't find any free taxi. So they managed to get a
limo with the driver, which made them spend a fabulous amount. (Carey, 2020)

This application brought to the people of San Francisco, where the business started,
a new type of taxi, available to anyone. Specifically, any driver could offer
transportation to anyone who had access to a smartphone and the application
through which communication could be made. (Who is Garrett Camp, Uber Founder and
Crypto Inventor?, 2020)

The simple way you could order a car brought such popularity that even Uber
founders didn't know it. GPS tracking, card payment, from the customer account
have revolutionized the idea of people moving. (Garrett Camp, 2020)

3. How did Garrett Camp think and plan the business?

Logical thinking or Lateral thinking.

Garret Camp is a person with lateral thinking. He is able to find more solutions to the
same problem. In all the businesses he started, he sought to come up with several
solutions.
He didn't think much before starting the business. He focused on the problem, found
it very difficult for anyone to find a car at low prices and thus thought the application.
He never thought of the risks, the fact that he may not be successful. (Holland, 2020)

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The simple way you could drive a car brought a popularity that Uber founders didn't
even know. GPS tracking, card payment, from the customer account revolutionized
the idea of people moving, so that in the autumn of the same year, 5 months after
launch, Uber received the first considerable funding - $ 1.25 million

4. Competitive strategies
Initially, Camp's strategy was the lowest cost. Created the application for large
masses, so that all people can use a car with driver. Seeing the success of the
application thought to customize, using the differentiation strategy. Thus he
created the possibility that, for some people, he could rent luxury cars, at higher
prices, cars with a child seat, cars with a female driver, cars with more places or with
a larger space for luggage. It also launched its water transport service UberBoat in
Istanbul. (Capital and Capital, 2020)
Not only was he limited to these two strategies, he wanted to further customize the
services offered so he had the idea of introducing the UberEats service, using the
focus strategy. Thus he focused on those who wanted to order food.

5. Competitors
When Garrett Camp created the business, UberCab had virtually no competitors.
That's because the Uber app was an absolute novelty on the market. The only
possible competitors were the traditional taxi companies that saw their business
declining due to the entry of new cars, much cheaper, which were ordered directly
from the phone. (24 et al., 2020)

6. Porter’s “Five Forces” for UberCab Company

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 6.1. New entrants

Being a new business he had no problems as he entered the market. Capital had
from the sale of other businesses, the application developed it alone. Initially he had
no problems with the governments of the states where he implemented this project.
It did not need material resources other than those strictly related to logistics
because the cars were brought by the drivers who wanted to offer their services on
this platform. (Wilkinson, 2020)

6.2. Substitute products

The only threat were the taxi companies doing the same thing, transporting people.
This did not scare the Camp, because through the application it created people could
order much better cars at a price with 60% lower. (Wilkinson, 2020)

6.3. Power of supliers

In this type of business, suppliers are not very important. All the logistical materials
and other materials he obtained from the markets of the big cities where he
introduced the application, at reasonable prices. (Garrett Camp, 2020)

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 6.4. Power of customers
Customers are very important to Camp. He focused his attention on finding that
people need to move fast, cheap and comfortable. That's why he has constantly
improved the application to provide consumers with quality services. Uber cars
cannot be older than 15 years, must be well maintained and drivers have certain
training and appearance requirements so they are preferred to traditional taxis.
(Wilkinson, 2020)

6.5. Rivalry

If in 2009, when it launched the application, it had no rivals on the market, today
Uber faces many rivalries and scandals. New applications have emerged that offer
the same services, such as: Bolt, Ola, Kapten, Lyft, BlaBlaCar, Yandex, etc. Thus,
Uber fares had to be adjusted. Also in all the big cities there were scandals between
taxi drivers and Uber drivers, which determined the governments to take different
measures that made the authorization and functioning process difficult. (SAN
FRANCISCO — Uber has a reputation problem, 2020)

In 2014, taxi drivers in London, Berlin, Paris and Madrid planned a massive protest
against Uber. The representatives of the taxi companies complained that Uber was
creating unfair competition by avoiding the very high fees needed to obtain the taxi
license and bypass the local laws. (49 of the biggest scandals in Uber's history, 2020)

In December 2016, the European Court of Justice ruled that Uber would lose its
license for London, where the company worked with 40,000 drivers. A year and a
half later a London judge overturned the decision and allowed Uber to return to the
UK capital. (Isaac, 2019)

7. Conclusion

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Garrett Camp is an entrepreneur worthy of all the admiration. He discovered a
problem that people face and has found the best solution. In 2009 he had the idea to
create an application that can order a car with driver directly from the phone. Today
the Uber application is very popular and each of us has used it or heard about it.
He focuses on ideas, not implications or risks, and is always looking for technology-
based solutions to people's everyday problems. (Who is Garrett Camp? Everything You
Need to Know, 2020)

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 5. Reference List

En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Uber. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uber> [Accessed

10 March 2020].

Krogue, K., 2020. What Is An Entrepreneur?. [online] Forbes. Available at:

<https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenkrogue/2013/07/03/what-is-an-entrepreneur/#59d754ee5b64>
[Accessed 10 March 2020].

Investopedia. 2020. The Story Of Uber. [online] Available at:

<https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/111015/story-uber.asp> [Accessed 10
March 2020].

Moneyweek.com. 2020. [online] Available at: <https://moneyweek.com/507032/garrett-camp-the-

quiet-techie-who-dreamt-up-uber> [Accessed 12 March 2020].

Moruș, B., Moruș, B., Raduly, R., Borviz, O., Borviz, O., Raduly, R., Moruș, B., Moruș, B., Tănase, M.
and Moruș, B., 2020. Cine Sunt Fondatorii Uber - De La Idei Geniale La Scandaluri Monumentale -
LIFE.Ro. [online] life.ro. Available at: <https://life.ro/cine-sunt-fondatorii-uber-de-la-idei-geniale-la-
scandaluri-monumentale/> [Accessed 10 March 2020].

Forbes. 2020. Garrett Camp. [online] Available at: <https://www.forbes.com/profile/garrett-

camp/#6995b48a7b89> [Accessed 12 March 2020].

Holland, J., 2020. College Startup Success Story, Revisited. [online] Entrepreneur. Available at:
<https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/217322> [Accessed 13 March 2020].

24, Z., mutuale, B., zero, A., Generation, Z., Premium, D., Print, Z. and Live, Z., 2020. Travis Kalanick,
Omul Pe Care Îl Urăsc Acum Toţi Taximetriştii Pentru Că Le Distruge Afacerile | Ziarul Financiar.
[online] ZF.ro. Available at: <https://www.zf.ro/business-international/travis-kalanick-omul-pe-care-
il-urasc-acum-toti-taximetristii-pentru-ca-le-distruge-afacerile-14539380> [Accessed 13 March
2020].

Vice. 2020. Am Vorbit Cu Șoferi Uber, Ca Să Aflu De Ce S-A Stricat Serviciul În București. [online]
Available at: <https://www.vice.com/ro/article/kb87nn/de-ce-e-uber-naspa-in-bucuresti> [Accessed
13 March 2020].

Carey, S., 2020. Alternatives To Uber: The Best Ride-Hailing Apps For Uber Deserters. [online]
Techworld. Available at: <https://www.techworld.com/startups/alternatives-uber-best-alternative-
ride-hailing-apps-3656813/> [Accessed 13 March 2020].

Investopedia. 2020. Who Is Garrett Camp, Uber Founder And Crypto Inventor?. [online] Available at:
<https://www.investopedia.com/tech/garrett-camp-uber-founder-crypto-inventor/> [Accessed 13
March 2020].

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En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Garrett Camp. [online] Available at:
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garrett_Camp> [Accessed 13 March 2020].

Garrett Camp. 2020. Garrett Camp. [online] Available at: <http://garrettcamp.com/> [Accessed 13
March 2020].

youtube. 2020. Interview With Garrett Camp. [online] Available at:

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vxk4Z1u7RE> [Accessed 13 March 2020].

PeoplePill. 2020. Garrett Camp: Canadian Entrepreneur - Biography And Life. [online] Available at:
<https://peoplepill.com/people/garrett-camp/> [Accessed 13 March 2020].

Thefamouspeople.com. 2020. Who Is Garrett Camp? Everything You Need To Know. [online]
Available at: <https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/garrett-camp-6471.php#childhood-&-
early-life> [Accessed 13 March 2020].

Capital, F. and Capital, F., 2020. Entrepreneurial Hero: Garrett Camp. [online] Far West Capital.
Available at: <https://www.farwestcapital.com/blog/entrepreneurial-hero-garrett-camp/> [Accessed
13 March 2020].

Business Insider. 2020. 49 Of The Biggest Scandals In Uber's History. [online] Available at:
<https://www.businessinsider.com/uber-company-scandals-and-controversies-2017-11?r=US&IR=T>
[Accessed 13 March 2020].

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019. 2020. SAN FRANCISCO — Uber Has A

Reputation Problem. [online] Available at: <https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019>
[Accessed 13 March 2020].

Isaac, M., 2019. How Uber Got Lost. The New York Times, [online] Available at:
<http://www.nytimes.com> [Accessed 13 March 2020].

Wilkinson, J., 2020. Threat Of New Entrants Definition (One Of Porter's Five Forces). [online] The
Strategic CFO. Available at: <https://strategiccfo.com/threat-of-new-entrants-one-of-porters-five-
forces/> [Accessed 13 March 2020].

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