“Turkey is a $120 billion market, so it’s a great opportunity,” Garcia said in an interview with Reuters. “They face similar problems that we face in Mexico and Brazil,” she added, referring to fraud in used car sales and difficult access to financing.
The SoftBank-backed startup 9434.T is valued at $8.7 billion, according to Garcia, and has seen rapid growth in Mexico, which accounts for 60% of its operations. Kavak also operates in Argentina and Brazil.
However, this growth has not been without obstacles. Kavak cut some 150 positions at its Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro operations last month, less than a year after its expansion into Brazil, as a result of investing ahead of growth and needing to adjust to changing market conditions. Garcia said.
He added that Kavak does not currently expect “mass layoffs.”
The company has also faced highly publicized complaints on social media about its customer service in Mexico.
Garcia attributed some of them to delays created by government office closures, which delay the paperwork needed for used car sales.
“We have a group of users that we could certainly serve better,” Garcia said.