Sam Ryan - Smarter Mobility Africa

(UK/SA)
In 2017, Sam Ryan co-founded Zeelo, the bus sharing service, with Barney Williams and Dani Ruiz. As CEO, Sam leads on new initiatives, strategy, product and business development. Zeelo was born out of the team’s frustration with current transport options available for commuting, to events, to airports and between cities which saw them regularly experience overcrowding and poor services giving them no option but to drive, further contributing to congestion and air quality issues. With so many mobility services focussed on dense urban areas, or using technology with long time horizons, the team wanted to focus on building services for people who really need them; now. Sam brings his strong track record in mobility tech to Zeelo after co-founding his first business JumpIn (UberPool for Students) - with his business partner Barney Williams whilst they were both studying at University of Leeds. JumpIn evolved into a mobility service in Leeds, and subsequently Sam and Barney raised angel funding to expand JumpIn to five UK cities with a team of five full time staff in London. In 2014, JumpIn and the team were acquired by Addison Lee. At Addison Lee, Sam became Head of Product. His role saw him head up a team of 18 who were responsible for product across the globe, including the performance of all digital channels. Sam managed teams in Cambodia, India, Russia and Spain. Under Sam’s leadership, the team grew sales through digital channels from 45% to 70% JumpIn evolved into a successful transport solution in Leeds, and subsequently Sam and Barney raised angel funding to expand JumpIn to five UK cities with a team of five full time staff in London. In 2014, JumpIn and the team were acquired by Addison Lee. At Addison Lee, Sam gained further valuable insight into the travel tech industry after becoming Head of Product. His role saw him head up a team of 18 who were responsible for product across the globe, including the performance of all digital channels. Sam managed teams in Cambodia, India, Russia and Spain. Under Sam’s leadership, the team grew sales through digital channels from 45 to 70 per cent of all sales.