A Snapshot of a road in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone is a small West African nation, known for its dreadful roads and unreliable but pricy transportation services. In fact, when 30 year old Canadian, David Dobrowolski, moved there in 2008, his frustration drove him to establish Flash Vehicle Rentals (FVR).
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Seeking to satisfy Sierra Leoneans’ need for reliable transportation, FVR invested in 70 four-wheel-drive Toyotas that can all be tracked by GPS systems and that can withstand the harsh Sierra Leone roads. It established its own store of spare parts, imported a mechanic and promised to send a replacement if any of its cars malfunctioned anywhere in Sierra Leone. Naturally, these services came with costs attached. However, Sierra Leoneans welcomed the firm, despite high service costs.
This shows the power that a firm’s value proposition has on consumers’ willingness to buy a product (or service). Truth is that Sierra Leoneans were tired of worrying about whether their vehicles would malfunction while driving, especially since the area was not very safe. FVR managed to zero in on what the consumers truly desired: safety, security and peace of mind as they travelled on the roads. This bundle of benefits is what will continue to make FVR invaluable in Sierra Leone.