“Think of it like Tinder” is an unusual opening line for an agrifood startup but one that Dan Yates, CEO and co-founder of smart sustainability matchmaking platform, Greener, returns to often.
“Through its algorithm, our platform is able to accurately understand what your business does and how you make decisions about sustainability,” he added.
Like a dating app, that knowledge helps Greener connect businesses seeking or providing sustainable solutions with potential new partners.
Built as a transformational tool for the food and drink industry, Greener is working to make sustainability simpler for the SMEs who make up 90 per cent of the sector but function on the thinnest of margins.
These businesses lack both the time and financial resources to wade into this fast-changing world of green solutions. In recent surveys, business owners have doubled down on their commitment to sustainability but consistently flag the complexity of the space as a major hurdle.
“Crafting a sustainable supply chain requires a lot of technical research and it’s fraught with greenwash,” Co-founder and Chief Science Mehrnaz Tajmir explained, whose background is in sustainability research.
The past year has seen an explosion of growth for the platform that now boasts roughly 200 businesses (Image: Greener)“Big companies can build internal teams or hire expensive consultants; SMEs don’t have that luxury. What we provide, fundamentally, is simplicity. We save our users time and money which they can dedicate to running their business instead of having to learn to implement sustainability.
“And at the same time, we can help providers of innovative solutions grow faster by connecting them with perfectly suited buyers.”
The past year has seen an explosion of growth for the platform which now boasts roughly 200 businesses since going live in 2021. At this month’s Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Awards, their work was further recognised when Dan won Young Entrepreneur of the Year in the South West.
To date, the company has raised £255K, with grants from Innovate UK and investment by the leading early-stage VC firm SFC Capital that has supported more than 300 startups including Onfido, Cognism, and Transcend Packaging.
Following an exciting 2022 that included a coveted spot on the Innovate UK Sustainable Impact Investment Accelerator, the Greener team have recently turned their focus to a newly opened seed funding round to take their platform to the next stage.
“Our last year has been about testing, learning and iterating. Now that we have gathered all these insights and data points, it’s time to grow,” Dan said.
“I could not be more excited about the community of businesses that we’ve built so far and helping them to move forward sustainably. As a platform, we’re only just getting started.”
Learn more about Greener at their website here or email Dan directly at [email protected].
