Türkiye Innovation Week, Turkish Business World Panel

Speaking during a Turkish Business World Panel discussion organized on Thursday 8 December as a Türkiye Innovation Week event, TEB and Çolakoğlu Group boardmember Haydar Çolakoğlu talked about recently launched YOLO.

Noting that the company’s goal was to overcome the challenges of in-city transportation under conditions of great enjoyment and comfort, YOLO CEO Haydar Çolakoğlu said “One of the most important innovations in recent years is the sharing economy. We have launched YOLO in service of the sharing economy. If you’re in need of a product’s service, you don’t have to buy the product itself: it’s possible just to purchase the service. YOLO is a mobility-as-a-service app whose slogan is “That’s the most practical way to travel” and whose business model is quite different to that of its competitors and which promises significant benefits. YOLO is the product of lengthy R&D work. As an app, it distinguishes itself by virtue of such features as compatibility with Turkish law and unique earning models while also offering its business partners a next-generation business model.”

Mindful of Mahamta Ghandi’s admonition to “Be the change you wish to see in the world”, Çolakoğlu said that he had quit the family business in order to pursue a dream of his own and then went on to say that innovation was the way to democratize technology and make money.

Haydar Çolakoğlu: “YOLO’s starting-point is that in-city mobility should be fast and safe.”

“In-city mobility is a basic need in today’s world and our starting point is that moving about in a city should be fast, safe, and affordable. In addition to that, a great deal of urban transportation is still in the informal economy. At a time when we’re becoming accustomed to “new normals”, it’s very important to us that this too should change, that a legal framework for such an industry be strengthened and that the industry’s activities be subject to tax. Effectively and productively integrating technology into this business will have significant benefits both for our users and for our business partners.”