EVIOS secures £5.8 million to fuel ambitious growth
British electric vehicle (EV) home charging company, EVIOS, has secured significant new external investment within weeks of launching. Just a fortnight after its launch in late April, the company’s initial target had been pledged, and funding closed with £5.8 million raised.
EVIOS is the brainchild of David Martell, founder and former CEO of Chargemaster, which was sold to bp for £132 million in 2018. Of the 66 new investors in EVIOS, nearly half (30) previously had a stake in Chargemaster. With a pre-money valuation of £28 million and EIS advance assurance from HMRC, EVIOS is an attractive proposition for investors. A peer group valuation of £300 million within five years places the initial stakeholders in a solid position to see a tenfold return on their investment. EVIOS joins the home charging market in a unique position offering a standout product that is competitively priced with multiple routes to market.
EVIOS will use the majority of the funds to fuel the company’s ambitious plans for growth. £2.2 million will go into research and product development; £1.2 million will facilitate the launch of the EVIOS Two workplace charging unit; and £1.6 million will act as working capital and support the company’s expansion into Europe early next year.
73% of EV charging activity currently takes place at home, where it is around a quarter of the price of using a public charge point. Martell comments: “The home charge market is expected to grow exponentially as more buyers make the shift to electrified mobility. The current base of 300,000 home charge points in the UK is expected to reach between seven and 10 million during the next decade. Our focus is to incorporate state-of-the-art technology into highly intuitive yet simple products that make life easier for EV drivers, and help more people embrace electric mobility.
“The incredible support from our new investors will now help us meet the charging needs of the 70% of EV buyers with access to off-street parking, and the users or landlords of multioccupancy buildings. By addressing these previously unmet market needs, we will ensure EVIOS becomes the UK’s largest EV home charge provider by 2025.”
The EVIOS One makes charging an EV at home as simple as possible. It is the first unit to have a large colour screen, which displays charging information using jargon-free icons. Three charge modes support changing customer needs – Pure Speed charges as quickly as possible; Pure Green charges using any on-site energy sources such as solar power; and Pure Value uses auto tariff scheduling to only charge during off-peak times and significantly reduce costs.
The EVIOS One takes account of the user’s energy tariff and vehicle-specific data to detail actual money spent and mileage added. Unique PIN-protected multi-user functionality can accommodate up to eight profiles per unit, making it ideal for workplaces and multi-occupancy residences. Multiple units can be managed via the app, which also generates historic user reports to facilitate recharges to customers or tenants.
Every interaction with EVIOS and its product is designed to be as simple and stress-free as possible. With the current cost of living crisis, EVIOS wants to put users in control of their finances, whether charging using solar or off-peak tariffs or helping to calculate recharge costs for clients or work expenses.
The EVIOS One is manufactured at EVIOS’ Bedford HQ, eradicating the long wait times of concern to many customers. At the point of order, customers are able to select an installation date that suits them and one of EVIOS in-house installation team will fit the unit to the home, configure the user profile(s) and guide the customer through a simple tutorial of the unit and app.