This Black Duo’s Platform Is Making It Easier For Businesses To Fight Parking Fines
Black duo Estelle Agyeman and Temi Olusanya, the co-founders of KARR, are using their platform to make it easier for businesses to fight parking fines.
KARR’s Journey
The B2C parking fine technology platform KARR was born out of a need to simplify the often-tedious process of managing parking fines for businesses operating with multiple vehicles.
The pair’s journey kicked off at a London startup weekend in 2022 when they won £10,000 in a pitch competition.
The inception of KARR was driven by Agyeman’s personal experiences with parking fines at the university.
“Back when I was in university, I was driving my grey Vauxhall Corsa… and getting tons of tickets, I had no understanding of managing my vehicle expenses or my fines,” she told NatWest.
“I realized that there was a simple fix – the ability to store and manage vehicle expenses registered to a registration number.”
Teaming up with Temi, they refined this idea, focusing specifically on parking fines, a niche yet prevalent issue in urban driving.
Their collaboration and hard work led to the development a user-friendly app that digitizes parking tickets, offering a paperless solution to facilitate faster payments and fine management.
Black Seed Ventures And NatWest
Their engagement with Black Seed Ventures in 2022 and UK bank NatWest was pivotal in their entrepreneurial journey.
The duo developed KARR into a fully functional application through this collaboration.
The NatWest Enterprise team, in particular, played a vital role, offering invaluable connections, strategic advice, and unwavering advocacy.
“The initial meeting [with NatWest] was incredible, and we could immediately tell we had full support… which was comforting,” said Agyeman.
Following this, the duo confirmed the KARR launch event was a milestone, symbolizing the culmination of hard work and the beginning of a promising future.
It was not only a celebration of KARR’s journey but also a platform to expand its network and gain further traction for their platform.
The Potential Partnerships And Growth
The event’s success has opened new doors for potential partnerships and growth opportunities.
Looking ahead, the pair are focused on expanding their network and integrating KARR with London’s travel and transport infrastructure.
They aim to collaborate with London councils and Transport For London, leveraging their newfound connections to propel KARR forward.
With plans to raise funds for full-time dedication to KARR, they are poised to address the evolving needs of London drivers, especially with the expansion of urban driving charges.
