Bengaluru: Urban Company, Asia’s largest home services marketplace, has released its annual Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) India Report, highlighting the impact of their social and environmental efforts while showcasing a responsibly governed organisation. As part of the company’s mission to foster upward social mobility for over 50,000 service partners, benefiting 1.25 crore households, the report provides a comprehensive overview of Urban Company’s initiatives across five key areas. The report highlights how the company is working towards creating a ‘Win-win’ marketplace for all stakeholders by giving them the opportunity to unlock what they deserve and focusing on holistic value creation for the ecosystem.
– INR 72 crores invested in training and upskilling 29,000 partners
– Top 20% of service partners earned over INR 38,000 in net monthly earnings
– Disbursed stock options worth INR 5.3 crore to ~500 partners as part of the Partner Stock Option Plan initiative towards wealth creation commitment
– Saved 146M units of energy through AC servicing and prevented 1.2B CO2e GHG emissions through appliance repair services
People: The report highlights progress made on the partner enablement pillars of improved earnings & wealth creation, security & well-being benefits, and training & skilling. The company’s commitment to training and upskilling partners is reflected in the INR 72 crore investment in these efforts during 2022. The top 20% of Urban Company service partners earned net monthly earnings of INR 38,000, which is 3.16x of the minimum wage in Delhi (the highest in the country), while the monthly net earnings of partners with >30 jobs were INR 30,625. Under its Security and Well-being benefits program, the company disbursed close to INR 39 crores worth of loans through tie-ups with non-banking financial institutions and INR 2.3 crores as insurance claims.
Product: From offering a range of features that unlock convenience for customers to creating a pocket workplace for service partners, Urban Company has created a win-win tech platform. The Urban Company Partner app, which is available in 9 regional languages, empowers service partners by giving them 24×7 access to income tracking, insurance claims, access credit, 24X7 SOS helpline and more.
Planet: Urban Company’s commitment to environmental stewardship is exemplified in its efforts to empower customers to reduce their carbon footprint. Through its Home Repairs & Maintenance vertical, the company helped save 146 million units of energy through AC servicing and prevented over 25 lac units of durable goods from ending up in landfills, which in turn, prevented 121+ crores of CO2e GHG emissions.
UC Impact: Through extensive surveys of approximately 4,500 service partners, Urban Company has validated the significant effect the platform has had on their lives. The survey findings illustrate how they are driving decent work and economic growth and reducing inequalities. All the service partners surveyed earn almost at par irrespective of gender, geographical location and educational qualifications. The survey found that in West and Central India, female service partners earn almost 15% higher than men. With respect to training and skilling, 84% of partners reported being satisfied with Urban Company’s training, and another 83% of partners mentioned they witnessed an increase in dignity in society. Aspire Impact Ratings Pvt. Ltd., an impact assessment firm, also provided us with a Gold Leaf certification after assessing our ESG efforts in 2022. The report underscores the significant contributions to job creation, economic growth, and the reduction of inequalities.
Abhiraj Singh Bhal, Co-founder and CEO of Urban Company, said, “Our annual ESG report is a testament to our unwavering commitment to upward social mobility for our service partners and in line with our core value of ‘win-win’ where we focus on value creation for the ecosystem as a whole. We are proud to have made significant progress in this area, as highlighted in the report. We have also made a significant impact on the planet by becoming one of the few companies to empower customers in reducing their carbon footprint. These milestones reinforce our dedication to creating a positive impact and empowering our service partners to reach new heights. Our ESG report showcases our commitment to fairness, meritocracy, and empowering every member of our community to unlock the opportunities they deserve.”
Urban Company recognises the importance of integrating sustainable practices into its core business strategy, driven by a strong sense of responsibility towards stakeholders and the environment. The company has adopted five goals from the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals — Good health and well-being, Gender equality, Decent work and economic growth, Reduced inequalities and Responsible consumption and production. The ESG report serves as a roadmap for future initiatives, setting ambitious targets and providing a benchmark for measuring progress on the company’s sustainability journey.
About Urban Company:
Vision: Empower millions of professionals worldwide to deliver services at home like never experienced before.
Founded in November 2014, Urban Company is Asia’s largest technology marketplace for home services. The company offers services such as beauty and spa at home, cleaning, plumbing, carpentry, appliance repair, painting, etc., through its mobile app and website. It operates in 50+ cities in India, the UAE, Singapore and The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It has a partner network of over 50,000 hand-picked service professionals transforming them into organised and high-quality micro-entrepreneurs. This full-stack approach helps the company live up to its promise of delivering high-quality, delightful services at home.
