- Corporate Business Angel Greiner Innoventures has been a strong partner of the future-oriented startup since its foundation.
- 30 million mattresses are disposed annually in Europe: MATR offers the first all-in-one mattress solution for hotels based on circular economy principles
- Thanks to MATR’s Circular Economy design, they reduce CO2 footprint by 50 percent compared to conventional mattresses.
Greiner Innoventures, the subsidiary of Greiner AG, supports young entrepreneurs as a corporate business angel with know-how, feedback and access to networks. Thus, the startup MATR, which started under the name Sleepify, has been accompanied since its foundation. Through the rebranding, the central corporate values of high quality, sustainability and innovation are to be brought into focus. The startup's goal is to enable hotels to offer their guests a premium sleep experience while easily reducing their environmental footprint. "Greiner's investment fits particularly well into the portfolio because a fundamental pillar of our sustainability strategy is the circular economy," emphasize Philipp Kranewitter and Stefanie Painsith from Greiner Innoventures, who have been advising the company as startup experts since its foundation.
When buying a mattress, considerations on disposal or sustainability are rarely thought of, the focus is purely on comfort, quality and price. However, this is exactly where the problem lies because no mattress design and system has yet been developed in Austria that saves conventional mattresses from the incinerator or landfill at the end of their life cycle. With MATR, the founders Verena Judmayer and Michaela Stephen prove that a first-class sleeping experience does not necessarily have to come at the expense of the environment and develop the first all-in-one mattress solution for the hotel industry in line with the principles of the circular economy. This means not only recycling and reusing the material of the mattresses, but also extending the product life cycle as much as possible through maintenance and replacement of various components. "We founded MATR with the vision of eliminating mattress waste while making sleep a priority, becoming the leading provider of innovative, regenerative sleep experiences. By founding our limited liability company, partnering with Greiner and launching our new brand, we are turning our vision into reality one step at a time" said Verena Judmayer, Co-Founder, CEO and Chief Dream Officer of MATR.
Unlike conventional mattresses, for which there is a lack of an established recycling process, MATR's mattresses consist of two materials: steel and polyester, which are joined together with a special patented adhesive technology. This method of processing guarantees that the mattresses can be easily separated and efficiently recycled at the end of their life cycle. For an ultimate circularity and supply chain transparency, all materials used can also be tracked via product passport. Thanks to their circular design, MATR mattresses have a 50 percent lower carbon footprint than traditional mattresses. MATR is currently testing the solution with the first hotels in Vienna. Customers have the option to rent or buy the premium mattresses and are supported by MATR throughout the entire process. This ranges from uncomplicated digital mattress management to flexible financing and recycling. In the future, MATR plans to implement the recycling process with local partners.
Already in the phase of idea generation, Greiner supported the founders Verena Judmayer and Michaela Stephen in an advisory capacity during the Circle 17 Impacthon in November 2020. During the multi-day event, companies and startups came together to develop solutions for current environmental and sustainability issues. "Verena and Michaela convinced us as founders and also with their idea right from the start. As Greiner Innoventures, we are very pleased to now have a startup in our portfolio that offers an innovative solution for the transformation from linear to circular processes," explain Philipp Kranewitter and Stefanie Painsith. As a hotbed of innovation, Greiner Innoventures is always on the lookout for innovative, creative and forward-looking investments.
