From Everyday Commute Challenges to a Profitable Mobility Business: Maha Shahzad on BusCaro’s Growth Journey

An Interview with Maha Shahzad, Founder & CEO, BusCaro

PAGE: Please tell us briefly about yourself and the journey behind BusCaro. What prompted you to build a technology-driven solution around Pakistan’s everyday commute challenges?

Maha Shahzad: My career has largely been in technology and mobility, including roles at foodpanda, Careem, and Swvl. The idea for BusCaro became urgent when Swvl exited Pakistan, and commuters began asking how they would get to work or school. BusCaro began with one bus and a simple belief: safe, affordable, and reliable commuting should be accessible to everyone.

PAGE: BusCaro has achieved EBITDA profitability in under four years of operations. What does reaching this milestone mean for the company, particularly in today’s challenging startup and funding environment?

Maha Shahzad: Profitability validates the way we chose to build the company. We started in a difficult funding environment, so capital efficiency was never optional. Becoming EBITDA-positive in under four years, with total burn of about $1.4 million, shows disciplined growth is possible. It also gives us more control because decisions can be driven by customers and long-term value rather than continuous fundraising.

PAGE: The company moved from a negative EBITDA margin of 9 percent a year ago to positive territory, while gross margins also improved significantly. What were the key operational and strategic decisions behind this turnaround?

Maha Shahzad: It resulted from many small operational improvements rather than one dramatic change. We focused on route planning, utilisation, cost control, and business with healthy economics. Gross margins expanded by 48 percent, while operating expenses moved to single-digit percentages of GMV. Recurring demand from schools and workplaces also gives us better visibility and makes capacity planning more efficient.

PAGE: BusCaro has reached $7.1 million in annual recurring revenue, while annual revenue increased from $4.5 million to $6.5 million. How do you plan to sustain this growth while remaining focused on profitability and capital efficiency?

Maha Shahzad: The focus is quality of growth. We want to enter cities and add customers where the model is repeatable, and the economics are clear. Recurring institutional business gives us predictable demand, while technology helps manage routes and capacity efficiently. We will keep investing in reliability and customer experience, while staying disciplined on overheads. The aim is to build a business that can compound sustainably.

PAGE: BusCaro has completed more than 30 million bookings and reports strong customer retention and reliability. What has helped the company build long-term relationships with corporate and institutional customers?

Maha Shahzad: Transportation is ultimately a trust business. Clients need their employees, students, and customers to arrive safely and on time every day. Our 98 percent retention and 99.5 percent reliability reflect that focus. Several customers have stayed with us because we remain involved after a contract is signed, respond quickly to issues, and keep improving the service. Consistency turns a vendor relationship into a partnership.

PAGE: The company has expanded beyond corporate and school transportation into on-demand rides. How does this diversification fit into BusCaro’s broader growth and profitability strategy?

Maha Shahzad: Our core remains recurring commute for organisations and educational institutions. On-demand rides let us use the same technology and operating capabilities for additional needs. We are careful about diversification: a new vertical should improve utilisation, solve a real customer problem and make commercial sense. We are not trying to enter every mobility category; we want to extend a model we understand into areas where it can work efficiently.

PAGE: With fuel prices and commuting costs remaining a concern, what role do you see shared transportation and, eventually, electric mobility playing in Pakistan’s urban transport landscape?

Maha Shahzad: Shared transportation becomes more relevant as individual commuting gets more expensive. High-capacity vehicles spread the cost across many passengers, making daily travel more affordable while maintaining safety and reliability. Electric mobility can strengthen that model as charging infrastructure and vehicle economics improve. We see EVs as part of the future, but adoption has to be commercially practical. The opportunity is to make shared transport more efficient and progressively cleaner.

PAGE: Looking ahead, what are BusCaro’s priorities for expansion into new cities and international markets, and how do you plan to preserve profitability as the business scales?

Maha Shahzad: There is still significant room to grow within Pakistan, so expansion into new cities will be measured and demand-led. We are also laying the groundwork for international markets where similar commuting problems exist and our model can be replicated. The approach will remain disciplined: understand local demand, prove the unit economics, and then scale. Profitability is part of the operating culture we want to carry forward.