The term "venture clienting" describes the collaboration between startups and corporates. This usually takes the form of pilot projects, which ideally become permanent business relationships. In this article, we present NÜWIEL, traceless and CO2OPT, three Hamburg startups that work successfully according to this principle.
NÜWIEL
Founded in 2016 by Natalia Tomiyama and Fahad Khan, the startup NÜWIEL produces electrically powered cargo trailers for bicycles. In 2017, it took part in the first IKEA Bootcamp, which was specifically aimed at cooperation between the furniture retailer and startups. The result in 2018 was a project with the IKEA shop in Hamburg-Altona, which provided its customers with the trailers to transport their purchasres. NÜWIEL also offers other examples of venture clienting. The cooperation with UPS, which was also launched in 2017 and developed from a prototype test into a long-term business relationship, is particularly successful.
traceless
The startup traceless has not only won numerous prizes and completed high-paying financing rounds, it is also a good example of targeted venture clienting. For the fashion retailer C&A, traceless developed disposable hooks for socks that are not made of plastic as usual, but of a plant-based and therefore compostable material. The project also started in Hamburg's Altona district. A collaboration with mail order company OTTO launched in 2021 to develop mailing bags made from bioplastics has not yet led to any mass-produced results. However, the corporation, which has its own venture client unit, OTTO Dock 6, recently announced that its mailing bags will be made from 100% wild plastic in future. Its partner here is the Hamburg-based startup Wildplastic.
CO2OPT
The startup CO2OPT promises freight forwarding companies that they can save fuel by choosing the right tyres and thus reduce CO2 emissions. Positive results from practical tests are particularly important for business success. The cooperation with the haulage company Weets from Emden should deliver these. The foundation stone for the cooperation between Weets and CO2OPT was laid in 2022 in the "Match Machine" of the Digital Hub Logistics Hamburg. Here, startups can meet the hub's corporate partners and gain potential partners of their own. Field tests confirmed CO2OPT's savings predictions, so Weets intensified its collaboration with the startup in September 2023.
