Auburn Entrepreneurship: Auburn University Student Solves Range Anxiety for Electric Vehicle Owners
Auburn University’s New Venture Accelerator does many things to help new entrepreneurs get up to speed, but there may be no catching up to one student who hit the fast track right out of the gate.
Olkaris Marandu is many things: student, competitor, Army ROTC Cadet, sketch artist, first- generation American, and a man of faith.
And now, with the NVA’s help, his determination and sights are set on becoming a successful business owner and a major game-changer in the electric vehicle-charging industry within his home state of Alabama.
Marandu is a 20-year-old junior majoring in business management at Auburn’s Harbert College of Business, and he already is serving in the military as an enlisted member of the Army National Guard while en route to becoming an officer with his ROTC commitment.
However, Marandu also is the founder and CEO of Glory EV Charging Solutions, LLC, a company he started in May 2022.
He compares the transition of America’s primary mode of transportation moving to electric vehicles from fossil-fueled combustible vehicles to that of a century ago when the change was from horse-drawn wagons to automobiles. It takes time and convincing, he said, but change is certain.
For that transition to pick up its pace, there must be more charging stations, and that’s where Marandu sees his opportunity.
“Right now, drivers have to do a route plan,” he said of EV users traveling in Alabama. “They have to figure out where they can go, what route to take, where there will be charging stations to charge their vehicle. It’s difficult and stressful for most drivers, and they call it suffering from “range anxiety,” referring to the mileage they can get between charges.
An average EV can travel 300 miles on a full charge, he said, but “there are not enough superchargers that can charge a vehicle in under 30 minutes.”
Also, 20-30 percent of the chargers that exist in the United States do not work or are prone to break down frequently, he said.
“Because there will be a massive influx of EVs in the future... everything is going to have to get better, especially the closer we get to the end of the decade,” Marandu said. “We’re seeing similar traits to the early automobile when there was a shortage of gas pumps.”
The solution, he said, is convincing more customers such as business owners and residential- complex landlords to install charging stations that his company can provide, and through that type of partnership, both entities can generate revenue.
“Glory is a charge-point operating company,” Marandu said, “empowering electric mobility with affordable solutions for businesses, municipalities, and communities.”
Depending on the site’s infrastructure and local electrical power rates, Glory will provide options for charging stations that best apply, using devices Marandu obtains from a diverse ground of manufacturers he already has researched and contacted for possible transactions.
He also likes the idea of breaking new ground by creating franchise partnerships. “There really isn’t a model for EV franchising,” Marandu said,”…so I will work diligently to create one so that private owners can grow with Glory.”
Marandu has also made traction by being a founding member of the Drive Electric Alabama, East Alabama Chapter, Lee County Area. “In order for there to be more EV drivers on the road education must play a role when introducing these new technologies,” Marandu Said.” Glory is also partnered with the nationwide organization, the Charge Ahead Partnership. Which aims to establish a coalition of businesses and individuals that are focused on developing an efficient and effective EV charging network.”
Jennifer Nay, an entrepreneur-in-residence at the New Venture Accelerator and one of Marandu’s primary mentors, marvels at the many hats he wears and wears so well.
“While Olkaris is an eager learner and a gracious student, his strongest entrepreneurial trait is his work ethic,” she said. “If being an Auburn student and having a part-time job at a local retail store wasn’t enough, he is also serving our country in the armed forces and taking on a very ambitious start-up idea.
“He is always a pleasure to be around and outwardly appreciative of the mentoring that he receives here at the NVA,” Nay said. “He is giving back by drawing a comic strip of the NVA staff that communications director Ward Swift can use as marketing collateral.
“We are here for our students, faculty, and Lee County entrepreneurs and of course never ask for anything in return, so I think it is remarkable that he is talented and thoughtful enough to offer.”
Nay has worked with Marandu to help shape a business model, learn about finance, and “helped him improve his pitch.”
“We will be working on that pitch quite a bit in the next couple of months as we prepare for the Halloween Pitch Competition,” she said, referring to an opportunity for students to compete in making business pitches in front of career professionals serving as contest judges.
“Knowing what I know about him so far, I wouldn’t bet against him!”
Marandu was born in Birmingham, AL, becoming a first-generation U.S. citizen in his family. His parents immigrated from Tanzania, an East African nation.
He graduated in 2021 from Vincent Middle-High School in Shelby County, AL.
Soon after in September 2021, he went to the Army’s Fort Sill for Basic Training, and he plans to remain in the National Guard once he is commissioned.
“I knew then that joining the Army would help me achieve my goals, maintain discipline, and enable me to face new challenges. It has helped me become the man I am today,” Marandu said.
Likewise, he shares appreciation for Auburn’s New Venture Accelerator and its staff.
People told him that Alabama is a tough place to start a business promoting charging stations for electric vehicles, Marandu said, but he found confidence with the help he’s received at the NVA.
“At first, I was kind of afraid to talk about my business, because no one else is doing it,” he said. “But honestly, telling people about my idea was the greatest decision I made for my new venture, and it led me here (NVA).
“I got an office in March, which allows me to be able to run my company and be near the entrepreneurs-in-residence,” Marandu said. “The workshops have been extremely helpful and cover key aspects of starting a business.
“I would do it a hundred times repeatedly. “It has helped me to be able to find more than just what I was looking for.”
Another thing he learned, he said, is that Grit outweighs even the sharpest intellect, as consistency holds the key. “Consistency is the best path to realizing your aspirations, he said, “I urge everyone to follow their dreams and know that nothing is impossible, no mountain is too high, and no valley is too low. You will reach your destination so long as you keep moving and working towards it.”
To learn more about Glory EV Charging Solutions, contact Jennifer Nay, Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the NVA, at jgn0012@auburn.edu or Olkaris Marandu at otm0011@auburn.edu.
To learn more about the New Venture Accelerator click HERE or contact Lou Bifano at loubifano@auburn.edu.