Answer extracted from The Pitch podcast — listen to the full episode below.
What stops competitors from building EV charging networks like It's Electric?
Three structural barriers protect EV charging networks from easy replication: cities grant exclusivity contracts lasting 5 to 15 years, new hardware requires 2 to 3 years to obtain UL certification, and convincing landlords to replace already-profitable installed equipment is extremely difficult. Cities also prefer uniform hardware solutions across their jurisdictions rather than competing systems.
How exclusivity and certification lock in market position
Municipal exclusivity contracts represent the strongest moat. When a city awards a charging operator the right to install units on public curbs or city property, that contract typically runs for 5 to 15 years—effectively freezing out competitors from those high-value locations during that entire window. For a startup trying to scale across multiple cities, each new market requires navigating municipal procurement cycles, council approvals, and multi-year negotiation processes that slow growth but simultaneously create legal protection once agreements are signed.
The second barrier—UL certification for new hardware—operates on a different timeline but with equally restrictive effects. Any new EV charger design must pass UL (Underwriters Laboratories) safety and performance certification, a process that typically takes 2 to 3 years. This long lag between prototype and market-ready product means competitors cannot quickly iterate or copy a working design. As Gordon explains in the episode, even modest hardware improvements demand this full certification cycle—you cannot shortcut safety requirements to accelerate to market.
Landlord inertia and preference for standardization
The third barrier is behavioral and economic: landlords who already have working chargers installed are reluctant to replace them. Once a property owner has a charging unit generating revenue—typically around $1,000 per month per unit in San Francisco—convincing them to remove it in favor of a competitor's equipment is an uphill battle. The existing hardware is already paid down, operationally proven, and integrated into the landlord's cash flow.
Beyond individual landlord resistance, cities themselves prefer standardized infrastructure across their jurisdictions. Rather than managing multiple competing charger brands with different apps, payment systems, and maintenance protocols, municipal planners want one unified solution covering the entire city. This preference for conformation acts as a network effect in the incumbent's favor: the more units already deployed by one operator, the stronger the case for that operator to expand further, rather than fragmenting the network with multiple providers.
"We like to say that we're the disco and sunshine of EV charging, and we're trying to make things just better and not shitty."
Tia Gordon — Co-founder, It's Electric. Gordon founded It's Electric during the pandemic with an initial cardboard and rubber prototype, which she submitted to Hyundai's Open EV Innovation Challenge and won $300,000 in non-dilutive funding. Her background includes technology work on the 9-11 Memorial and Museum of the World Trade Center, and her company has since raised $7 million in total non-dilutive funding plus a $6.5 million seed round co-led by Uber and fail-up.
Want to hear how Gordon managed to deploy 54 chargers across six cities in just 10 months, and what her expansion roadmap looks like heading into 2027? Listen to the full episode to discover the operational and financial details behind scaling a municipal infrastructure play.
Key takeaways
- Municipal exclusivity contracts lock out competitors for 5 to 15 years, making location-based market share defensible once secured.
- UL certification requirements impose a 2 to 3-year hardware development cycle, preventing rapid copying of competitor designs.
- Existing landlords resist replacing already-profitable chargers, making landlord displacement a significant competitive barrier.
- Cities favor standardized solutions across their jurisdictions, creating a network effect that reinforces the incumbent operator's advantage.
See also
How does It's Electric differentiate its pricing model from competitors in the EV charging market?
It's Electric charges an upcharge on the base kilowatt-hour rate determined through driver surveys. In San Francisco, where the base energy rate is 23 cents per kilowatt hour, It's Electric charges 41 cents per kilowatt hour.
What is the competitive advantage of detachable cable EV chargers in public spaces?
It's Electric is the only detachable cable solution in North America, eliminating cables from the curb when vehicles are not charging and reducing theft and vandalism.
How can curbside electric vehicle chargers be powered in cities where utility infrastructure is insufficient?
It's Electric designed chargers powered by spare capacity in buildings rather than direct utility connections, using accessible power already available in urban infrastructure.