PopWheels, a new Brooklyn-born startup, is changing how food carts operate in New York City. They’re replacing older energy solutions like loud diesel generators with quieter, more reliable alternatives. The company’s initial goal was to solve the challenge of e-bike fires in the city. Now, it has developed a network of charging cabinets specifically tailored to safely charge multiple e-bike batteries at once, giving food cart owners a convenient and quiet source of power.
We founded PopWheels to help e-bike companies create a safer, more equitable e-bike industry. From this proof-of-concept, they have produced a network of 30 charging cabinets distributed across Manhattan. Each cabinet holds a maximum of 16 batteries. With safety first in mind, the tractor’s design includes advanced technology to immediately quell potential battery fires if they occur while charging. Right now, PopWheels bills customers $75 a month for unlimited use of its network. Especially now that the startup has already created a nationwide, 10,000 person waitlist of hungry customers.
For now, PopWheels mostly caters to gig workers riding Arrow or Whizz e-bike models. Recently, they noticed a great opportunity to reach food cart owners. Their team started exploring the upside of repurposing e-bike battery packs to power food carts. Their innovative approach culminated in a prototype adapter that was successfully trialed during last year’s New York Climate Week at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
Usually strapped to food delivery bikes, PopWheels’ battery packs provide a great solution for food carts as well. Four of these batteries together can provide about five kilowatt-hours of electricity. For food carts with lower energy needs this amount can be very reasonable. Food cart operators have an added cost of $2,000 each year if they subscribe to four batteries per day. This new cost accounts for the degradation of the batteries.
“We think we could be cost neutral with gasoline for a food cart owner while solving all of the quality of life issues,” said Hammer, a representative from PopWheels.
Response to this new offering is off the charts in popularity! Little wonder that many food cart owners are licking their lips at the prospects of moving to this cleaner, more affordable energy source. Hammer recounted interactions with cart owners during demonstrations:
Overwhelmed, many more food cart owners came up to me asking why our cart was so quiet. They’d say, “Hold on, it’s quiet with this shopping cart. What are you all doing? Can I obtain this?”
This enthusiastic reception underscores the promise that PopWheels has to truly revolutionize the food cart marketplace. It helps reduce noise pollution and reduces reliance on traditional fuel sources.
As the demand for sustainable energy solutions grows, PopWheels is poised to roll out its new service aggressively starting this summer. The startup took $2.3 million in seed funding last year. This new investment will support its growth plans, including development of its cutting-edge battery technology.
There was always a bit of an undergirding thesis that, boy, there’s something bigger here, Hammer stated, reflecting on the company’s mission and future aspirations.
Like any good startup, PopWheels promises it’s just getting started. It acknowledges that there is an open question about whether e-bike packs are appropriate for powering food carts. “Are e-bike packs the perfect energy type to be powering food carts? Maybe, maybe not,” Hammer remarked.
He stressed that the mode of energy is not the key consideration. The biggest hurdle is going to be addressing distribution and charging infrastructure.
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