| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Austin, Texas, United States |
| Website | www.uship.com |
| Type of site | Online Services auction |
| Available in | English |
uShip, Inc. is an Internet company that operates uShip.com, a global online marketplace for shipping services. Individuals and businesses list items they need shipped in a variety of categories, such as household pets, boats, or heavy industrial equipment, and transportation service providers place bids for the right to ship the item. The company uses a feedback rating system for both the service providers and customers, similar to the eBay feedback system. For some categories, including boats, autos and less-than-truckload (LTL) freight, upfront shipping quotes from multiple sources are presented. Customers can book immediate shipments based on these quotes or opt to wait for auction bids, similar to eBay’s ‘buy it now’ feature.[1] The site's reverse auction format aims to reduce the cost of shipping by enabling service providers to find shipments along their routes and fill empty cargo space.[2]
CEO and founder Matthew Chasen had the original idea for uShip in 2001, when his mother had a hard time finding someone to ship an heirloom dresser . Later that year, as he drove a half-empty truck to business school, he realized that he could help fill the excess truck capacity with people's oversized deliveries (ibid). While at the University of Texas, Mr. Chasen entered the idea for uShip into several business competitions, winning first prize at the University of North Texas, and runner-up at US Moot Corp competition in 2004.[3] uShip.com was launched shortly after, and received funding from Benchmark Capital in 2005 [4]
In 2009, uShip entered a partnership with Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, the world’s largest heavy equipment auctioneers.[5]
A TerraPass partnership allows uShip to calculate the monthly carbon footprint of service providers enrolled in the program, who can them purchase carbon offsets and invest in energy efficiency projects.[6]