Belmont business student Abdul Abdurasulov introduced a series of Plug portable charging banks to campus just in time for the spring semester for students to charge their devices on-the-go.
“I saw them all over the place, but I didn’t really pay attention to it until I had the need for it…then the idea came to me,” Abdurasulov said.
“I was like, this would be, like, a pretty cool thing to have on campus,” he said.
Abdurasulov noticed the portable chargers when visiting his home in Uzbekistan. After seeing them abroad, he chose to put them around Belmont’s campus. The Plug power bank stations allow users to rent portable chargers when their devices are running low or if they do not have a cord handy.
The chargers are available to rent for $2 an hour or $6 for a full-day rental. An $18 option is also available for an extended rental.
Plug stations are available in five locations including one in the Janet Ayers Academic Center, Barbara Massey Center and the Beaman, and two in the Jack Massey Center.
Unlike stationary chargers in airports or hospitals, each Plug station includes six portable chargers with different cords attached to the power source, including a USB-C and Apple specific cord. Once payment is made, a charger is unlocked and ready for use.
After discussing equipment costs, estimating revenue and talking to suppliers, Abdurasulov reached out to his professors in the entrepreneurship center to help make his dream a reality.
Elizabeth Gortmaker, executive director of the Thomas F. Cone Sr. Center for Entrepreneurship, helped Abdurasulov arrange meetings and refine his plan.
“I was kind of like his champion on campus to go to our senior leaders and try to connect the dots of like, who are the decision makers that can decide what goes around campus,” Gortmaker said.
Belmont’s auxiliary services team approved the Plug device on Dec. 14.
Abdurasulov set up the Plug banks on Jan. 7, just one day before classes resumed for the spring semester.
“Everybody came in, and it was all operational,” he said.
Belmont student Dia Abdullah found the charging banks to be extremely helpful. As an employee of Belmont’s testing center, Abdullah relies on her devices to do her job.
“My devices are always dead and I need my computer to be able to check in students… so I rented out one and used it during my shift and returned it afterwards,” she said.
Users can rent a charger at any station on campus and return it to a different station.
In just a few weeks of operation, 12 chargers were rented from Plug, bringing in $35.
Plug keeps 90% of revenue, and Belmont gets 10%.
Abdurasulov paid for all the equipment, shipping, marketing, and all other costs otherwise not covered by Belmont.
Each bank cost about $600 each, paid for out of Abdurasulov’s pocket.
In addition, he also learned how to operate the software to avoid any additional costs.
“It was more of a fun little experiment to me and still is… The projection, personally, is just more faithful. If it works out, it works out. If it doesn't, it doesn't, that’s how business goes,” Abdurasulov said.
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This article was written by Emily Garver
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