This is the big guide to starting a kickshare business – a scooter rental business. How much money does it bring, what is the payback, what vehicles to choose, what software to use, how to promote sharing, and how to find a team to service it? We will answer the question of how to start a sharing business in your city.
What resources are needed to launch
You will need the following for launching: a team of at least 5 people, a storage and repair room, vehicles for transportation, scooters, an application, and a fleet control panel. Let’s start with the money issue. Consider such things as how much money is needed and why sharing business is profitable.
How much money do you need?
There is no correct answer to this question, but there is a minimum threshold of entry. Many of our customers in Ukraine started with 10 scooters but immediately bought more scooters. We know for sure that 10 scooters will never pay off. That is why we recommend starting with at least 50 scooters and spare parts for them. The start for such a package is $50,000 or more. Keep in mind that the launch is not only scooters and parts but also team salaries, rent, customs duties, shipping, and marketing. Do not launch on the last money. For example, spare parts and marketing costs should be at least 30 percent of the total launch cost. How to make a business plan for sharing business we told in our blog, there is a business plan template in Excel format. You will be able to predict the start-up of your business by posting your data.
Business Sharing Payback
In general, we have discussed the financial issue on this page, but here we summarize the main points. The payback period for sharing business is 2-3 seasons, which is much faster than other businesses. But it takes a little bit of work to get the results. The next argument for sharing business is ROI or returns on investment. This figure can be up 50 percent with good management and dative selection of the park equipment.
Franchise or own brand?
If you are stoked about the idea to run a sharing business, you are going to have to ask the question, “How?” You probably found a franchise option or you want to launch your own brand. We will quickly tell you what is wrong with it, and a similar article about choosing a franchise or white-label app. Franchises are for people who have no ambition, and who do not want to understand marketing, supply, and logistics. It sounds good, but that is where all the trouble comes from. You are very limited in what you can do and what you can’t do. Scaling up your business will be very difficult, if not impossible. Choose our sharing application.
What team is needed?
We have already written about which team we need for sharing business. Its main players are marketers and technicians. Technicians are those who can repair the scooter both mechanically and electronically.
Which scooter to choose for kicksharing?
There are about 15 points to choose an «earning» scooter. Let’s describe its most important characteristics.
Replaceable battery – a criterion that allows you to service your fleet of scooters and other equipment quickly and easily. We recommend taking batteries from proven manufacturers such as LG or Samsung.
Scooter frame: to withstand operation in the conditions of sharing it must be very strong, have as few welds as possible, and be reinforced.
Suspension and wheels: suspension should be, and the wheels advise to choose tubeless and more than 10-inches diameter. Your customers will be more comfortable moving around.
Read more in our article – How to choose a kicksharing scooter.
The perfect city to launch kicksharing
The more convenient the city to move to, the more you can earn on sharing. Let’s describe the ideal city. From 250,000 people, and tourists, but there are residents, there is a well-developed network of bike lanes or a large cycling community. It is very good when all areas are connected by such paths and you have the opportunity to exhibit vehicles on the city’s central logistics highways. Do not forget to arrange with the local authorities for the launch of sharing. What will this agreement give you? Confidence that scooters will not be removed from the city. What do you need to agree on? About the number of scooters, where they can be placed and where they cannot, about the problems of transport communication in the city, to close the problem places on the movement of residents, about speed and safety, on the creation of new bicycle paths and expansion of infrastructure.
How to promote sharing business
At the start, we advise our customers to enter through bloggers and through the partner network of aggregating your customers. Such partners can be hostels, cafes, gyms, arcade halls, and shopping centers. We told in the article How to work with partners about promotional codes, and all the mechanics of promotion can be found in the article on how to promote sharing business.
Fleet management
No less important item than marketing. How often the scooters are loaded and how quickly they are set up and serviced determines the profit of the sharing. Where is the best place to set up scooters? Explore the map of the city and find recreation areas: embankments, parks, squares, traffic interchanges: large transport stops, metro stations, and long streets. These are the places where it is better to place the equipment. Put it on the corners of blocks, not between houses. For understanding how to complete the guide on fleet management, please, read the article – Fleet management.
Another important point is competent geo zoning. It is important to properly arrange areas where you can drive and park scooters. This will make it easier for your team to find and collect scooters in need of charging and maintenance.
Scooter rental application
This is probably one of the most important resources when launching a sharing business. What should it be? The application should be user-friendly and fast and it should help the customer to get the service. The application should make it easy to book and rent a scooter, and it is very well when it has group trips. It increases profits by 15 percent, unlike apps that don’t have that functionality. If you are currently in search of a sharing application, please refer to ours, it meets all customer requirements.
Scooter fleet control panel
Typical tasks to be solved by the transport control panel are: changing the status of the device, tracking zones and notifying about their violation, adding a maintenance command and operators, refunds, analytics, and reports. About how our sharing control panel works we have made a separate video and recommend you watch it.
In this article, we have described the main things to turn on when starting a sharing business. You can learn even more nuances and insights from us in a personal conversation. Contact us and we will discuss and draw up a step-by-step plan for starting a business in your region.
