At a Glance
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Impact Areas: Labor Inclusion, Environment
People Supported:
Youth, Urban
Joined NESsT Portfolio:
2017
Overview
The package delivery industry in Brazil is valued at US$24 billion per year and growing, powered by 1.5 million “motoboys” who deliver packages on motorbikes. Only 23% of motoboys work under formal contracts and with legal registrations, resulting in poor employment conditions. Their motorbikes add to congested roads, noise levels and pollution in the cities.
Pedala is a bicycle-based urban delivery social enterprise that trains, hires and professionalizes at-risk youth as deliverers. They provide services for the delivery of documents, items purchased through e-commerce sites and food. The delivery service is environmentally friendly, faster and cheaper than their competitors.
Pedala currently employs 50 at-risk youth as bike messengers and has 200 clients in Rio de Janeiro. Most employees come from low-income backgrounds and have never worked before in the formal economy. A job with Pedala gives them regular income, health care, social security and opportunities for further career development.
Results & Impact
50
bicycle couriers employed
175
bicycle couriers employed in 2019
80 tons
carbon dioxide emissions conserved
“This profession is worthy of a champion. You wake up to take your coffee, put on your cape and go out to the battle the traffic. At the end of the day, you can feel proud to say you accomplished your mission successfully and came back stronger. Big hugs to Pedala!”
NESsT Investment
In late 2017, NESsT invested in Pedala and invited the company to join its portfolio. NESsT's several rounds of patient financing and ongoing tailored business services enabled the replication of the company to new neighborhoods, the expansion of its headquarters, and to set-up bike storage units in new locations as a way to reduce costs as it expanded its geographic reach.
NESsT and Pedala worked hand-in-hand to update the enterprise’s operations, HR, marketing, and impact measurement as it continued to increase its hiring.
By 2019, the company was employing 175 part-time and full-time bicycle couriers from low-income neighborhoods, and it also avoided 85 tons of CO2 emissions through its bicycle delivery model.
In December 2019, Pedala was successfully acquired by Ame Digital, a fintech controlled by B2W Digital, the largest e-commerce company in Latin America, and Lojas Americanas. The acquisition is part of these companies’ efforts to integrate sustainability into their business operations.
NESsT’s investments in Pedala were made possible by the Trafigura Foundation’s financial and strategic support. The Foundation partners with NESsT to support social enterprises in Brazil, among them Pedala, and Chile.