Semih Korkmaz and Hantz Févry Gig launched the stove in 2019 as a way to help employees make the best use of their time. Févry, who immigrated to the United States from Haiti, first learned about the struggles of part-time work from his time as a student at Stonybrook University. When shaking from job to job, Févry will feel the sting associated with hidden fees, useless promises and variability of part-time labor.
There was also a time in Stonybrook when Févry got his first entrepreneurial taste. In 2010 and 2011, Févry said the dean of the university’s business school let the budding business owner spend his time so he could start an import-export business selling earthquake detection equipment in Haiti. That first taste of technology and business development eventually brought Févry Hong Kong as a job at Google in Hong Kong and gave him the opportunity to travel around the world. After moving to Europe, Févry moved back to the United States, where he began building a stove. The question in his mind was how could we use technology to support people who are jig workers or short-term assignments?
Févry and his co-founder Korkmaz Stoovo took the level of play on the field by imagining that they could get the highest paid jobs on the gig platform together. “What the platforms are doing is they have adapted to make sure they are responding to the demand,” Févry said. “Use the same method to predict what we will do, what the demand will be, where the demand will be, what the competition will be and what will be paid.”
Févry said the company’s software advises Gig employees on the best time to use each service based on revenue criteria and hours. “We tell you when to start work, where to start working and when to go when you need to take a break,” he said.
However, the company’s service is not just about optimization. Gig employees have a suite of banking elements and products to make sure they are earning the most out of their jigs financially. The company provides checking accounts, a tax management service and lending, as well as BellBizzer, a Seattle-based company that provides short-term rental services for consumer goods.
Févry said both Korkmaz and Févry have spent time working as delivery drivers or freelancing to get a feel for the challenges that mountain workers face. During a lunch break at Google, he can see how Févry can deliver food to understand how he is able to make Gig’s economy more efficient.
Ultimately, the best solution is for Gig workers to pay a fair wage for the time they spend working, but technologically advanced band-aids seem to be the only option to help heal technically active wounds.
