Business Development Over Outsourcing: Why Property Owners Should Take Back Their Parking Operations
For more than a decade, Pelle Sjögren, co-founder of Mobility46, has been deeply involved in shaping new services and business models within parking management. A recurring challenge? When demand for new services accelerates, property owners sometimes struggle to respond quickly. The default reaction is often to outsource. But here’s the real question: why outsource a service you could deliver profitably yourself?
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How common is outsourcing in parking?
Traditionally, parking has been managed through block lease agreements, where property owners rent out an entire parking facility (or parts of it) to a parking operator.
While simple in theory, this model forces property owners to give up control of the parking business — including pricing, customer experience, and strategic use of the asset.
This model is tied to the industry’s historic focus on renting out square meters. But today, the real estate industry is shifting toward service-based business models, and parking areas are becoming strategically important assets for delivering attractive mobility services to tenants.
“In other words, this is a massive business opportunity for property owners.”
— Pelle Sjögren
Why outsource something you could manage in-house?
Many choose outsourcing because the parking business appears complex. In reality, it isn’t — not with the right tools.
All you need is:
- A reliable Parking Management System
- An internal structure for ownership and governance
- A willingness to rethink parking as a service
And yes — such a system exists: Park46.
The same misconception applies to EV charging. As demand rises fast, many property owners feel unprepared and decide to outsource. But by pausing, evaluating the potential, and understanding how to productise parking areas, property owners can become significantly more competitive.
What are the benefits of taking the parking business in-house?
Outsourcing may solve short-term challenges. But insourcing creates long-term value and 100% control — leading to:
Higher customer loyalty
You define the product, pricing, and experience. You can bundle services such as digital access and EV charging into holistic mobility packages that tenants love.
Stronger profitability
By owning the customer relationship and the revenue stream, your parking area becomes a strategic profit centre. You already have the three core assets: parking space + electricity + tenants.
Tailored service levels
When you own the infrastructure, you can adapt quality, features, and pricing to your tenants’ needs — not to an operator’s limitations.
Minimal administration
Modern Parking Management Systems automate queues, contracts, billing, access, notifications, and more — dramatically reducing the operational burden.
A central consideration is therefore how to structure your internal parking management organisation — but with the right system, even that becomes simple.
Expanding your offering: What should property owners consider when adding EV charging?
The first step is regaining control over your parking assets — the foundation for building your own charging infrastructure.
Key factors when selecting locations for EV chargers:
- Accessibility
- Fire safety
- Installation efficiency
- Distance to electrical panels
- Expected tenant use cases
Once the infrastructure is in place, you can upgrade traditional parking contracts into combined parking-and-charging agreements — giving every tenant seamless access to both services under one subscription and one billing flow.
All of this is fully supported in Park46.
What additional opportunities emerge once the parking offering is developed?
The possibilities are vast.
Property owners already hold the core components of tomorrow’s mobility ecosystem:
- Parking space
- Electricity
- Tenants
- Roofs and walls suitable for solar energy
- Long-term real estate strategy
This means they can expand from simply renting square meters to offering full mobility services, such as:
- EV charging
- Shared mobility
- Smart access solutions
- Energy services
- Dynamic parking models
And looking ahead — imagine property owners:
- Producing their own renewable energy
- Storing energy on-site
- Powering their own mobility hubs directly
This is where the parking business is heading — and those who keep ownership will capture the value.
Connect with Pelle on LinkedIn.
Do you want to take control of the parking business?
Build customer relationships, increase revenue and create the mobility services of the future — with your parking space as a starting point. We show you how to do it!
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