Harry Katsiabanis
Harry Katsiabanis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Alma mater | Swinburne University of Technology |
| Occupation(s) | Australian entrepreneur, public transport operator |
| Years active | 1988-present |
| Known for | Founding CABiT and TaxiLink |
Harry Katsiabanis is an Australian entrepreneur and public transport operator known for founding P2P Transport, TaxiLink, CABiT, and Ride247.[1][2]
Early life and education
Harry Katsiabanis attended Melbourne High School and La Trobe University. He worked as a real estate agent for a decade before deciding to enter the taxicab industry. He began driving taxi cabs in 1988, and bought his first taxi license at the age of 21. Katsiabanis attended Swinburne University of Technology from 2011 to 2013, and graduated with a master's degree.[3]
Career
TaxiLink, TaxiEpay, Greek immigration
Katsiabanis founded the Melbourne-based taxi network Taxi Link in 2003[4] and is the company's executive director.[5] e also created TaxiEpay, an EFTPOS system, that same year. Katsiabanis is the spokesperson for Taxi Industry Stakeholders Victoria, and became known for opposing Allan Fels' position in the 2011 Taxi Industry Inquiry, and protesting government plans to reduce the value of taxi licenses.[6][7]
In 2012, Katsiabanis started an initiative to encourage Greeks to immigrate to Australia and work as taxi drivers in the Melbourne-area during the Greek financial crisis.[8] The initiative was motivated by changes in Australian immigration laws which reduced immigration from India, thereby creating a shortage of taxi cab drivers in Australia.[9] That same year, Katsiabanis founded the Australian Taxi Academy, offering free training and seminars to Greeks who enrolled in the program.[10] In June 2012, Katsiabanis he a series of seminars about the initiative in Athens.[11]
In May 2013, it was reported Katsiabanis and two other taxi operators bought the rights to Taxiplon, a Greek taxi-booking app.[12]
In November 2013, Katsiabanis announced his plans to launch Taxi Link Pink, a pink fleet of cabs driven by women for female passengers.[13] He stated that the initiative was inspired by an article in The Age, which reported on sexual harassment by cab drivers in Victoria.[14]
CABiT
In 2014, Katsiabanis founded CABiT, an Australian vehicle for hire service that combined the fleets of Taxi Link, Ambassador, Cabways, and Kensington Taxis.[15] Katsiabanis has stated that the company was modelled after the Indonesian taxi group Blue Bird.[16] On August 24, 2015, CABiT launched a fleet of green-painted, hybrid cars.[17]
P2P, Ride247
Katsiabanis co-founded P2P Transport, a vehicle rental company, in 2017.[2] He initially raised $30 million in funding for the company with a group of investors in mid-2017, and the company opened on the Australian Securities Exchange in December.[18]
In 2018, Katsiabanis announced plans to launch Ride247, a mobile phone app which would allow users to book taxis, rideshare cars, and limousines.[2]
Personal life
Harry Katsiabanis is a Greek Australian.[9]
References
- ^ Hatch, Patrick (2015-08-23). "CABiT signals clean, green turn for Melbourne taxis". The Age. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ a b c Jacks, Timna (2018-02-10). "Taxi driver turned entrepreneur launches 'iTunes for transport'". The Age. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ "Harry Katsiabanis | Alumni profiles | Swinburne University | Melbourne". www.swinburne.edu.au. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ "Urgent call for Irish cabbies in Australia". herald. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ Lucas, Clay (2011-02-09). "Driver shortage for taxis as Indian student numbers fall". The Age. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ Carey, Adam (2013-01-04). "Secret world of our taxi titans". The Age. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ Cook, Henrietta (2012-10-19). "Taxi owners take a hammer to proposed licence changes". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ "GREEK RECRUITS TO DRIVE MELBOURNE CABS". www.heraldsun.com.au. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ a b Sweet, Mike (2012-03-17). "Greek cabbies hail taxi plan". NEOS KOSMOS. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ Kotseli, Areti. "Up to 1000 Greek Taxi Drivers Will be Hired to Ease Melbourne's Cabbie ShortageGreek Reporter Australia | Greek Reporter Australia". Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ "Greek drivers join the ranks". NEOS KOSMOS. 2012-06-05. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ Carey, Adam (2013-05-24). "Your taxis at work: the big three to keep tabs on cabs". The Age. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ Pearlman, Jonathan (2013-11-14). "'Pink taxis' for women introduced in Melbourne". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ Bird, Adam Carey, Dylan (2013-11-14). "Women-only pink taxis on the way". The Age. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "$20m taxi rank shake-up". www.heraldsun.com.au. 2014-03-05. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ "Lessons from Jakarta". VicTaxi. December 2015. p. 13.
- ^ "Catch a free green cab, if you can". www.heraldsun.com.au. 2015-08-23. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
- ^ "P2P Transport embraces Uber, Taxify after modest ASX debut". Australian Financial Review. 2017-12-12. Retrieved 2020-04-30.