Following the UK's relaxed rules allowing e-scooters on roads, Irish e-scooter start-up Zipp Mobility has set its sights on the UK market with €300,000 in new investment.
Last month we saw the announcement that electric scooters would soon be allowed on roads in the UK as part of a plan to ease recent pressure on the public transport system. This surprise move made the UK a viable location for public e-scooter rental businesses, which have taken off in major cities all over Europe but hadn't been possible in the UK.
Irish dockless e-scooter start-up Zipp Mobility is planning to take advantage of this opportunity thanks to a €300,000 seed investment round led by a London-based VC and private angel investors. The funds are to be used to expand its team in order to specifically target the UK e-scooter market.
Public rentable bikes have become a mainstay of city centres across the UK, with special docks being installed all over cities such as Belfast from which people can rent a bike. Zipp Mobility uses a dockless business model that's been successful in other parts of Europe. Customers will download an app that will show them the locations of nearby scooters, and can then scan the QR code on the bike to rent and unlock it.
Zipp Mobility founder Charlie Gleeson commented on the expansion: "We had originally planned to trial our e-scooters with students on Irish university campuses, including UCD, earlier this year, but then COVID-19 arrived. Following on from the recent announcement by the UK government to bring forward and expand their e-scooter trials country-wide, we have now pivoted to focus on the UK market."
Source: Written based on press release
