- CO2 YOU delivers 40\u201345 orders a day<\/strong> across London zones 1\u20133 on Vok XL cargo bikes which is already more cost-effective than a third-party courier.<\/li>
- The fleet has doubled in the first two months<\/strong> of operation, with riders covering up to 70 km per bike per day<\/strong>.<\/li>
- Every delivery is also a collection: empties come back on the bike, keeping more than 1,000,000 refilled cylinders<\/strong> in circulation and out of landfill.<\/li>
- The bikes are brand ambassadors as much as delivery vehicles: custom vinyl on every surface (including the roof) and bubble-blowing machines<\/strong> built on board.<\/li> <\/ul>
About CO2 YOU \u2013 the refill revolution for sparkling water<\/strong><\/h2>
CO2 YOU is the UK’s leading doorstep CO2 cylinder refill service, built to make sparkling water easier to enjoy at home, at work and in hospitality. Founded by Marcus O’Donovan in 2021, the company delivers refill cylinders directly to customers and collects the empties in the same visit \u2013 one stop, no labels, no landfill.<\/p>
The model is fully circular: to date, CO2 YOU has refilled and reused more than 1,000,000 cylinders, compatible with all major machines including SodaStream, Aarke, Smeg and Quooker taps. More than 27,000 UK homes use the service, which holds a 4.8\/5 rating on Trustpilot.<\/p>
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/vokbikes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/co2you-1024x660.jpg\")
<\/figure> Challenge: a circular product deserves a better delivery experience<\/strong><\/h2>
CO2 YOU offers free next-working-day delivery on every order. However, with a third-party courier, the doorstep experience was out of their hands. Failed deliveries, no-shows, empties left uncollected: the pain points landed on their customer service team, often before the company even knew something had gone wrong.<\/p>
“A lot of the pain points for our customer service team were coming directly from third-party courier issues \u2013 failed deliveries, not turning up, not collecting. And our reaction was slow, because we might not find out until the customer got in touch,”<\/em> says Hugh Dixon, Operations Manager at CO2 YOU.<\/p>
For a swap-based service, control matters more than for ordinary parcels: someone has to be home, empties have to come back, and the visit has to feel like the brand. A van was never seriously considered for central London and their hub is too central to park one economically. And as a sustainability-minded business, the answer had to be electric.<\/p>
Interestingly, the project started elsewhere: CO2 YOU was preparing a B2B range of larger cylinders for pubs and offices, and wanted to disrupt an old-fashioned corner of the gas industry \u2013 suppliers with fixed delivery days and little flexibility. They quickly realised the same bikes could fulfil their entire catalogue, starting in London.<\/p>
Solution: a fleet of Vok XLs wrapped, branded and blowing bubbles<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>
CO2 YOU chose the fully custom branded and dual-battery Vok XL, after comparing alternatives and running test trials: the secure cargo box suited pressurised cylinders, and the payload and battery life came out ahead. The bikes now handle the full product range across London zones 1\u20133, with routes optimised daily through SmartRoutes, plugged into their warehouse system \u2013 customers get live tracking links, ETAs and delivery notes, just like a ride-share app.<\/p>
The operation is deliberately distinctive:<\/p>
- Custom vinyl artwork on every surface<\/strong> \u2013 including the roof with the bubble blower \u2013 designed with Boundless Design Agency<\/li>
- Custom-built bubble machines<\/strong> that blow bubbles around the city as the bikes ride (“They’re pretty hard to miss!”)<\/li>
- Customisable shelving<\/strong> carrying up to 200 kg of gas cylinders to households, offices and hospitality venues<\/li>
- Full-time riders<\/strong> \u2013 affectionately known as the Bubble Heads \u2013 in custom merch, employed directly rather than outsourced<\/li> <\/ul>
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/vokbikes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/co2you-3-1024x1024.jpg\")
<\/figure> The result: improved delivery experience and a growing operation<\/h2>
CO2 YOU’s own fleet is young but the early numbers point one way:<\/p>
- 40-45 deliveries a day<\/strong> on average, with 20\u201325 drops per bike. This is already beating third-party courier costs, with every added drop improving the economics.<\/li>
- Up to 70 km per bike per day<\/strong> on roughly 7-hour routes, running on two batteries.<\/li>
- Fleet doubled within the first two months<\/strong>, with the next bike already in order to stay ahead of demand.<\/li>
- Fewer failed deliveries<\/strong> as logistics and customer communication now sit with their own team \u2013 with emissions tracked, reduced and offset with Climate Partner over the next three years.<\/li> <\/ul>
“The experience of our Bubble Head drivers has been really positive \u2013 and as we bring on more bikes, each rider covers a denser area, so the numbers per bike will only grow,”<\/em> says Charlotte Fleming, Senior Marketing Manager at CO2 YOU.<\/p>
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/vokbikes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/co2you-2-1024x660.jpg\")
<\/figure> Why Vok?<\/strong><\/h2>
For CO2 YOU, three factors made the difference:<\/p>
- Up to 70 km per bike per day<\/strong> on roughly 7-hour routes, running on two batteries.<\/li>
- Custom-built bubble machines<\/strong> that blow bubbles around the city as the bikes ride (“They’re pretty hard to miss!”)<\/li>
- The fleet has doubled in the first two months<\/strong> of operation, with riders covering up to 70 km per bike per day<\/strong>.<\/li>