Convenience, lifestyle choices, affordability and not wanting to deal with repairs and maintenance issues have become key reasons for South Africans to increasingly embrace a rental-focused existence.
This ‘rental economy’ or ‘pay-as-you-go’ lifestyle is what informed the concept of Adoozy Power, Africa’s first contactless power bank rental network that enables consumers to rent smartphone power while on the on-the-go.
CEO Kegan Peffer started Adoozy in 2020 when he realised that there has to be a solution to the sheer panic he feels when watching his own phone battery die when he is out and about. “I realised that I cannot be the only person who has a real fear of being unable to access my phone.”– an astute observation, given how much our reliance on phones has increased during the pandemic.
Nowadays, a flat battery represents far more than the inconvenience of being without TikTok or Instagram (both considered musts in today’s socially networked culture); it can be truly disruptive if remote work or study is interrupted. More than that, a dead phone poses a safety risk. And, given Eskom’s continuing tribulations, this is an increasing reality.
Peffer understood that the growing ‘sharing economy’ which essentially allows consumers to enjoy the benefits of having things without the bother of buying them, was blossoming at an exponential rate around the world, and from a mobile power bank perspective, it made sense to Peffer to offer South Africans power supply that could compliment their ‘on-the-go’ lifestyle while not being impacted by loadshedding.
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People are choosing to use things as they need them. They don’t want to be bogged down by stuff or have to worry about maintenance, instead, they prefer to enjoy the convenience of renting items as they need to when they need to. It’s also a more affordable way of living in this day and age.”
How Adoozy is adding value for businesses
Since its inception, Adoozy has strategically installed power towers or kiosks at locations across the country. “We are seeing this service work very well at convenience stores as well as shopping malls and restaurants. As a value-added service for their customers, retailers are enabling consumers to stay connected, which means they can spend more time at their establishments.”
Peffer also points out that there has been a lot of interest from business lounges to install power kiosks so that businesswomen and men can stay powered up for work-related emails and tasks. Further to this, the Adoozy application provides a convenient service for gyms and health clubs.
However, the most in-demand area currently for Adoozy is the events space. “Having power kiosks at events is not just about staying connected so you can share your experience with others, but there’s a huge safety aspect to it. Often at times people are relying on using a car service like Uber to get home from events, and if their phone battery is dead, this can cause a lot of anxiety and safety concerns.”
How Adoozy Power works
The power banks are 5000 mAh fast charge and come fully equipped with USB cables for all phone types.
- Users just need to download the Adoozy app and provide their sign-up information to register.
- From there, they select the billing option that best suits their needs. Currently, there are three subscription plans available - daily, weekly, and monthly.
- Then all it takes is a fingerprint scan and submission of card details, and the newly minted customer can make their way to an Adoozy Tower (located in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban) where, with a wave of their hand, their fingerprints are linked to their bank card.
This contactless biometric scanning, made possible by IDEMIA’s MorphoWave™ Compact Technology, is another first says Peffer – other companies have yet to harness the power of biometrics to access a product.
“What makes this whole process so convenient, is that it’s hassle-free. Users can pick up a power bank in one location, no on-hand payment needed, and return the bank within 24 hours to a kiosk in a completely different location if they wish. Whatever suits them while on-the-go,” he says.
In terms of what’s next, Kegan says it’s all about expansion and diversification. We are working hard to create a real rental network across Africa at large, and we want to use this as a base to solve even more issues for our consumers,” he concludes.