73: A Slow and Steady Approach to Micromobility - Ben Bear from Spin

This week Oliver interviews Ben Bear, Chief Business Officer at Spin, the micromobility company backed by Ford and which operate in 65 markets across the US. They dig into their service and how they’re different from others in the industry. It’s a great discussion - Spin really come across as a the tortoise in an industry of hares. With micromobility adoption being a long term prospect their focus on sustainability for what will inevitably be a decades long play is an interesting counter to others in the industry. Specifically: * Spin’s approach in COVID-19 * The difference that Spin has in market, including: * Their use of Swiftmile charging stations (Swiftmile) from a tendering and business operations perspective. * the efforts to integrate into MaaS * Why being backed by Ford makes them more resilient and able to focus on longer-term planning and outcomes, and why this is attractive to cities. * How has he seen the regulatory environment change in the time that they’ve been operating. * How do they see the owned and leased micromobility business model competing in the ‘market for miles’, and whether they have plans to expand into these area leveraging Spin’s brand or Ford’s distribution. * Their efforts at lobbying for better street infrastructure in the cities that they operate.