“After 18 years of studying and working across the US and Asia, I came back to Bangladesh to bring all the convenience enjoyed through tech. Why? I firmly believe that technology alone can solve most of the challenges a typical to a developing country. Proper adaptation of tech can make us a developed nation, much faster than our current pace. In the 5 years since our inception, we have seen how that happen, through the adaption of Shohoz by millions of people,” said Maliha Quadir, founding Managing Director of Shohoz. True to her words, one of the most trusted digital brands in the country today, Shohoz, has indeed made its mark in the digital transformation of the country.
In 2015, Shohoz began by addressing the most challenging problems Bangladeshi faced in their day-to-day lives by digitizing the online ticket booking process. After 3 years, it launched ride sharing, food delivery and truck rental services, transforming the way Bangladeshis travel, eat and move goods.
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As a response to the pandemic, Shohoz launched Shohoz Health to increase access to proper healthcare. Shohoz also worked with the Bangladesh government to build the Corona Tracer App BD. As the pandemic continues to disrupt the education system, Shohoz’s new addition is Shohoz Learn, an ed tech platform offering e-books from the world-renowned publisher Scholastic.
Shohoz and the role of tech in Bangladesh
With its all-in-one service ecosystem, Shohoz has evolved to an innovative every day, everything platform that empowers people and businesses to collectively work towards building a truly Digital Bangladesh. In many ways, the work that Shohoz has done demonstrates the possibilities that could expedite our growth, if extended to more sectors. Daily Star met up with the founder to hear her thoughts on these possibilities.
Digitizing businesses can open doors to efficiency and financial inclusion
With Shohoz Food, we have partially digitized sales of some 10000+ restaurants and retail businesses. Digitization of sales records, will help them get easier access to bank loans. Shohoz Ticket has truly revolutionized the immensely offline bus industry, ending the legacy of operational inefficiencies in double seat booking and inaccurate account keeping. Bus operators now have better visibility of their businesses and give customers better service, leading to more profits and access to credit. Through Shohoz Healths telemedicine services, patients can now easily access 100+ doctors remotely. Shohoz Truck, I believe is a service that could truly transform Bangladesh. By digitizing the supply chain management, we are eliminating the inefficiencies in the offline demand-supply matching process. As fewer trucks go empty, capacity utilization increases leading to more efficient pricing and faster movement of goods.
Education, education, education…improving its quality could revolutionize our country
A better educated population is analytical, thoughtful and makes more prudent everyday decisions. Collectively, these micro-decisions create a strong economy. In our little endeavor to contribute to this, we are excited to be launching our Shohoz Learn platform.
Future Plans
So, what’s next for Shohoz? The company looks to expand its digital footprint by growing its services further. Maliha alludes that in addition to digital services, increasing financial inclusion, will create the greatest impact for Bangladesh. To that end, Shohoz is working on its fintech strategy. ‘We will not rest until we have made life truly easy for the people of Bangladesh,’ said Maliha Quadir.
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