Charging Solutions for a Sustainable Future

Iulia Dorobanțu is the co-founder of Charger.ro, a marketplace for green energy charging solutions for electric vehicles. Together with co-founders Cristian Danciu , Adrian Țuțuianu and Aurel Basuc , they set the base of this startup in 2021, after the success of Green Spots, a manufacturer of urban solar chargers, charging stations for scooters and smart urban furniture. In December 2022, Charger.ro attracted an investment of EUR 245,000 from a group of investors, in a process coordinated by Bravva Angels. We sat down with Iulia to learn more about her journey as an entrepreneur and the challenges she faced in building her business.

Having a great idea is only part of the equation

Iulia says about what inspired her to start Charger:

"Together with my team, we have a background in architecture and urban regeneration, which we combined in the past years with business, sales, production of such devices, and all kinds of projects that touched the clean-tech industry one way or another. So, from a certain point of view, we have had since the beginning an image from the inside. Standing on the border of this industry, we noticed that despite the remarkable progress of technology, producers still don’t manage to have a global approach to customers, market strategy, available funding, data, or establish accessible communication. On the other side, the existing users or new buyers are facing a chaotic and disorganized market. They risk buying unfitted products with no second opinion and they lose time selecting solutions with minimal budgets.

"The team’s commitment to sustainability and their passion for making a difference have been the driving force behind Charger's creation, which was not a strike but a thought process: “I don’t believe in AHA moments. The vision, product, portfolio, team, and all resources - we developed over time. Yes, it was a short period of time, but we actively accelerated it to gain early growth. Having a great idea is only part of the equation. The other part is having the necessary insights to execute that idea in a way that meets the needs of the market. And, with this, the background of the team helped a lot.

“We began with an idea. But before looking for investment, having a great concept was only 10% of the battle for us: we turned that idea into an MVP, gained some traction, defined a strategy and revenue model, a team, etc., and most importantly, looked at the scalability of the company.”

While preparing for the first investment round, Iulia says the most challenging part was defining what “good enough” meant, and what they needed to have in order to open further discussions with investors. “Do we have a good enough product? Enough traction or testing? A big enough market? It is difficult to feel ready in a pre-seed stage, while constantly testing and discovering challenges.” However, they had a lot of know-how and confidence that this was a big enough problem that needed solving and they had the experience to deal with such solutions. “So, even though we are still experimenting in terms of product-market fit, defining our mission was the most important thing for us, and, I believe, for the investors, too.”

Investment Opportunity

Getting in touch with Bravva Angels was, as Iulia says, “a stroke of luck”, after connecting with Ilinca Paun on LinkedIn and meeting her for a coffee. This is where they had the opportunity to discuss more about the company’s story, strategy and plans for the future.

The fund-raising process was faster than expected: “After the final pitching session, we closed the discussion in the next couple of weeks, followed by one and a half months of papers and other administrative discussions.“

“What was most important for us in moving forward was getting the opportunity to learn and receive help from Bravva Angels – feedback, mentoring, and support, and not only an investment but connections with investor profiles that had the desire and strategic ability to help Charger.ro move to the next level of development in both the short and long term,” says Iulia.

Five months into the investment

Iulia says that the company’s focus is on developing the product: ”Integrating services and products in a clear and simple flow for the team, clients, and vendors, while accelerating growth. It also wants an aggressive market entry that will allow Charger to be more competitive in the sector. “The new funds go mostly towards the development of the platform and strengthening the team with key talented people – with a spotlight on the technical and sales team. The priority remains to develop and execute a high-quality and competitive product and an innovative and high-quality experience for customers and vendors.”

So far, Charger.ro has built a continuously growing portfolio of over 50 manufacturers and services providers, from Romania and Europe, which address both companies, especially small and medium-sized companies, as well as individuals, and offer over 250 green products, listed on the three verticals of the company: electric cars, photovoltaic systems, and smart city solutions. It implemented over 250 solutions, with over 120 on its offer. The team grew to 8 people. “We launched the new platform together with a marketing campaign focused on the product and we are currently working on a lot of valuable content.”

Since December 2022, the company boosted its sales and overall performance.

“Before launching the platform, we grew our sales 4-5x in volume, in comparison with the previous year. Now that our digital presence is live, we are receiving daily requests, and have in the pipeline over 500k EUR in the offering. Moreover, the company evolved beyond the number in sales or volume, with a lot of know-how, network, and help coming in various forms from the investors. We grew our team with many “external departments” which are getting involved in our day-to-day challenges and opportunities. “

Iulia estimates a revenue of 1.2 million EUR in 2023 resulting from the three verticals: charging solutions for electric vehicles, photovoltaic systems, and smart city solutions. “At this moment, we have a national coverage in installation services and a very competitive portfolio and we are confident that we can grow sustainably and put Charger.ro on the map in the clean-tech industry.”

Ambitious plans ahead

Looking to the future, Iulia sees Charger.ro playing an important role in the transition to a more sustainable and eco-friendlier world.

“Our focus is to integrate and bring to the market two innovative and exclusive features that will impact both our clients and vendors. First, we want to match the devices and services with financial alternatives, such as payments in installments, financial credits, or leasing opportunities. All financial products are built for dedicated solutions from our portfolio, so they will directly and positively impact the accessibility and adoption process.

Second, from May on, our vendors will start using Charger.ro’s platform and channels, as a tool for awareness and information, to translate the technology they are developing and activities, benefits, and “how to” for each type of solution and different real locations. By creating easy access to clear and transparent information, trusted and complete solutions, and to a legal-specific framework, provided by a team of experts and years of know-how and experience, we help companies and individuals solve their sustainability needs, by implementing real solutions, all in one place.”

Going forward, Charger.ro sets an ambitious objective long-term, “to become the leading ecosystem for the ‘green energy industry’ in Central and Eastern Europe.”

And we couldn’t agree more. As the world continues to move towards a more sustainable future, companies like Charger.ro will play an important role in making that future a reality.