// STARTUP COMPARISON
Rappi TurboCargo vs Fast
Rappi TurboCargo failed in 2023 due to Unit Economics. Fast failed in 2022 due to Unit Economics. Both failed for the same reason — Unit Economics.
| METRIC | 🔥 Rappi TurboCargo | 🔥 Fast |
|---|---|---|
| Sector | Marketplace | Fintech |
| Country | Colombia | USA |
| Founded | 2021 | 2019 |
| Died | 2023 | 2022 |
| Raised | $150M | $580M |
| Peak | 30 cities, 9 countries (2022) | $580M raised |
| Primary Cause | Unit Economics | Unit Economics |
// WHY EACH FAILED
🔥 Rappi TurboCargo
Unit Economics
After the dark store collapse, Rappi launched TurboCargo — a B2B last-mile logistics product for e-commerce merchants, competing with DHL, FedEx, and local players. The product attracted 8,000+ SME merchants but the competitive dynamics were brutal: DHL and FedEx offered next-day rates of $3.50/package; Rappi's gig-economy model cost $5.50/package due to rider minimum guarantees. TurboCargo never achieved the density needed to compete. Rappi shut TurboCargo in Q2 2023, writing off $80M in invested capital.
// LESSON
Gig workers solve the labor flexibility problem but create a cost floor that's higher than established courier fleets. If DHL can move a package for $3.50 with owned vehicles and route density, your gig-economy platform needs 2× the volume to reach the same cost. You probably won't get there.
Gig workers solve the labor flexibility problem but create a cost floor that's higher than established courier fleets. If DHL can move a package for $3.50 with owned vehicles and route density, your gig-economy platform needs 2× the volume to reach the same cost. You probably won't get there.
🔥 Fast
Unit Economics
Fast raised $580M for a one-click checkout product. Internal reports cited by TechCrunch revealed the company had approximately $600K in monthly revenue against $10M+ in monthly burn — a 17x revenue-to-burn mismatch. Unable to raise a Series C in the 2022 market, Fast shut down in April 2022. Stripe had already launched Stripe Link (a competing product) and Shopify Payments dominated the checkout space.
// LESSON
$580M raised is not a business. $600K monthly revenue against $10M monthly burn is a company racing toward zero. No amount of capital fixes a 17x revenue-to-burn ratio in a checkout category dominated by Stripe and Shopify.
$580M raised is not a business. $600K monthly revenue against $10M monthly burn is a company racing toward zero. No amount of capital fixes a 17x revenue-to-burn ratio in a checkout category dominated by Stripe and Shopify.
// EXPLORE FURTHER