E-scooter startup Unicorn shutters, CEO Nick Evans says it could refund customers

Unicorn, an e-scooter startup from Tile co-founder Nick Evans, closed down after spending all of its money on Facebook and Google ads, according to a recent report.

The company had received only 350 orders for its $699 white e-scooter but was unable to refund its customers, The Verge reported Saturday. Its report came one day after Evans sent an email to customers saying the company was “completely out of funding.”

“Since then we've been talking with some other folks and excitingly, we may be able to get something back to our customers,” Evans told FOX Business on Tuesday. “This is my only job right now. We're really trying to turn this into a net positive for everyone, as unlikely as it sounds.”

Unicorn is in talks with another scooter company that may be able to "provide a solution for customers," Evans said.

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Based on its Facebook posts, Unicorn launched pre-orders for its scooters in June of this year.

The scooter was expected to come with GPS and tracking features from Evans’ other company, Tile, according to one post.

In an email he sent to customers, Evans said that much of the revenue from customers’ orders went toward advertising on Facebook “to bring traffic to the site,” The Verge reported.

“Unfortunately, the cost of the ads were just too expensive to build a sustainable business,” Evans’ email reportedly said. “And as the weather continued to get colder throughout the US and more scooters from other companies came on to the market, it became harder and harder to sell Unicorns, leading to a higher cost for ads and fewer customers.”

Evans told FOX Business he found out the company didn’t have enough money to continue selling scooters just two days before sending the email to customers.

On Unicorn’s Facebook page, many customers have posted reviews about the company’s closure, with one person writing: “This is infuriating and I am not happy with this company.”

Someone else posted: “A complete scam. No scooters because of 'funding issues' and no refund? Nope! Nope! Nope!”

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One woman wrote that she bought the scooter for her daughter’s Christmas gift.

“Now I am heartbroken after receiving this email from the owner yesterday and now I cannot provide my daughter a birthday/Christmas gift. This company is a total scam,” the woman posted.

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According to The Verge, many scooter startups and other similar companies haven’t been as successful as rental companies such as Bird and Lime.

And even though the e-scooter phenomenon has been taking the nation by storm, many cities -- such as Hoboken, New Jersey, and Milwaukee -- have ended their scooter programs, while cities such as Orlando, Florida and Tucson, Arizona, -- are beginning or still assessing their programs.

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