University Scooters, an 11-year-old business in downtown Iowa City, hopes to raise awareness for its company and funds for the UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital by hosting a Scoot Marathon on April 29 from 5 p.m. until April 30 at 5 p.m. The staff — all current University of Iowa students — will take turns […]
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University Scooters, an 11-year-old business in downtown Iowa City, hopes to raise awareness for its company and funds for the UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital by hosting a Scoot Marathon on April 29 from 5 p.m. until April 30 at 5 p.m.
The staff — all current University of Iowa students — will take turns riding scooters by participating in a nonstop relay marathon for the duration of the event. Members of the community are encouraged to join in for the last 45 minutes of the fundraiser.
“We feel the Children’s Hospital is always a very strong charity cause for the students,” said Tyler Persinger, owner of the store. “Dance Marathon influenced the decision. They dance for 24 hours; well, what about scooting for 24 hours? It’s a familiar concept for students, but it’s different and a little silly.”
The business was rebranded to University Scooters in 2018 when Mr. Persinger took over. Formerly called MopedU, scooters were less common than today. There were no moped parking spots on campus or downtown. With a fleet of around 80 vehicles, the business began to catch fire.
In the last four years, University Scooters changed its business model after noticing demand had dropped, eliminating the ability to rent and reducing product offerings. Now they focus solely on selling scooters and mopeds to college students and kids. He explained that higher-end products are typically sold to an older clientele, and the store is also looking into electric options.
All proceeds will be given to the University of Iowa Center for Advancement. In addition, those who donate will be eligible for raffle prizes.
University Scooters hopes to raise $10,000 during the event.
“We’re constantly trying to do more with the community,” he said. “This was one of our main goals this year because we’ve done charity events in the past, but we just wanted to do more.”
