What started as a normal trip to Europe turned into the inspiration behind a new student-led startup at DePaul. This new startup is called CUUB, and its goal is to create a network of power bank sharing stations across places such as DePaul’s campus. 

It all started when cofounder, Vlad Valchkou, returned from his European travels with a new observation: Europe was far ahead when it came to their developed, public tech amenities. He says that there was a vast network of stations there that let you rent portable chargers and return them at any other station. This inspired him to bring this kind of service to the States. 

Valchkou ordered the first three stations and pitched the idea to his cofounder, Jovan Plavsic.

“I immediately jumped on board and we have been doing it ever since,” Plavsic said. “We both have terrible phone charging habits and knew that many of our friends did too.” 

Plavsic and Valchkou are lifelong friends who describe themselves as brothers. They did almost everything together growing up, and throughout high school, they both knew that they wanted to start a business. As soon as Valchkou presented the idea to Plavsic, he “didn’t think twice about it.” They are aiming for their cities to be as comfortable and publicly oriented as the ones seen in Europe. 

That’s when CUUB was born.

At first, Valchkou and Plavsic faced some difficulties. They had no initial investments and had been fully sponsoring the project themselves. 

“Having to balance school, a part-time job and a startup can be pretty demanding,” Plavsic said. 

Securing their first contract with DePaul was also a hurdle, with the process taking four months.The breakthrough came when Rick Moreci, associate vice president of Student Auxiliary Services, took interest in the idea. Then, with support from Jeff Quest, senior director of student centers, and Mike Pecora, Loop operations managers, Valchkou and Plavsic signed a contract to install the stations in DePaul student centers.

Valchkou and Plavsic work with a supplier from China who specializes in this technology to design and create custom units with card readers.

“If someone’s phone battery (or any device) is running low, a user can come up to a CUUB station, tap their card and a portable battery will be dispensed to charge any of their devices. The power bank is equipped with USB-C, Micro-USB and Lightning cables,” Plavsic said.

People who rent a power bank can return them to any station, in a similar way that people rent and return Divvy bikes. The battery costs $3 for the first hour and an additional $3 for the rest of the day. This means that it would be a total of $6 for 24 hours. If a power bank is not returned within 24 hours, the user is charged a $40 fine.

For students like Breydon Wendricks, CUUB has already made a difference. 

“I’m a commuter student, and sometimes I will forget my charger at home, so CUUB leaves me not stranded,” he said.

Valchkou and Plavsic emphasize that people can return the batteries at any CUUB station. The point is to be able to carry them around and return them where it’s most convenient. Currently, there are three locations between both DePaul campuses, but they plan to have thousands of stations all over Chicago. 

The founders credit the support of a strong community that has helped them in different ways. Elias Wamsteker produced a commercial for CUUB, Sydney Botz and Kassem Ossman of Buzz Hub have helped spread the word, and DePaul administrators Rick Moreci, Jeff Quest and Mike Pecora have shown support and made it possible to bring CUUB stations to campus.

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