Create Pickup & Delivery App Like Makespace (On-Demand Storage)

9 min readMar 7, 2022

Introduction

Whether you are uprooting your home or your workspace, it can be quite difficult to get the said job done in a short span of time when you find yourself in a cluttered environment. Thanks to applications like Makespace, there is no need for you to break a sweat over moving from one space to another.

Particularly when we are all living in an unprecedented world where we are confined to our homes, the urge to declutter personal space grows by the minute. This is when Makespace can be your knight in shining armor. MakeSpace helps you to give you a storage solution backed by technology. The best way to explain the concept of Makespace is to assume that it is Dropbox but for real-time and space.

Makespace is on-demand storage with pickup and delivery applications. Not only will the application pick up your belongings on-demand, but it will also store them as well as get them delivered to the desired destination, decluttering your life in the simplest manner.

The application has been a great hit with the users and is often referred to as the ‘Uber For Movers’. If you wish to create a similar application, there is a ton of research that you need to get done and analyze the functionality and features of Makespace closely. This article will help you in order to do so. Read on in order to be able to plunge right into the details.

Growth Timeline

Even though there are numerous and prominent movers on the market, it seems like Makespace is ruling them all by the introduction of technological aspects to the industry. Makespace was founded back in 2013, with its headquarters in Manhattan, New York.

Investors such as Iron Mountain, 8VC, and Upfront Ventures have been an integral part of the success of Makespace. Recently, Makespace has been successful in closing funding of about $55 million in the Series-E round from Iron Mountain. Out of the whopping $55 million, $10 million in debt, and the rest of $45 million in equity funding.

The current revenue of Makespace is about $65 million, which is considered great for a startup. From the very first time of its launch, Makespace has time and again proved to be a great solution to the storage needs of its users. The app offers secured spaces in order to store valuable entities in a much more inexpensive way as compared to conventional methods.

The company is constantly growing and evolving into its best form. Currently, as per the stats received from PitchBook, the company is valued at about $150 million. It is now operating in about 31 markets in North America; the number was only 20 in the last year. Thus, explaining that even the pandemic has not been able to reckon with the growth of the company. You can check whether or not your delivery zip code is applicable or not with the help of the application.

Business Model Canvas: Workflow And The Revenue Model

There is a series of steps that you need to go through in order to avail yourself of the services offered by Makespace. The following is a list of pointers to learn the workflow of Makespace. Read on in order to know elaborate details.

Request a service

Primarily, you are required to get your hands on the Makespace application, which is available on both the iOS and Android play stores. Once you have registered, you can request a particular service. You are free to choose a service provider; the ratings available are only there to help you make the right choice. You can analyze your requirements, preferences, reviews, and ratings provided by other users. The availability of the service will also be reflected in the application, which is regulated in real-time.

If you are running a little ahead of your schedule, or you just need to get done with the booking and registration for a dedicated slot of time, you can always opt for scheduled booking as the application can offer this feature to save your time in the most efficient manner. After you have successfully requested the services, you will be informed with a push notification.

If you are finding it a tad bit difficult to get your hands on just the right service you need, feel free to upload an image or add a description to communicate in a better way with the service providers. This will not only make it easier for you to find the right service provider, but it will also ensure that there is clear communication between the two entities.

Accept Or Reject a Request

Once you have been successful in posting for the service request by reaching out to a particular service provider, they will receive a push notification. The service provider can check out the details and decide whether or not he/she is willing to opt for the job. In any of the two cases, you will receive a notification depicting whether your request is accepted or rejected.

If your request has been rejected, you can head on to connect with another service provider. However, if your request is accepted, then it will be no longer visible to other service providers in order to avoid any sort of confusion.

You can further connect with the service provider, dig deeper into the details of the job, get an estimate, and come up with a game plan to get it done. There is no need for you to get in touch with the service provider through any other application as you can connect with in-app chat.

Once you are through with this, the application offers you an in-app calendar that can be used to mark the job. This feature is primarily beneficial to the service provider so that other potential customers can check the availability of that particular service provider.

Real-time tracking

One of the most intriguing and crucial features of the application is real-time tracking. In order to make sure that both can save some time, the customer will receive a heads up prior to the pickup time so that they can pack the stuff up for the service provider.

From the time the service provider loads up the stuff for transportation to the time when it reaches the storage facility, the customer can track the movement through an in-app GPS tracking system.

This makes it easier for the customer to place his or her trust in the service provider. This has proved to be a motivating factor for the customers to use the app time and again.

Easy Payment Methods

The application presents its users with an in-built wallet that you can top-up whenever you need the services, or you can opt for the multiple secure gateways linked with the applications. These gateways are highly encrypted in order to make sure that all the transactions are safe and your data security is kept intact.

One of the primary reasons that a customer refrains from opting for online service is the doubt of online payment fraud. Luckily, this is something you need not be worried about when using Makespace.

Once you have made a transaction, you will receive a digital receipt; whether the transaction is successful or not, you can keep track of these transactions in the payment history section.

Rating and Feedback

After the service is completed, you can add your reviews and rating about the service provider as well as the application. This will not only help other users to choose an efficient service provider, but it will also help the application to improve its interface, features, and functionality so the users can have a better experience. In case of any nuisance, appropriate actions will also be taken against the entity at fault. All of this is only possible through efficient communication.

Push Notification

Another amazing feature offered by the application is the push-notification. The service providers can reach out to their customers with any sort of new updates or latest developments in order to retain them.

The Revenue Model

The revenue model of Makespace is quite basic. There are two factors involved that have helped Makespace to raise a revenue of about $65 million. Read on in order to explore these two factors.

Monthly Charges

The registered entities pay a monthly fee of 69 dollars. Even though the application does not charge a commission for the job, a customer or a service provider has opted for it.

Storage Plans

Other than this, there are different plans for storage facilities that you can browse for. The plans vary depending on the duration for which you need a storage unit. It is quite cheaper when you compare it with the traditional storage and moving facilities as there is no need for you to rent a truck or worry sick about the safe transportation of your valuables. You can keep track of the movement all the time through GPS integration.

Key Features That Differentiate Makespace From Its Competitors

Makespace has been giving a tough competition for an app that was founded just in 2013. The following are some of its features to help you learn the reason behind it.

Easy To Use Interface

The interface of MakeSpace is very easy to use. This is as simple as it gets; you can link your social media profiles so that you do not have to manually register yourself. As you go through the application, one after the other portals keep coming up, and you won’t even need a manual to get the hang of it as it has been curated while keeping the interest of the user as a prime concern.

On-demand Pickup Services

No longer do you need to run around in order to get your hands on reliable pickup services. All you need to do is scroll through the application, select a service provider, and the rest will be taken care of.

Easy Scheduling

If you are in some sort of time crunch, it is always better to have multiple service providers at your disposal so that you can choose the day and time of pick up at your convenience.

Photo Inventory

The photo inventory ensures that you do not miss out on the items that you have stored through the application ensuring no mix-ups or confusion.

Value For Money

Once you opt for the services, you will realize that it is way better than the conventional methods.

Team Structure To Build a Storage and Delivery App Like MakeSpace

UI/UX Designers
Project Head
Business Analyst
Front and Back End Developers
Android and iOS developers
Quality Assurance Professional

Technology Stack For Storage and Delivery App Like MakeSpace

Application and Data

JavaScript
Python
React
NGINX
MySQL
Redis
Amazon S3
Amazon EC2
Django
Amazon Cloudfront
RabbitMQ
Swift
Objective C
Celery
Pusher

Utilities

Google Analytics
Google Maps
Stripe
Twilio
Mail Gun
Segment
Looker

DevOps

GitHub
Git
Jenkins
Webpack
Virtualbox
New Relic
Ansible
Sentry
Vagrant
Pingdom
Codeship

Business Tools

Slack
GSuite
Clubhouse

Tips

If you wish to create a similar app, make sure to go through these pointers to make sure that your application is good enough to sustain in the tough market.

Just like Makespace, try to create an application that is extensively through whether it is the in-built chat option, photo inventory, listing format; the more you explore the application, the more features you will end up exploring.
Payment Gateways are always a big concern for the users; along with data security, make sure you spend a significant amount of time and resources to get it right.
The better app integration you offer, the more users will be interested in being a part of the application.

See Also:

Frequently Asked Questions For Building a Pick Up and Delivery App Like MakeSpace (FAQs)

Q1) Are apps like MakeSpace profitable?
A1) Yes, apps like MakeSpace are profitable. They generate revenue through monthly charges for storage, through storage plans, and also delivery charges.
Q2) Does the owner of the app get to keep the code after development?
A2) Yes, the owner of the code gets to keep it in all its entirety. However, you will need a team at the backend to ensure the smooth working of the app.
Q3) How do I start a business like Makespace?
A3) You should get started by researching the niche, your target audience, and demand. Once you have formulated an idea all that is left to do is to hire developers and turn your vision into a reality.

Want To Build An App?

We’ll consult you on the options and how to get most of them.