Charging Stack Podcast: How FleetFox Keeps Shared Fleets Running

In this Charging Stack podcast episode, we talk with Martin Kristerson, CEO and co-founder of FleetFox, the company handling the part of shared and corporate mobility most people never see.

FleetFox keeps car-sharing and business fleets running across 11 cities in six European countries, coordinating more than 200 partners to wash, refuel, relocate, and service vehicles while keeping costs and downtime under control.

Everyone in mobility talks about autonomy, growth, and software. Very few want to live inside the reality of vandalised cars, tight SLAs, cost pressure from “mega fleets,” and gig workers who all want to earn more while doing less. That is exactly where FleetFox operates.

Martin takes us through the full shift from UpSteam, a B2C mobile car wash with around 30,000 customers, to a B2B fleet services platform focused on asset-light “light services.” FleetFox now sits between car-sharing operators, corporate fleets, and a distributed network of contractors – with tech coordinating who goes where, when, and what gets done.

Prefer reading instead of listening? Check out our full FleetFox profile for a breakdown of the business model, market, and strategy.

Everything about FleetFox in one place

View fleetfox directory profile

This episode is for you if:

• You work in shared mobility, fleet tech, or vehicle operations
• You want to understand why car sharing struggles with profitability
• You care about the operators and infrastructure that keep mobility products running

In this episode, you’ll learn:

⚡️ Why FleetFox shut down a consumer business with 30,000 paying users to focus on B2B fleets
⚡️ What actually makes fleet maintenance hard at scale, from cost expectations to SLA and quality management
⚡️ How the team screens, manages, and motivates 200+ “Fox” partners across multiple countries and cities
⚡️ Why car sharing is hitting a “hiccup” in many markets and which metrics really matter (utilisation, vandalism, cost per car)
⚡️ How strategic partnerships and integrations fit into FleetFox’s long-term vision as a one-stop environment for fleet managers

Topics covered include

• The 8-year path from UpSteam’s mobile car wash to FleetFox’s managed marketplace for fleet services
• Saying goodbye to 30,000 B2C customers and committing fully to the B2B pivot
• Designing FleetFox as a plug-and-play servicing layer with 30–50+ parameters per client, so servicing rules and SLAs run in the background
• Why FleetFox focuses on “light services” (washing, refuelling, relocation, simple checks) and avoids repairs, tyre changes, and other hardware-heavy work
• How Estonia’s tight-knit startup ecosystem, founder community, and government support have shaped FleetFox’s growth
• The current state of car sharing in Europe: vandalism, high maintenance costs per car in some markets, and low daily utilisation in many cities
• Why the utilisation gap (often just a few trips per car per day) is one of the biggest blockers for car-sharing economics
• How an anchor client strategy and “invitations” from existing customers help FleetFox open new cities and countries
• Building 24/7 operations so fleets can be serviced at night while users sleep
• The next chapter: AI damage inspection, AI-powered wash quality checks, and preparing to service autonomous fleets and robotaxis
• Months of fundraising, finally landing a term sheet, and staying focused on fundamentals while raising
• Lessons from competitors that tried to add too many services too early, and why FleetFox moves more slowly but focuses on repeatable, profitable services

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