Bosch said Oct. 9 that it is starting a new sharing service for electric vans in collaboration with German food retailer REWE-Zentral-AG's unit Toom.

The service will be tested at hardware stores, where customers mostly require vans with sufficient space to carry heavy and bulky items.

The service will initially be offered in Germany at stores in Berlin, Frankfurt, Leipzig, Troisdorf and Freiburg. Charge spots are already in place for electric vans at these stores.

Depending on the response, the company could expand the service to other Toom stores, furniture stores, supermarkets or electronics stores.

Bosch is already running a sharing business through its electric scooters rental service Coup, which has a fleet of 3,500 scooters in Berlin, Paris and Madrid.