“We have a view that there isn’t a
contractor with the perfect-sized
fleet, with 100 per cent utilization.”
– Kevin Forestell, Dozr
company’s CEO. Tim, as the company’s chief client officer, heads
the group that ensures customer interactions go smoothly.
Stephenson, Dozr’s chief operating officer, is responsible for
overseeing the company’s global marketing and business strategy.
The team’s innovative ideas have won them recognition
since the beginning. In 2016, Dozr was awarded $100,000 by
the Waterloo Region’s business accelerator, Communitech,
at their annual Rev Demo Day after participating in
Communitech’s start-up program. Stephenson was named
the 2018 Startup Canada Ontario Regional Woman
Entrepreneur of the Year, and that same year Dozr won both
the Stanley Black and Decker’s Innovation Prize and placed
second in Connecticut’s Ventureclash Competition as one of
the most innovative early-stage companies in the world; an
award that came with $1 million in prize money.
These prizes have increased the company’s ability to invest
in product development and marketing, and to attract more
software developers and programmers, including experts in
artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Setting up suppliers
“When we started Dozr, it was more of a traditional classified
listing of contractors renting to other contractors,” Kevin
said, with individual listings and sometimes a photo of the
machine. “What we learned along the way is that we had
to make an option for all suppliers to participate – national
professional rental houses, regional mom-and-pop rental
houses, original equipment manufacturers and OEM dealers,”
as well as individual contractors with idle capacity.
Today, the platform is similar to a combination of Airbnb
and Hotels.com for heavy equipment. It’s “a one-click search…
to see the entire industry on one page,” Kevin said, which
instantly compares the offerings of thousands of suppliers
across North America and returns the best matches based on
factors including real-time pricing, availability and location.
Dozr’s online listing process has been designed for ease
of use, says Kevin, so that suppliers “can hop online, enter
information, the types of equipment they have and the
prices they’d like to charge for it.” First-time suppliers are
connected by phone to a Dozr representative in the Kitchener
head office to help with their online listings. There is no cost
to list products on the platform, Kevin noted. Instead, Dozr
takes a percentage-based fee on every transaction, which
also covers marketing expenses and a short-term per-rental
insurance product designed specifically for the company by
Federated Insurance Company of Canada.
Federated Insurance’s parent company, Toronto-based
Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited, has also invested $2.5
million in seed money for Dozr through its FairVentures
subsidiary. Owners are still responsible for their own insurance
covering their equipment, operators, third parties and work
sites, as applicable.
For prospective renters searching the site, an automated
assistant at the bottom of the computer screen pops up to
ask if they’ve found what they’re looking for. Renters can
also connect with a live rep who will have information about
equipment that may not appear in typical searches. An
online application for rental financing on the Dozr website
offers “zero per cent interest and no payments for 90 days,”
and states that, “most businesses can get approved in under
two hours.”
Dozr’s platform allows users to connect with each other
online. Once the connection is made, it is then up to owners
and renters to negotiate between themselves the fees, terms
of rental or purchase, and any additional services or features
they agree upon. Dozr will also help facilitate contracts,
negotiations and delivery between parties and across borders,
including the Canada-U.S. border, if requested. They also collect
and remit payments as a “limited payment collection agent.”
As is now customary in the sharing economy, both parties
are prompted to grade their experience once a transaction is
complete, Kevin says.
Although price is certainly a factor in peer-to-peer
transactions, which can save 40 per cent or more in
comparison to standard rates, market availability is “the
COMPANY PROFILE
Dozr co-founders from left: Kevin Forestell,
Erin Stephenson, Tim Forestell
22 Q2 2019 www.pilingcanada.ca
/Hotels.com
/www.pilingcanada.ca
