Marcus Richards
TeknTrash is a AI and analytics company which created Stipra: the worl’d first sytem which rewards people for proper recycling while providing companies with post-sales data and real ESG benefits
Tell us about yourself?
My dad was a diplomat so I lived in many countries. That I think gave me a much broader vision on things and for that I am grateful. And also gave me the understanding that jobs in general anywhere in the planet are not the way to go if you really want to make something of yourself.
So I became an entrepreneur, and founded 5 companies in 4 different countries. And, having a BA in biology and a Master in IT I always try to create companies that use both of those fields
If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
Build a team first. 2 thousand years ago a gentleman came saying he was the son of God and still the very first thing he did was to get 12 people to help him. If that does not show how important a team is nothing will
What problem does your business solve?
Companies do not have the full understanding on their products as they do not know what happens with their products after they’ve been sold.
Thus, they waste 54 billion a year on failed marketing schemes simply because they use incomplete data.
For that we created Stipra which rewards people for recycling while providing companies with that missing data through our SAAS platform corp.stipra.com
What is the inspiration behind your business?
The idea that a company should be also held accountable whenever one of its products is improperly disposed: it cannot just say it is my consumer’s fault.
And the facts prove our point: 62.5% of Gen-Z population say they will only buy from truly sustainable companies and a number of legal actions are being taken against greenwashing claims
What is your magic sauce?
Our sauce is our understanding a startup should not aim to “solve” a problem, but rather to “invent” it. If you solve a problem you are not starting anything, and therefore you are not a “start”up
What is the plan for the next 5 years? What do you want to achieve?
We want to implement 10 thousand smart bins attached to Stipra in USA and UK which are the countries we have presence at
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
Getting people to understand what we do. They think we are in the recycling business, the environment business, etc no matter how many times we say we are a AI and analytics company
How do people get involved/buy into your vision?
We believe in networking so we are always open to ideas from any sector
