ServeScape’s Post

While working as a professional horticulturist and developing my startup, https://ecochamber.xyz , the most important thing I have learned is to pay attention. Nature has the answers To my many questions… The key is to listen and observe.

Invest in a solid startup, give them some time and eventually watch them invest right back! At SxSW last year, I met a young entrepreneur who over breakfast sold me on the why behind his innovative product. I saw the vision of the founders and love the way they think. Their strong environmental and social impact resonated with me as an entrepreneur and investor and I became an angel for their company a few weeks later. Here we are now, a year later, and aside from thanking them for the cool custom Arch AF 1’s, I must congratulate fellow entrepreneurs Adam Mutschler & Gabriel Huertas del Pino of Arch Pet Foods for winning Purina’s Pet Care Innovation Prize for 2024! (https://lnkd.in/eqBAikQU) This award not only comes with additional working capital, but also entry in Purina’s acceleration system by providing the mentorship and critical resources needs to get this product into more stores across the US and beyond. Looking forward to what the future holds for this amazing company. Chicago Illinois-based Arch Pet Food company offers alternative protein pet treats and food that are food-allergen friendly, highly nutritious, and sustainable. Arch does this by utilizing superfoods like microalgae, insect proteins, and invasive fish as key ingredients. Read more about Arch Pet Food here. #investor #entrepreneur #lifeisgood

Why cultivated meat? 🥩 Our Founder & CEO Paul Bevan explains why he was inspired to begin a cultivated meat startup in the clip below ⬇️ #cultivatedmeat #alternativeprotein #startup Paul Bevan Andrew Laslett Jacob Goodwin Wendy Chua Ella Jenkins

✨ Grateful and Excited for What’s Ahead! ✨ We are incredibly honoured that UnitMode has been recognised in this year’s Enterprise Ireland's New Frontiers programme. This recognition validates the hard work and dedication we have poured into building something that we believe can truly be transformational and accelerate the advertising sector's role towards credible climate action. With global marketing spend projected to top $1 trillion in 2024, coupled with growing consumer mistrust and emerging greenwashing regulations, the need for credible and responsible communication has never been more critical. Our journey has just begun, and the road ahead is filled with both challenges and opportunities. But we’re ready—focused on delivering innovative solutions and creating real value for the families and communities we serve. 🚀 A huge thank you to Enterprise Ireland, IADT Media Cube, and NovaUCD for believing in us, to the inspirational founders on the programme and to everyone who’s been part of this exciting journey so far. Here’s to the next chapter and the potential it holds! 🙌 #Startups #Entrepreneurship #Innovation #UnitMode #NewFrontiers #EnterpriseIreland #Gratitude #ClimateChange #Sustainability

Wow, I’m beyond grateful to ZIP Launchpad for this spotlight and for all the support on my journey with GreenGrip! 🌱 When I started this journey 10 months ago, my biggest weakness was public speaking. In fact, I didn’t perform my best in the first two review panels I faced. But instead of letting that hold me back, I decided to work on it. By attending networking events, I honed my skills—learning how to pitch, handle unexpected questions, and communicate with confidence. The harder I worked, the more confident I became, and eventually, I even started looking forward to pitching GreenGrip to others! It’s such an honor to receive these awards: 🏆 Timely Triumph Award 💰 Lavin Seed Fund Award ✈️ Mintz Award for In Flight But here’s what I’ve learned: Sometimes, it’s important to take the L. If I had received this recognition sooner, I might not have pivoted GreenGrip into what it is today. Startup founders should move fast, but also carefully—because if you’re not solving a problem people truly care about, speed won’t matter. A huge thank you to Mintz, Lavin Entrepreneurship Center, and everyone at SDSU ZIP Launchpad for believing in GreenGrip’s mission and guiding me along the way. Your support means the world to me. I also want to give a special thanks to George Youssef, Ph.D., P.E. for helping me develop prototypes and prepare for the seed fund. Your expertise and guidance were instrumental in getting GreenGrip to this stage. And Rachel Dakin—I couldn’t have done this without your encouragement and hard work. I’m so excited for what we’ll accomplish together! To my fellow entrepreneurs: Keep pushing forward! The journey isn’t always easy, but the growth, lessons, and impact we can make are worth it. Let’s keep creating, innovating, and making waves for a greener future! 🌍💚 #Entrepreneurship #Sustainability #GreenGrip #ZIPLaunchpad #Gratitude

Getting Yourself Unstuck - inspiring pivots from Alberta startups Wilson Acton Tall Grass Ventures Graham Sherman Toolshed Brewing Alice Reimer Fillip Fleet Laura Fortey REITIUM Derek Rucki Inspired Go Shifts required based on… - pandemic - border closings - needing to get out of a war zone - low margins - office healthy eating - working from home - tough to scale - regulations - business model delivery switch #pivots #unstuck #shifts #inventures2024

🎙️Episode #5 is out now! In episode #5, Sam Fisher is joined by Jacek Prus, Senior Director of Development at Farmed Animal Funders. Before joining FAF earlier this year, Jacek founded Current Foods 🌊, which was acquired by Wicked Kitchen. Listen to the episode to hear more about his experiences with plant-based startups. (link in the comments)

There's two things missing in the Tanihub write-up: / startups are about power law dynamics, not batting averages / 70% of a startup's success is about timing You only get so many opportunities to catch lightning in a bottle, and TaniHub (for all its faults, like the founder-market fit mentioned in the article) had the correct market thesis given the data at the time: 1) Precedent At the time, India had already established multiple agritech unicorns (ex: DeHaat) in the similar space, so it was inevitable that this business model would play itself out within 18 months across SE Asia, starting in Indonesia. 2) Pain Points These b2b marketplace startups solve an awful pain point: something like 30% of produce grown on a farm never makes it to end consumers, and the farmers doing all of the hard work have the smallest take rates in the value chain (the middlemen get more out of it that they do) 3) Moats The b2b agritech marketplace had tremendous potential network effects. Your data on inputs (fertilizer) are a surprisingly accurate proxy for future yields (which opens up a layer of fintech financing), and there are tremendous supply chain and payments infrastructure layers in the business model for anybody who emerges in the space as a winner. -- You'll rarely get a startup that checks all of the boxes, but if you consider: / the strong market trends at the time / that the Tanihub folks had already been operating for a few years / the cheap ZIRP-era money at the time ...it was a investment thesis whose market timing was in the top 1% of startup ventures. There are so many global macro-economic trends that have to be in the right place at the right time (70% of a startup's success has nothing to do with the founder), that it was a compelling opportunity for everybody who was involved.

Being Vulnerable as a Founder Means Knowing When to Ask for Help. This week, I had the opportunity to attend #Canada's Outdoor #Farm Show and meet some amazing #farmers and ag industry pros. What struck me was just how welcoming and supportive they were—an industry built on resilience, yet constantly looking for ways to innovate and grow. It got me thinking about the similarities between farming and building a #startup. 👷♂️ In both worlds, you're constantly exploring new tools, technologies, and strategies to maximize output. And guess what? Farmers aren’t afraid to ask for help and be open minded. They know that to stay competitive, collaboration and vulnerability are key. As founders, it’s easy to get caught up in the grind, thinking you’ve got to figure it all out yourself. But the truth is, the people around you want to help—they’ve been there. Being vulnerable enough to ask for help isn’t a weakness, it’s strength. 💪 At the event, our team asked a ton of questions and, in doing so, unlocked new opportunities and pathways for our products. It wasn’t just a learning experience—it was a reminder that support is out there. You’ve just got to reach out and grab it. So to all the other founders out there—don’t hesitate to ask for help. Your business (and sanity) will thank you. #leadership #founders #startup #agriculture #innovation Real Life Robotics FCC / FAC Jordan Jocius RHA Ventures Inc. Brian Foster Graeme Millen Chuck Baresich

Thinking about attending Pet Connect this year but budget is tight? This is the cheapest our tickets will be to attend The Home of Pet Business and Innovation in LA this December 3-5. Book now to save: https://hubs.ly/Q02K0x6P0 #PetConnect #PCS #Petevent #petbusiness #petecosystem #petinnovation #petstartups