Colombian Unicorn: On-demand delivery startup Rappi valued at over $1 billion

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A Colombian startup has made it into the entrepreneurial big leagues, becoming the first startup company to be labelled a so-called "unicorn", a private company valued at over one billion US dollars. What does this company do? It tries to deliver whatever its customers' hearts desire, fast. Our Correspondent Michelle Begue tells us how, from Bogota.

In a world where more and more consumers want things at the touch of a button, a Colombian startup is meeting that demand. Rappi, a play on the word "fast" in Spanish, is a fast-growing, on-demand delivery service in Latin America.

"I really like Rappi. I use it for food and to ask for favors."

"In a city with so much traffic, you really gain time not having to do errands."

"I think their success is due to the amount of messengers that they have to cover this city."

"It is user-friendly, it is nice looking, you can see your options easily, you can drag the items into a cart which is easy, and in the end, this might even sound nationalist, but it is a Colombian startup so you want to support the Colombian."

The mobile application started in Colombia in 2015, delivering meals and groceries via motorcycle and bicycle. It quickly provided one-stop shopping across Latin America, expanding operations to Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and recently Chile.

Felipe Villamarin, Rappi Co-founder "There are a lot of people that have everything in life except time, and there is another part of the population that can maybe benefit from additional earnings and have the time. So, we are connecting those two population groups and making cities better in Latam."

This year it became Colombia's first startup company to be labeled a unicorn, a privately-held startup company valued at one billion U.S. dollars, or more.

MICHELLE BEGUE COLOMBIA "The company claims to be averaging three deliveries every second across 25 Latin American cities. And just recently they received a 200 million dollar investment from DST Global, a venture capital company that funds fast-growing internet companies."

What's the secret to Rappi's success? Its bright orange uniforms are a great branding tool. But Felipe Villamarin, one of its three co-founders, says it was their popular "RappiFavor" feature. Customers can literally ask Rappi for favors, like walk their dog, help them find keys, or even go to the bank to pay their bills.

Felipe Villamarin, Rappi Co-founder "That feature helped us listen to our clients and understand what people were ordering, what new verticals to open, how to improve and I guess being humble and working on being better every day has helped us grow."

With the latest round of funding, Rappi says their goal is to have a Rappi employee on every street corner of Latin America. Michelle Begue, CGTN, Colombia.