17 August 2023
Wouter Hagoort is a young fintech entrepreneur with a talent for fundraising and a desire for impact making. Together with Derrick Neleman he founded the sharefunding platform Broccoli with the objective of fostering a greener and healthier world. Last year, they became commercially active and this spring they joined – amongst others – the Brave New Food Funding Challenge as a partner.
“We have a very strict due diligence policy,” Wouter explains, “about the companies that we work with. Their products or services must contribute to a better food system. We only want to support pioneers who are working to create fairer food chains, develop more sustainable production processes, combat food waste, and provide consumers around the globe with healthier, more transparent food options.”
Sharefunding
Broccoli is not an investor itself, but a sharefunding platform that raises funds for their clients from a diverse network of investors. Wouter continues: “In the last months we worked with 12 food and drink companies to raise funds. In these 12 campaigns we collected over 16 million euros for our clients. Our network exceeds 18.000 investors, ranging from small, first-time private investors to about 150 really big ones. We believe in growing together, so by turning customers, suppliers and partners into co-owners, we build strong foundations for growth and success.”
Startups and scale-ups
Broccoli’s 13th client will be a food startup. The first in what Wouter sees as many more to come. “That’s why we joined the Funding Challenge, to discover new and innovative food entrepreneurs. We want to create impact, and by funding new food solutions at an early stage we can make most impact.” This doesn’t mean that Wouter is focused on discovering startups only. “We work mostly with companies who have an annual revenue of at least one million euros, but we are expanding into the startup community too.”
Creating impact
Broccoli’s green mission and tech-savvy design makes them a truly brave and new player in the investment landscape. They see themselves as drivers of green change, not as followers of a trend. Wouter: “We see more and more investors transitioning into a greener portfolio. For us, creating impact is as important as financial return on an investment. As we continue to show our network that these two can go hand in hand, we are changing the game with every successful campaign. I invite all innovative food entrepreneurs to submit their pitch decks and I am looking forward to making new connections for a greener future!”
Pitch your business to Wouter and the other funding partners in the Funding Challenge too!