Is your startup working on creative ideas for the garden of the future? Are you looking for visibility, potential partnerships and some prize money? Then you might be the perfect candidate for the GARDENA garden award for innovative entrepreneurs, inventors and founders!
Applications are open until July 25th for your solutions for ‘the garden of the future’. Innovators are invited to submit their ideas and business models for the following subject areas:
- Smart gardening
- Irrigation technology
- Cutting technology
- Urban gardening
- E-commerce and services in the garden environment
- Mobile apps in the garden environment
- Solutions for sustainable gardening
- The production of food
- Mobile work in the garden
“During the time of the coronavirus pandemic, many people discovered their gardens as a place of activity, creativity and relaxation and created their very own dream gardens. At the same time, our environment has changed due to working from home and mobile – here too the garden can definitely play a role – as a place to be, meet and work. We are curious to see how innovative minds see these new realities as an opportunity,” explained Gardena’s president Pär Åström.
What are the benefits?
The prize includes a total of €10K, as well as prizes in kind, including a special prize, donated by spoga+gafa, for the most sustainable idea. In addition, the German Garden Industry Association (IVG) offers the winners the opportunity to present themselves to the specialist audience as part of the IVG Garden Market Forum. The first-placed winner will also be presented in detail in the trade magazine diy.
“The GARDENA garden award is now entering its third round. And every year we are surprised by the innovative ability of the many startups. We are therefore excited to see what ideas relating to the garden will reach us this year,” explained Tobias Schlitzke, Business Development Manager at Gardena.
Meet the jury!
Three candidates will be selected as finalists on 11 August 2021. They will then present themselves and their concepts to the jury during a live digital event on 2 September 2021. After presenting to the jury, the placements will be announced immediately and the winner declared.
Koelnmesse, the German Trade Association for DIY, Building and Gardening (BHB), the trade magazine diy and the magazine ‘Schöner Wohnen’ are once again participating as partners in the competition. The German Garden Industry Association (IVG) is also represented in the jury of experts.
The partner network will be supplemented this year by Next Shed by Eberspächer from Esslingen, Germany. As an incubator and strategic investor in the Eberspächer Group, Next Shed cooperates with founders and startups in order to jointly lead business models to success.
The serial founder and investor Frank Thelen, who became known to a wide audience from the television format ‘Die Höhle der Löwen’, Germany’s version of ‘Dragon’s Den’, complements the jury as a guest. He has a keen sense for successful ideas that have a real chance on the market: “In the near future, technology will make many areas of our lives more efficient. In the garden, too, new robot and IoT solutions can make our everyday lives easier”.
How can my startup apply?
For more information and to apply to the competition, visit the application portal and submit your application until July 25th, 2021. Good luck!
