"Hich, an immigrant-owned rideshare company, is ready to launch service in Twin Cities"

The Star Tribune — Minnesota's largest newspaper — covered HICH's launch ahead of its August 15, 2024 service start in Minneapolis and St. Paul. The piece focuses on founder Mustafa Sheikh's background, the company's business model, and what sets HICH apart from the major rideshare platforms it's competing against.

Why the Star Tribune Covered This

The article comes in the context of a year-long fight over rideshare wages in Minneapolis. After the city passed a minimum pay ordinance requiring $1.40 per mile and $0.51 per minute for rideshare drivers, Uber and Lyft threatened to exit — setting off a scramble to build alternatives. The Star Tribune tracked that entire story, and HICH's launch was a milestone in it.

Sheikh's background — a Somali refugee who spent two years driving for Uber in San Diego before founding HICH — gave the article its human anchor. He didn't just see an opportunity in the Minneapolis market vacuum. He saw a driver community that deserved something better than what the existing platforms were offering.

The Business Model, as Reported

The Star Tribune detailed HICH's subscription-based model: rather than taking a percentage of every fare, HICH charges drivers a flat monthly fee to use the platform. Drivers keep everything the passenger pays. The original pricing plan was $200 per month or $9.99 per day — but ahead of launch, HICH offered three months of free access to drivers while it worked out longer-term pricing.

The article also noted that drivers can purchase company shares, building toward real ownership in the platform they're powering — a contrast to the "independent contractor" classification that Uber and Lyft have used to avoid traditional employment obligations.