Rational use of raw materials has become a major economic and environmental challenge. While players in the food industry are trying to implement new solutions to manage their stocks, a French start-up called Stokelp is breaking new ground with its sustainable trading platform. Here are some insights from the experts at AURIS Finance, a consultancy specialising in mergers and acquisitions.
Stokelp, an ambitious French start-up founded in 2022, strives to “make the trade of industrial raw materials more virtuous“. Aimed towards food industry specialists, the platform sells batches of fresh produce from dormant stocks, hence reducing food waste.
A streamlining of the industry
So far, French start-ups that have made a name for themselves in the anti-waste model have mainly focused on the end consumer. This is the case of Too Good To Go, an application that brings together retailers and consumers to buy low-cost, anti-waste product baskets. Having raised €25 million in early 2021, the company is now present in around 15 countries. Still, BtoB solutions have been few and far between. Yet every year in the European Union, almost 1.6 million tonnes of surplus raw materials from the food industry end up in incinerators. After transport (30%) and housing (23%), food currently accounts for 22% of France’s carbon footprint, with a large proportion of these emissions directly linked to the production of raw materials.
An environmental and financial opportunity
Stokelp acts as a digital marketplace. It connects manufacturers who want to sell their surplus raw materials with potential buyers. The start-up only buys the product once a deal has been struck and earns a commission on the sale, enabling Stokelp to achieve a turnover of more than €2 million in 2022.
Two years after its launch, the platform has a full inventory that includes fruit, vegetables, fish, meat, ingredients, herbs, dairy products, delicatessen items, and packaging. The savings promised to customers are genuine: the stated prices are on average 30% lower. Stokelp currently claims to have reduced CO2 emissions by 4,275 tonnes as a result of the combined effects of food resale, transportation impact reduction, and avoidance of incineration.
International roll-out
For the time being, France remains the trading platform’s main market, accounting for almost 85% of sales. In the future, Stokelp wants to expand internationally. To achieve this, the group has raised a number of funds. The most recent, for €3 million, was raised from OneRagtime, AFI Ventures, Rothschild & Co, and Better Angle. While the start-up is targeting Germany as a priority, its aim is to develop a global solution across Europe, which is key to achieving significant revenue growth. The goal is to reach a turnover of €20 billion by the end of 2024.
Our experts at your side
Stokelp has succeeded in attracting investors by combining environmental and financial opportunities. Against a backdrop of dwindling liquidity, companies providing solutions that meet the expectations of their market continue to attract funding.
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