GoMyWay

Ride-hailing service

🇳🇬 Nigeria Media & EntertainmentShut down

Epitaph

“Here lies GoMyWay. It offered Nigerians affordable carpooling and later interstate rides, run for two years on pre-seed money. But riders and drivers simply paid each other offline after matching, so the platform earned nothing. Everyone got where they were going except the business.”

Overview

Born: 2015 (Year)
Died: October 2017 (Month)
Lifespan: 3 years
Fate: Shut down
Headquarters: 🇳🇬 Nigeria
Category: Media & Entertainment, Travel & Mobility
Stage at death: Pre-seed
Primary cause: Business model or unit economics
Contributing causes: Execution, Funding or runway

Death certificate

Timeline

2015Founded
GoMyWay launches as a ride-hailing/carpooling platform in Nigeria
October 2017CEO Damilola Teidi announces the shutdown directly to customers, citing lack of a sustainable monetization strategy

Autopsy report

Why did GoMyWay shut down?

Nigerian ride-sharing startup GoMyWay, backed by $175K in pre-seed funding, shut down around October 2017 after roughly two years of investor-funded user acquisition without a sustainable revenue model, as riders and drivers increasingly transacted offline after connecting through the app.

What GoMyWay attempted

GoMyWay was a ride-hailing/carpooling platform aiming to provide affordable transportation in Nigeria, later expanding to interstate routes.

What worked

GoMyWay operated for about two years on investor capital and expanded its service to interstate routes; CEO Damilola Teidi was praised for directly and transparently informing customers of the shutdown, an unusual move in the Nigerian startup scene.

Early warning signs

Riders and drivers had strong incentive to move transactions offline after matching through the app, eliminating the platform's revenue capture; nationwide/interstate expansion raised passenger-security concerns and high marketing costs without a matching revenue stream.

What happened

GoMyWay grew its user base for roughly two years using its $175K pre-seed investor capital but never established a working monetization strategy, as users routinely completed rides and payments offline after connecting via the app. Interstate expansion added security concerns and cost without offsetting revenue. CEO Damilola Teidi announced the shutdown directly to customers around October 2017.

Lessons for future builders

A marketplace that only introduces two parties will be cut out the moment they can transact directly. Design payment capture and repeat-use incentives into the core flow from day one, so value runs through the platform rather than around it.