JustPark’s backing of fettle: how it all started...

JustPark is a tech scale-up (and Crowdcube alumnus), enabling anyone with a parking space to let it out to drivers, who can then book spaces via their app. Today JustPark is converting many of these spaces to Electric Vehicle charging points with the goal of building one of the UK’s largest EV charging networks. With access to a vast network of parking spaces all over the UK, Jeyda and Oren had been looking into other uses for this land beyond parking. As passionate cyclists, they both wanted to see cities running in an efficient and environmentally-friendly manner and thought JustPark’s spaces may be able to help support this.

The pair found that whilst the number of people taking to two wheels was ever increasing (5 million people have taken to the saddle since 2016), local bike shops were struggling to stay open in city centres. Around 1 in 10 bike shops are closing each year, unable to compete with online retailers. This, coupled with an often outdated or intimidating customer experience, meant getting your bike serviced was a real faff.

They realised there was a huge opportunity to create the “Kwik Fit” of bike repair, leveraging many of JustPark’s assets (spaces) and relationships (Local Authorities and Landlords) to provide convenient spots for bike maintenance. At the same time, they wanted to utilise their tech background to produce a slick, 21st century consumer experience.

With JustPark’s resources and backing, Fettle was set up as a standalone business. Today, JustPark remains a lead investor, with their Founder & CEO, Anthony Eskinazi sitting on our board.

One of the first workshops to open operated out of a custom-built trailer designed to fit into a single parking space. Whilst we learnt a lot doing that, we soon realised the operational strain is high - particularly in winter months - and actually landlords of empty retail space were itching to get us in there.

Despite the fact we’re no longer using parking spaces, the future of mobility is ever shifting towards two-wheeled transport and JustPark has continued to support us. Anthony Eskinazi (Founder and CEO of JustPark) says, “It’s been incredible watching Jeyda and her team grow Fettle from inception to become a trusted service helping thousands of cyclists every month. I’m delighted that we continue to provide support, guidance and resources to help accelerate their growth.“

1 million UK adults joined the cycling masses over lockdown and this trend looks set to continue. A recent study by Deloitte predicted that the number of people around the world who commute by bike will double by 2022. With this comes the wide ranging benefits of reduced pollution, better mental and physical wellbeing and increased productivity.

And what’s more, bike sales are only predicted to grow. With a 44% increase in revenue from new UK bike sales each year, growth last year was capped due to demand outstripping supply. The future is looking bright for cycling and Fettle will be part of that journey.

Now that we’ve hit our initial target, you might be wondering what the new goal is. Well, we’ll be leaving it to overfund for a short while, giving anyone who hasn’t invested yet the chance to get involved. This allows us to open more workshops, more quickly and get more riders, riding safely.