Three Exciting Things from 2022
It is January 1st, and our team’s wishes everyone a Happy New Year! Thank you for following us and for supporting our endeavors!
In many respects, we are not unique. A Colorado-based start-up, we share a same mix of enthusiasm, energy and passion for change that drives new business owners, volunteers, innovators, and state representatives in our young state. Like most of our friends and collaborators, we will be returning to work this week. Like many start-up members, returning to work means returning to our core jobs and to nights and weekends spent on that other interest that also keeps us curious and engaged.
Before sharing 2023 news, here is a brief reflection on the year that ended yesterday. For EV.THRIVE, our high-level goal for 2022 was to continue to build a network of partners for developing the company’s vison, and to strengthen the ties with the independent automotive repair community. 2022 was year full of beginnings targeting that goal.
Here are three things we are excited about:
#1 EV.THRIVE’s participation to automotive conferences and expositions
In January 2022, we had a booth at the Automotive Service Association Colorado Summit (Denver, Colorado) and Nathan Bryant gave a class on “Embracing the Transition to EVs”. Connecting with shop owners from across the state and with representatives from the national level of ASA was interesting and invigorating and Nathan’s class was a hit. Lincoln Tech was a great host for the event. Spoiler alert: we will be exhibiting and presenting again in 2023.
September marked our first out-of-state event. The booth took its first flight and EV.THRIVE was an exhibitor at the Automotive Service and Technology Expo (ASTE) in Cary, North Carolina, an event attended by a thousand shop owners, technicians, and industry leaders. A recent follow-up led to EV.THRIVE starting to build a webinar for service writers.
#2 Strengthening connections with Drive Clean Colorado and State of Colorado
As soon as EV.THRIVE was founded, we became members of Colorado Clean Cities Coalition. The organization welcomed us and showed genuine interest in our approach to the repair side of the electrification of transportation. We listened, learned, and used the conversation to sharpen our focus and to better define our identity. Meanwhile, the Coalition became Drive Clean Colorado (DCC). They continued to be a genuine partner and sounding board. In 2022, we started chiseling a concept for a common project and we will continue to pursue funding opportunities together. Through DCC, we are now engaged with the State of Colorado Department of Transportation (DOT), received tremendous feedback from the department’s leadership on a training concept we are refining, and we are attending DOT working group meetings on workforce development. The appetite for collaboration and sharing knowledge within our state is incredible.
#3 Getting to know FutureTech and Quarto Technical Services
The focused interviews EV.THRIVE conducted in 2021 with independent shop owners across the United States, and all our conversations with Colorado-based business owners and lead technicians pointed to a clear need for building training programs targeting existing technicians. We started a constructive dialogue with Quatro Technical Services and FutureTech, their delivery arm, and found solid support and counseling from titans in the EV training world. Stay tuned to see what’s next!
Happy New Year!