E-scooter rental service in Sweden is changing the transportation in Nordic countries. (Image via Coruscate)

Swedish E-scooters Start-up to Have Positive Cash Flow Despite a Serious Accident

Kinanty Nadia Putri
Business & Industry
Start Up
Jul 09, 2019
2132
E-scooters has recently been part of the urban young community lifestyle. It is trendy, easy to use, and the most important, a cheap way to get around! As the world is shifting to be more ‘environmentally aware’, the eco-friendliness of e-scooters also get it covered.

But the growing number of people whizzing around in big cities on the electric two-wheelers can be a nightmare for some pedestrians and motorists, yet still, the bright future of the industry is offering a positive cash flow for the Swedish sharing start-up VOI.

VOI co-founder and CEO Fredrik Hjelm said that people have come to use e-scooters more than before, which has made the company grew its profit more than US$80 million in recent years. Since its launching in September 2018, the company has reached 5 million rides in European big cities.

In VOI hometown Stockholm, the e-scooters accounts for about 70% to 80% of those on the roads. With this percentage, Hjelm estimated that VOI will be cash flow positive for late next year and within three years ahead. For the whole industry itself, Barclays estimates that the electric-powered one-person transportation will make up US$800 billion in revenues by mid-2020s and total 1 trillion personal miles, which is 4% of global transport.

Despite the positive cash flow, the company is facing its biggest challenge on the road which is the occurrence of a fatal accident involving e-scooters.

In May, tragic news hit the company’s business as a man was killed while riding one of the VOI vehicles in the town of Helsingborg, north of Malmö. The deceased was said to have crashed after traveling down from a hill at high speed.

Following the accident, the Swedish transport agency called for a ball on all e-scooter companies in the country due to the lack of their responsibilities to follow the rules and restrictions of electric bikes. VOI denied the statement, saying it already followed the regulations for its fleets.

Hjelm emphasized safety was an important consideration and to reduce the possibility of an accident, the company has developed a code of conduct with the authorities in Stockholm for all operators. “We can do everything for operations and education on this matter, but ultimately we’re in the hands of the users”, he added.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-electric-scooters/e-scooters-put-swedish-start-up-on-road-to-positive-cashflow-idUSKCN1U31Z9

VOI , Start-up , Business , E-scooters , Eco-friendly , Positive , Cashflow , RentalService