Jiaman Xu grew up in an entrepreneurial family and knew from a young age that she wanted to build something of her own.
She also knew she wanted to build a tech company that would reach a large, widespread group of people. In March 2020, Xu founded SuLo, a portable charger rental service with that mission in mind and by October 2020 had made her product commercially available.
Xu said inspiration for the business model came from rental bicycle and scooter platforms like Healthy Ride and Scoobi. But rather than paying to borrow a bike, SuLo users pay to borrow a portable charger for their smartphones or other small electronic devices.
The startup aims to eliminate that common feeling of dread when a smartphone or other device loses charge while out and about. She said the service eliminates the need for people to worry about ensuring their devices are fully charged before leaving home.
SuLo installs power stations, each about the size of a toaster, at partner locations. Users download the SuLo app, scan a QR code at the power station and receive a portable charger they can take with them. They include cables that attach to both iPhones and androids.
Through the app, users pay $1.50 per hour for the chargers, with a maximum daily cost. Users can keep the chargers for up to three days before returning them to any power station. If the charger is not returned within that time frame, the user is charged $36 to purchase the charger.
The startup has power stations installed at 27 retail stores across the city. SuLo took on Crazy Mocha Coffee Co. as its first client, but it also has stations installed in places including other coffee shops and the GreenTree SportsPlex.
Xu said SuLo is in talks with the University of Pittsburgh to install stations at its Petersen Events Center and expects to see the devices available on the campus soon. She said the company also is in talks with Carnegie Mellon University and Chatham University to install power stations on those campuses as well.
SuLo started right at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, and its entire first year was heavily impacted. Xu said the pandemic initially slowed SuLo’s processes because it relied on physical locations as partners.
However, Xu also found a unique opportunity in the pandemic because those retail locations and university campuses found themselves struggling amid an economic downturn.
The power stations have screens about the size of an iPad that participating merchants can use to display ads, videos or images of their choice, and SuLo also gives 15% of its rental income to the merchants that house the power stations. These served as incentives for the businesses to install them.
“It’s a bit of a trade-off, so we can present to a business partner that we understand this is a difficult time, but we are here to give you an opportunity for this additional income,” Xu said.
Xu said another inspiration for SuLo came from the desire to create something sustainable and environmentally friendly. She said sharing chargers decreases the purchase of batteries for individual use that will sit idle much of the time.
Looking forward, Xu expects SuLo to deploy 300 power stations in Pittsburgh by the end of 2022, and she expects those stations, along with ad revenue, to bring in about $500,000 in revenue annually. SuLo previously announced it had received $20,000 in funding from Idea Foundry, but Xu declined to disclose total fundraising numbers.
What makes SuLo special is its scalability, Xu said.
SuLo, which has 10 employees, is in the process of opening office space downtown. Xu said the process is slow due to Covid-19.
Q&A
What are the pros and cons of being a young entrepreneur? For the pros, I do have the great potential to achieve my vision about the future and also while doing this I get to know more about people. I learn more about this business reality. You have the great potential to achieve your vision and learn a lot from other people in many different perspectives. No matter what you are going to do in the future, you can have those knowledges to do any type of business.
For the cons, it definitely is very stressful. A more straightforward way to say it is you have good days and you have bad days. Sometimes your plan does not work. … If it is not going to work, then you have to change and have new strategies immediately. Those can be challenging and stressful.
How do you get people to take you seriously as a young entrepreneur? You have to show your professionalism. I have to prepare a lot before any meeting with anyone. Another thing is you have to always put yourself into others’ shoes and know what they are looking for and what you can provide.
What advice would you give to another young entrepreneur? There are always good days and bad days, but just don’t give up. Give yourself a bigger vision. You have to always think ahead, and you cannot wait until the challenges just happen. It’s more that you have to think of the bigger picture and think ahead.
TIMETABLE
Personal:
2015: Moved to Pittsburgh to attend the University of Pittsburgh
2019: Graduated from University of Pittsburgh with degrees in economics and philosophy
Professional:
March 2020: Founded SuLo
October 2020: Officially put SuLo products on the market
BIOBOX
Name: Jiaman Xu
Title: Co-founder and CEO, SuLo
Age: 25
Dream job: “I love fashion, so combine fashion and tech and that is my dream job.”
If you could have a conversation with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be? “Aristotle. I studied philosophy. I love how humanity works and what I am trying to do is connect with more people, so I think there could be some connections behind this.”
