Lithuanian-built car subscription platform MyBee to expand to Estonia

MyBee CEO Lukas Jurkšaitis says Estonia was chosen for expansion not only as a favourable market which is very receptive to innovations and where there are no car-subscription-based services yet, but also because the related CityBee brand is already well-established there.

„A rather large group of people in Estonia is already familiar with the CityBee car-sharing service. That is relevant for us since, as in Lithuania, in Estonia to MyBee will be part of the CityBee app and an attractive alternative for drivers interested in additional car-sharing possibilities,“ Lukas Jurkšaitis says.

He notes that while the car subscription model is not as widespread in the Baltics as a standard car purchase or long or short-term leases, it is already demonstrating its potential for mass appeal among consumers. MyBee’s results in its first half-year are evidence of that: so far, the company has provided customers in Lithuania with more than 500 vehicles, including 29 electric vehicles.

„More and more people realize that a car can be a mobility service you subscribe to instead of an asset you have to own,“ MyBee’s CEO stresses. The company’s research shows that customers value subscription-based car services most of all for the ability to pick up a car the very same day and for the simplicity and being able to avoid filling out lease applications and signing multiple contracts. Moreover, the numbers suggest that customers like what they get: more than half of MyBee customers choose to renew their car subscription agreements when they expire.

Lukas Jurkšaitis says Estonia is not the only market where the company aims to expand activities. „We’re focusing not just on growing existing markets but are also considering larger-scale geographic expansion. For instance, we plan to introduce the service in Latvia already this year. There too, we’ll seek to maximally popularise the car subscription model,“ the MyBee CEO says.

MyBee is part of the Modus Group, whose companies currently operate in 11 European markets. The group’s core activities cover four areas: renewable energy (Green Genius), mobility services (CityBee and MyBee), the auto business (with 14 well-known brands) and management of investment funds through the subsidiary Modus Asset Management.