CZECH – Prague-based reuse start-up, Miwa Technologies has secured over €5 million (US$5.38m) in funding through the European Innovation Council’s EIC Accelerator programme to further scale its smart reusable packaging system in European supermarkets.
The company says the funds are earmarked to support its further expansion and the implementation of new installations in supermarkets across Europe.
With this funding, Miwa becomes the only startup from the food reusable packaging segment which has ever succeeded.
Also, it is the first Czech company to have succeeded in so-called blended financing, which combines a subsidy and an investment.
Miwa’s system enables customers in supermarkets to shop in reusable containers, and at the same time unlocks the entire supply chain thanks to smart reusable B2B capsules, which work in tandem with electronic dispensers.
Data flows allow both effective management of the packaging pool as well as efficient operations of the system, such as stock management.
Currently, this solution is used in Aldi in the UK, in Dutch Albert Heijn and several supermarkets in Czechia and Portugal.
It allows customers in these stores to shop ecologically and significantly minimize packaging waste.
In order to finance commercial expansion in Europe and shift to serial production, Miwa is also opening the investment round of €7 million (US$7.53m) to private investors in the coming weeks. Thanks to the EIC Fund, nearly 40 percent of this sum is now confirmed.
Ivana Sobolíková, who is in charge of investor relations and fundraising at Miwa said: “At the end of 2021, Miwa was installed at its first large retailer. One year later, in December 2022, Miwa was installed at four large retailers in nine supermarkets.
“For 2023 we have set the target to close the year with installations in a hundred stores in Europe. As of March 2023, about fifty locations, mainly in the German-speaking region, have been confirmed.
“The investment round should allow us to execute business and company growth for 2024 and 2025, thanks to which the Miwa solution should become much more accessible to consumers in Europe.”
Founded by Petr Báča (CEO) in 2016, Miwa Technologies has developed a unique system that enables customers in supermarkets to shop in reusable containers.
The start-up says this solution is based on B2B capsules equipped with smart technology that works in tandem with electronic dispensers.
These capsules allow for effective management of the packaging pool and efficient operations of the system, including stock management.
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