Supermarket chain Carrefour and electric scooter company Gogoro have formed a new partnership.
Under the deal, Gogoro will set up shop at three Taipei Carrefour outlets. Shoppers can test drive, purchase the Gogoro Smartscooter, and inquire about the company and its products. This increases Gogoro’s store presence to a total of 15 stores in Taiwan.
The collaboration started this month.
The Gogoro stores within Carrefour are small, with only two vehicles available to test drive and one Gogoro employee.
When asked to comment, Gogoro co-founder Horace Luke said, “We are glad to have a partner from a different sector, Carrefour.”
The announcement marks the first year after Gogoro first started selling its Smartscooter.
Since then, more than 6,000 units have been sold. There are more than 175 battery-swapping stations available. The locations of the battery-swapping stations are centered around 21 MRT stations, cafes, gas stations and local convenience stores in northern Taiwan. Gogoro controls almost half of the electric scooter market with a battery charging station located every 1.3 kilometers.
It has offered steep discounts to attract buyers to purchase a vehicle. At first, the cost of purchasing a model was US$4,100, but the price has been lowered to as low as US$2,500.
Gogoro was founded in 2011 by former Microsoft and HTC staff who wanted to create an environmentally-friendly vehicle that operates in tight urban environments. Gogoro pioneered the battery-swapping method of powering its scooters to eliminate the hassle of charging.
The Smartscooter was launched in Taiwan, with expansion into the European and American markets set to follow. Amsterdam will be the next city to receive the Gogoro Smartscooter.
Edited by Edward White
Sources:
Tech Bang
Taipei Times
Apple Daily
CNET
Fortune
