It’s always exciting to hear about the progress made by businesses that we’ve previously featured. Here are some updates from founders who have all got in touch to share their latest news:

Blueseed

Bringing to life an idea like Blueseed – a floating live/work space located off the shores of Silicon Valley to place startups without a US visa close to the world’s tech giants – is some feat, but the incubator is still on course to launch in the third quarter of this year. In December it received help in the form of seed funding from the likes of the Floodgate Fund, Correlation Ventures and ZhenFund. Over 1,300 entrepreneurs have already expressed interest in taking a place on the ship, but Blueseed is still open to applications.

WTFJeans

One trend Springwise is expecting to see more of in the future is wearable tech, but in the meantime WTFJeans’ limited edition clothing – specifically designed to hold today’s devices – should suffice. While the startup had some viral success with its V1 jeans, major cashflow issues meant the company had to learn a lot of lessons. However, after regrouping it has experimented with an Indiegogo campaign to launch the WTFShirt and is bouncing back with its WTFJeans V2 model – limited to 2,048 pairs and available from its website, complete with a new and improved payment process.

Catchafire

Matching nonprofits and social enterprises with business-savvy professionals is a two-way exchange that can help boost the success of charitable causes, as well as give skilled workers more experience and a sense of pride. Catchafire has been doing this since we wrote our piece in 2010 and its members have provided over USD 7 million in service to good causes. As well as vastly expanding its professional categories, members can now enjoy a regular newsletter and an informative blog.

LunchBots

When we first wrote about LunchBots back in 2009, it was a young startup looking to provide an eco alternative to traditional lunchboxes for parents concerned about the potential negative effects on their children of plastic food holders. Nearly four years on, its range has expanded to include versions with multiple compartments and additional condiment containers. It’s also added leak-proof and insulated versions to keep kids’ – and adults’ – food safe and warm until lunchtime.

Grubwithus

We recently wrote about the rise of social eating with regards to the new travel startup EatWith, but Grubwithus has been connecting those with similar interests for joint themed meals since 2011. It has now launched its first app – Grubtonight – which enables mobile users in select cities to quickly and easily join forces with nearby strangers to take advantage of restaurant discounts.

We’re now reaching a point where technology is almost advanced enough to be able to detect what consumers are thinking better than they can themselves. That’s one of the things that spurred Tokyo-based Tomonori Kagaya to found Neurowear, a startup that’s preparing for a future where emotion-reading is accurate enough to deliver the right content to consumers at exactly the right time.

Kagaya worked on a number of projects ranging from an interactive augmented reality game that encouraged residents of Japan to travel around to find and catch digital butterflies, to music based on local wind data before creating Neurowear in 2010. The startup’s first product was Necomimi, novelty cat’s ears that wiggle based on wearer’s emotions, which was picked as one of Time’s 50 Best Inventions of 2011. Kagaya recently expanded on the idea to create Mico, a pair of headphones that play music that matches the mood of the person wearing them. We asked Tomonori to explain what drives him and his ideas.

1.Where did the idea for Mico come from?

We can listen to over 16 million songs if we use music subscription services like Spotify, Pandora or Rdio, etc. but there is a big problem. How do we “encounter” new music? Search is practical only when you can describe what you want verbally.
It’s often like this when someone describes music they like: “Its speedy, dark, heavy, its a little bit different from rock, its like… like… uh… wolves are running, and sometimes gorillas run… you know…” You cannot search for something that you can’t put into words. If we don’t know the title, artist name, genre, then how can we find the song? We need another approach. Don’t go searching for music, let music find you – that must be a new experience. So we made Mico.

2. Can you describe a typical working day?

Come to the office, think about the future, communications, technology. Meet people, creators, entrepreneurs, writers. Write down some of the new ideas that appear from those discussions. Then, talk about ideas with team members and start building the concept.

3. How do you unwind or relax when you’re not working on Mico?

Visit new cities, walk around. Find a new restaurant, drink with friends.

4. What’s the secret ingredient to success as an entrepreneur?

Create a new concept.

5. What drove you crazy when building your business?

Having to keep on schedule makes me irritated.

6. What motivates you to keep going?

Encounters with new experiences. I’m always looking for a new experience – that makes me excited.

7. If you were to start again, what would you do differently?

Collect more user data, at least 1000 times larger than we have done.

8. Where do you see your business in five years, and how will you get there?

We’ll continue developing our listening experience and we want to see more than a million people using our service. To make it, we’ll continue to create new headphones and build our neuro-music database.

9. If you weren’t working on Mico, what would you be doing?

I would make another new prototype that enables people to have novel encounters with media.

10. Tell Springwise a secret…

All new ideas comes from dreams.

11. Any final words for aspiring entrepreneurs?

Good luck!

Technology innovations can sometimes defy belief, and the MJ v1.0 jacket was no exception when it was first brought to our attention last month. Designed with style in mind as well as tech capabilities, the MJ v1.0 jacket enables the wearer to make musical sounds through gestures. The company behind the tech, Machina, is in its infancy and the jacket is its first creation. The business focuses on a co-operative approach and has a clear and ambitious vision for the future, where fashion will merge with technology to create new capabilities for humans, for example increasing strength through wearable tech that helps the wearer to lift heavy items.

Co-founder Linda Franco has a background in design, and she started out studying marketing and strategic design at Centro University in Mexico City. Shorty after she co-founded The Gyzu Experiement – a web design and development firm and alongside this she set up the Plan de Escape prison project which taught male inmates the ins and outs of fashion and trends with the end goal of creating their own fashion label. We caught up with Linda to find out how the first year of business has been so far.

1. Where did the idea for Machina come from?

One random day in the past, I was talking with Antonio about the future of his tech idol Ray Kurzweil; Kurzweil predicted that wearable computing would be embedded in every accessory that surrounds us like furniture, walls, clothing and more. Kurzweil mentions in one of his books that the boom of wearable technology would be in 2019. Machina was formed in November 2011. Antonio Machina, Co-Founder and creative director, wanted to make and wear more mechanical clothing. It was this desire for clothing that was more practical, more personal and more unique that led Machina to our philosophy of the wearable machine.

2. Can you describe a typical working day?

Something that we have learned is that even if we have a timeline of our activities something always comes up. We usually have our plans defined but then we get invited to a lot of events or to work on new projects so this makes our lives shift constantly. I regularly wake up at 5:30 am to do exercise and by 8:00 am I am already at our co-working space ready to work. Most days in Machina, we have meetings. I am in charge of trends, social media, press, administration, international deals so usually I am on the phone or answering e-mails.

3. How do you unwind or relax when you’re not working on Machina?

As an entrepreneur you are on a constant high of work so I suffer from extreme migraines and anxiety attacks. For this I generally run in the mornings or do extreme crossfit because exercise in some way keeps me sane. I love the movies, I usually love to visit different tea houses and just have an hour of peace.

4. What’s the secret ingredient to success as an entrepreneur?

Three key points for success:
- Failure – We see success related to failure. I am of the idea that the people who fail first are the ones to understand how to succeed in the course of time because if you rise from a fall at an early stage you are most likely to survive anything in the future.
- The team – A company, a project, homework, a sport, a relationship (any kind of relationship) can’t happen if you don’t stick by it and work on it as a team. It is proved that society united as one can achieve great accomplishments. If you have a great team, you can make ANYTHING happen! Team members are essential to any kind of startup.
- Perserverance – Things don’t just happen because they should, you have to make them happen. I once read a book that said just because you’re an entrepreneur it doesn’t mean you get to go on vacations whenever you want to. It doesn’t mean you get to sleep in. “Time is money”. Time slips through your fingers like water for the entrepreneur. The discipline to work hard, fulfill deadlines and grow must come from you! If you fear failure you will never know if you made it, you have to try! And if you fail it’s OK to fail! You shall do better the next time and will never live a life going around saying “What if….”

5. What drove you crazy when building your business?

The fact that times are changing, we believe that we are at the beginning of a new era in the fashion industry where clothing is beginning to merge with technology and from this a new future will emerge. Integration will become ubiquitous, in every device we own, we have forgotten the role fashion can play in this cutting edge technology. That is only the beginning. We are working in parallel in many of these fields to achieve that vision. We want to provide every digital athlete the best wearable gadget. For his respected discipline to help him have an interactive and unique experience.

6. What motivates you to keep going?

My future. I truly believe in my company, my team and myself. There is so much I still want to do and experience so I am looking forward to the people I am going to meet and things that we are going to do. Mostly because we have met people that have told us “This is impossible, that is too futuristic, I don’t know if you are going to make it” the end result of making it happen is inspiring.

7. If you were to start again, what would you do differently?

This is an interesting question because I am the kind of person that never regrets a decision or a mistake. And this is because I am of the idea that you learn from every action you make even if it’s bad. But if I was to start again and do something differently it would only be one thing and that would be never to have invited friends to work with us. Why? Because most people don’t have the maturity to separate one relationship from another. It was heartbreaking for me at times to know I had lost a friend because he or she didn’t agree when I mentioned a mistake or change or whatever. But though it’s hard it is possible. One of Machina’s Co-Founders has been my life partner and business partner so I know it is possible.

8. Where do you see your business in five years, and how will you get there?

We see Machina like a brand of a new generation. This new generation has new aspirations which aren’t to become the next Michael Jordan, these great people are the ones that are growing up to be part of the four pillar of the digital era – technology, gaming, music, communication and interaction. We like to call them digital athletes. This is where Machina comes in because as young designers we understand the needs of the youth. By that time we will already have our Machina Pop-Up store (it will be a trailer) traveling the world popping up in your favourite cities. We will be positioned and selling in Japan, Europe and USA. We will get there by slowly expanding starting with the US. We will keep traveling as speakers to big events like Wired. We are beginning to build a community around the brand extending the life of our products. More than a brand, we see Machina represents a community of great minds interacting and working with each other to the design the next big thing.

9. If you weren’t working on Machina, what would you be doing?

Before Machina I had another startup called The Gyzu Experiment – it was a web design and development firm. I would probably keep doing that because it was going pretty well.

10. Tell Springwise a secret…

In the outside world nobody really knows what our true names really are.

11. Any final words for aspiring entrepreneurs?

Troubles will always be around the corner and trust me, this applies to happy moments too. Don’t get chaotic over tomorrow or about what happened yesterday. The moment is right here, right now. Cross the bridge when you get to it, not when you’re a thousand miles away.

Thanks Linda!

You can read more about Machina here, or visit the Machina site here.

It’s always exciting to hear about the progress made by businesses that we’ve previously featured. Here are some updates from founders who have all got in touch to share their latest news:

Soma

Soma first came to our attention in December last year with their stylish take on water filters. However, we weren’t aware of one important aspect of their business that they couldn’t previously mention during their funding campaign due to Kickstarter rules stating that the platform cannot be used for raising money for a cause. With every water filter purchased from the startup they will be delivering fresh water to someone in need through the charity, water. The Soma team recently took a trip to Ethiopia to meet some communities who have recently received water pumps, and they’ll be launching the retail side of things in the summer.

Silverline

The world of smartphones seems to be innovating at a break-neck speed, so Silverline’s focus on elderly users who might not be entirely comfortable with the ever-evolving technology plugged a gap in the changing market. Their simple app suite has now seen a boost in funding after a successful Indiegogo campaign that raised USD 25,000. They claim to now be the most successful crowdfunding campaign to have come out of Singapore. Their latest announcement is their low-cost iPhone package, which includes their range of apps and can be bought in a bundle for USD 149.

Cyclodeo

Many cities across the world have seen an increase in cyclists for a number of reasons. However, safe routes through cities can be difficult to come by, so Cyclodeo’s video map of safe cycle routes is a welcome tool for some. They’ve recently launched a new set of videos which cover routes stretching across New York, including cycling through Central Park and across the Hudson River.

Moment Garden

Moment Garden already offered parents the chance to capture a timeline of important events in their child’s life through their online gallery. Now, they’ve introduced Moment Books, which are printed catalogues of their child’s online timeline. The company claims that the emphasis is on ease, with the average customer taking 10 minutes to create their child’s own book.

New York Bike Lawyers

We covered New York Bike Lawyers’ Bike Crash Kit back in September last year, which gave victims of a crash the tools to create a detailed document of the incident. Now the founders have introduced BikeWitness.org, which pairs up bike crash victims with witnesses of the event through tweets. They were inspired to encourage these pairings because they often heard that bike crash victims found it difficult to find people to act as witnesses for the incident.

We first covered Planspot last year when the startup was in the run-up to its launch date. Billed as an event marketing platform that primarily synced with social media sites to easily enable a promotion campaign, founder Satya van Heummen has since considerably changed the direction of his business. It’s a brave move for any startup team to stop, reassess their business plan, and decide to move away from the original intention. But this is what Satya did when he realized that his startup wasn’t helping his clients as effectively as he had hoped. We spoke to Marketing Manager, Reinoud Tjallema, about this change. In his words: “We dropped most of the social media integrations and decided to focus on what our users really want.”

Reinoud found that their clients weren’t too concerned with receiving help promoting their event through social media, something which is relatively easy for most companies to do. Instead, they decided to refocus their attention on the marketing potential of a wider cross-section of media. Their new business plan has expanded as a result: “Planspot now focuses on easily running effective marketing campaigns across multiple channels: traditional media (magazines, blogs, event listings, billboards), social media and newsletters.” The platform also now provides a feedback system for clients so they can see how their marketing campaigns are being received. “The other focus is on providing powerful insights (statistics) that show event organizers exactly how well their campaigns are doing and which channels are performing best.” This expansion of PlanSpot capabilities has gone down well with clients. As Reinoud puts it: “As a result we see a constant five percent growth per week in users, and have a lot of happy and retaining customers.”

Following this change in direction, the team has expanded from three to seven – taking onboard a former lead developer of the Dutch social network, Hyves. There’s also a new focus on their international image, working with US companies to help spread the word. “We went to Silicon Valley in October and have just launched in the US with international partners like Zvents, Getpromotd, Allevents.in, Songkick and Upcoming, basically offering a US-wide media network.”

Embarking into unfamiliar territory is a common journey for any startup founder, and Reinoud speaks frankly about the difficulties of trying to predict the unknown. “A major problem for any tech startup is that you’re doing something that hasn’t been done before. Regarding development we ran into all sorts of trouble, ultimately resulting in delays. Because you’re doing something new, it’s hard to estimate and make fixed roadmaps. Yet business depends on those new features being released and the business needs to get going, especially if you have investors breathing down your neck.” Time can be of the essence when you’re trying to introduce something unique to the market, as there is always a danger that someone else will come along with a similar offering.

They also came up against unchartered territory when working out how to market and price PlanSpot: “The other main problem for any startup is finding your product-market fit. Once you do get new features released, there’s a big chance people aren’t waiting for them or there’s an expectation mismatch. This also counts for pricing your product, something that you always do wrong (unless you’re lucky).”

The team are keen to develop the business still further, but are careful to only introduce new features that will benefit many. “The other major challenge is what feature should be developed next (in order to make more users happy). People ask a lot, but we only want to develop features applicable for more than one user. So it is all about talking and a lot of coffee meetings before we create some new awesome features.”

Reinoud is candid in his assessment of the business’s success so far. “Most startups fail because they get stuck in this vicious circle of delay and product-market mismatch, and simply run out of money. Our main success is that we managed to control delays in development and have come closer to our product-market fit with every new release. The proof for that is a media network that is performing better (the publishing rate is increasing), more users starting to pay, building more partnerships, and that we’ve won some awards.”

Planspot’s remit is now much wider than its original set-up, and Reinoud is pleased with this altered direction: “No matter the consequences, don’t be afraid to pivot. Don’t be afraid to change strategy, your product, your features, your developers, and people in your team. If something doesn’t work, better change it today than tomorrow.” Ultimately, the risk the team took in overhauling the business direction seems to have paid off, giving them more scope for development. Perhaps a good example of the benefit of listening to client feedback when tweaking your offering.

You can read more about Planspot here, or visit the Planspot site here.

The world of car rentals can provide a frustrating experience. The choice of vehicles on offer can be varied in quality, and the rental process can be time-consuming. Often potential customers want to rent a car at short notice, if they are flying into a particular location and need to get to a particular venue at a certain time, for example.

Co-founder of Silvercar, Bill Diffenderfer, was keen to simplify this process. Silvercar customers only have one model of car they can rent – the silver 2013 Audi A4, and can book their vehicle through mobile with cloud–based profiles for each customer allowing a quick verification process. The intention is that the customer can jump into their rented vehicle and get on their way as quickly as possible. We put our questions Bill to find out how his team’s take on the rental sector is coming along.

1. Where did the idea for Silvercar come from?

Silvercar is a collection of ideas, but at its core is the idea of just offering one car type. That idea was our co-founder’s, Todd Belveal. As he says, that idea came from too many bad car rental experiences.

2. Can you describe a typical working day?

One of the great things about working at startups is that there is no typical working day.

3. How do you unwind or relax when you’re not working on Silvercar?

When it’s your start-up, you never really get away from it and relax. In the early stages, start-ups are so fragile that you worry about them and hover over them continuously. Still, I play golf to take my mind off Silvercar – just a different obsession!

4. What’s the secret ingredient to success as an entrepreneur?

The secret ingredient is an inexhaustible determination to do it. No quitters allowed.

5. What drove you crazy when building your business?

You always have a love/hate relationship with the technology. In theory everything works and goes smoothly – that’s what you plan for, but there are always little kinks, and things that have to be reworked just slightly for everything to fall in place. That can slow things down, but it’s also just part of building a tech start up.

6. What motivates you to keep going?

The desire to build a great new company from nothing. It’s a work of creation. Done well, it makes customers happy, employs people and rewards investors. And it is FUN!

7. If you were to start again, what would you do differently?

I learned long ago not to second guess. I love where we are, so I’m happy with the path that got us to this point.

8. Where do you see your business in five years, and how will you get there?

Silvercar is currently offered at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and at Austin Bergstrom International Airport as a rental option. But we’re not stopping there. We plan to expand to at least two other airports by the end of 2013. Our future locations will be disclosed as plans and contracts are finalized. As for the next five years, it would be wonderful to have a presence at every major domestic airport – we’ll have to see how things go. And of course we’ll be listening to the market and our customers. There could be something different that’s needed. We plan to evolve with market and technology needs.

9. If you weren’t working on Silvercar, what would you be doing?

Writing another book.

10. Tell Springwise a secret…

Startups all begin with a single leap of faith – believe in yourself.

11. Any final words for aspiring entrepreneurs?

See the answer to question 10. Take babysteps and be picky about the ventures you start. If you have several ideas for a good business, start with the most manageable and work from there. You may have a fantastic idea that could really take off, but if you start with that one, you may have to endure learning curves that you could have learned on something less daunting.

Thanks Bill!

You can read more about Silvercar here, or visit the Silvercar site here.

International relocation can be an exciting, yet daunting, prospect. Whether moving as an individual, or with a company, there are myriad factors to keep in mind when looking for a new home, office or job, as well as sorting out official documentation to make citizenship valid. This was a frustration that MOVE Guides founder Brynne Herbert experienced on several occasions as she moved around the world. Each move was time-consuming and left her stressed before she’d even arrived at her new home, prompting her to found MOVE Guides, which aims to make international relocation easier for individuals and businesses.

Brynne’s background lies in finance, having previously worked for Standard Chartered Bank and Lehman Brothers, first as an Analyst in Hong Kong and then as an Associate in Singapore. She set up MOVE Guides while she was studying for her MBA at London Business School in 2011, taking her experience of having to regularly relocate for work as a motivation. We caught up with Brynne to find out how her startup is faring since we last covered it.

1. Where did the idea for MOVE Guides come from?

I founded MOVE Guides because of the immense challenge I always found when moving around the world. MOVE Guides was born out of the personal pain that I always felt when moving to new cities – a similar challenge that I saw friends, colleagues and fellow expats experience! When I moved to London, I first lived in a sublet apartment with no hot water or internet, and at the same time had no bank account or mobile phone! In a moment of frustration one day, I asked my husband why it was so hard to plan an international move and so easy to plan international travel. He said I should change it…so I did! When I started looking at the market, I realized that the relocation industry was still very traditional and lacked modern enterprise software for HR. I decided there needed to be a way to introduce innovative technology and a strong customer focus to global mobility and employee relocation.

2. Can you describe a typical working day?

The term “typical” doesn’t exist in a start-up founder’s vocabulary. I spend a lot of time on the phone or travelling to the US and throughout Europe speaking to suppliers, corporate partners, investors and potential new hires. Things are moving quickly and our expansion into international cities is growing rapidly! Most of my evenings are spent on the phone in the US (due to the time difference), which means Asia takes priority for my morning phone calls.

3. How do you unwind or relax when you’re not working on MOVE Guides?

I work A LOT. However, I make it a point to squeeze in morning runs whenever I can and yoga on weekends. I’m an avid marathon runner and often find my best ideas come to me on runs. I also read the Financial Times and The Economist religiously. But the most important way I relax outside of the office is just by spending time with my husband!

4. What’s the secret ingredient to success as an entrepreneur?

I don’t believe there is one single ingredient to becoming a successful entrepreneur. It takes a combination of many characteristics to be successful. What I can advise is that you need to be relentless and resilient…and absolutely focused on your vision. One of the best quotes I’ve ever heard is that “Great things happen when ordinary people become obsessed with something”. I think that pretty much sums up being an entrepreneur.

5. What drove you crazy when building your business?

Constantly being asked how it feels to be a woman entrepreneur! At MOVE Guides, we are focused on transforming international relocation. We work exceptionally hard to create the best product and experience for our customers (be they HR professionals, suppliers or individuals moving), and that’s our sole focus….male or female!

6. What motivates you to keep going?

I believe that the world needs people with global capabilities to solve global problems. We live in an uniquely interdependent world, and we need people with the cross-cultural capabilities necessary to work together to improve society. Moving abroad and acquiring these networks and capabilities should be far easier than it is today…for both individuals and organizations. I always found it exciting and rewarding to move to new cities, but exceptionally difficult and inefficient. Our team is full of people who have moved and lived around the world, and experienced this pain. Every day, we get throngs of emails from others who have experienced the same challenges and are grateful for what we are doing at MOVE Guides. The mission to make moving as easy as traveling, and help ease the flow of capital and labour keeps me going.

7. If you were to start again, what would you do differently?

Without a doubt I would have started recruiting for any position we had earlier. It’s very difficult to recruit great talent in today’s market and I think we underestimated that at points. We have an amazing team right now and I look forward to watching it grow!

8. Where do you see your business in five years, and how will you get there?

MOVE Guides will help labor and capital flow more easily around the world. We will help organizations build global talent pools and benefit from the data about their talent pools to optimize staffing, career development and performance. We plan to be the leading HR technology software for global mobility departments in five years.

9. If you weren’t working on MOVE Guides, what would you be doing?

This is actually a common question at team drinks! I used to say that I’d love to be a writer, but I recently decided I’d actually prefer to work in space exploration!

10. Tell Springwise a secret…

My desk is the messiest in the office!

11. Any final words for aspiring entrepreneurs?

Be exceptionally passionate about your business and goal. Focus relentlessly on it and
expect to work, hard! London’s start-up scene is booming and there are events, advisors and drinks a-plenty. Do not allow yourself to lose focus!

Thanks Brynne!

You can read more about MOVE Guides here, or visit the MOVE Guides site here.

This month we’ve received a huge number of updates from businesses we have previously covered, so we thought we’d once again share some of their news with you. The businesses below have all kept us up to date with their recent progress:

Odegon

The discreet body odor-eliminating tags for clothing recently received a mark of approval from UK retailer Marks & Spencer, which will be sewing the tags into the underarm of three suits and one blazer in their 2013 summer range. When we first covered Odegon the tags were ready and the company was looking for retail opportunities. Now, they are set to hit the UK high street.

YrWall

This infrared, digital graffiti screen first came to our attention back in 2009. Since then the company has seen great success, with the launch of three other products – YrSurface, YrMoves and YrMirror. All of their products rely on human interactivity, including YrMoves, which operates as an interactive augmented reality dance floor. The founders also recently appeared on UK TV show Dragon’s Den, and pitched YrWall to major investors who awarded them GBP 50,000 in funding.

Beyond the School Run

Beyond the School Run offers parents the opportunity to re-enter the job market once their children have reached school age. Now, the project has teamed up with UK children’s charity, Kids Company, for Just One Thing – a campaign where parents offer one thing to disadvantaged children. This could be a skill, a gift, or an idea. The campaign has received celebrity support from model Laura Bailey.

Lockboxer

Lockboxer started out as an inventory service for house movers, which let them catalogue and estimate a value for all their possessions. They have since broadened their remit with the introduction of Moverbox, which helps users to find a good removal service, manage the entire moving process, and can ultimately save the user money by offering a number of different quotes to choose from.

Recently, there has been an increased interest in grow-your-own options as food prices rise globally. Two men who are well familiar with this self-sustaining model are Alejandro Velez and Nikhil Arora, who founded Back to the Roots in 2009 after successfully growing a bucket of oyster mushrooms in their college kitchen. Their grow-your-own kits are sent out by mail order, and can flourish with only the use of recycled coffee grounds. This low maintenance approach means that their kits can be used by anyone, regardless of how limited the space available.

Both founders graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. When they began their studies they aimed to enter the finance sector, specifically investment banking. However, by the time they reached their final semester their ambitions had shifted and after successfully growing one bucket of mushrooms on recycled coffee grounds they decided to become full-time urban farmers. With the help of a USD 5000 grant from their university’s chancellor and initial interest from eco-friendly chain, Whole Foods, Nikhil and Alejandro set up Back to the Roots. We first covered the urban farming intiative back in 2010, and we recently caught up with the two founders to find out how they’ve progressed.

1. Where did the idea for Back to the Roots come from?

We heard in a lecture that it was possible to grow mushrooms on used coffee grounds. We started experimenting, selling fresh mushrooms to local groceries, and when people started asking us how they could do this too, the idea took off. We made a “Grow Your Own” Mushroom Garden, and started laying out the values we wanted in a company, including hustle and passion. We wanted to create something good in the world, something positive.

2. Can you describe a typical working day?

A lot of emails, a lot of chatting, a lot of brainstorming. There are also usually non-stop phone calls and meetings as well! The day starts as soon as our eyes open – we’re on our phones right away with email, etc. Since we’re on the West Coast, even if we wake up at 5:30 or 6, the day is already well started on the East Coast.

3. How do you unwind or relax when you’re not working on Back to the Roots?

It’s all about the music – Pandora and Rdio are my constant companions!!

4. What’s the secret ingredient to success as an entrepreneur?

Hustle. You have to always keep moving, thinking, and being excited about what you’re doing. If you work as hard as possible, you can make what you want happen.

5. What drove you crazy when building your business?

Lack of passion – we quickly aligned with people who shared the same sense of passion and urgency towards doing good through business and leaving a positive mark on this world. It’s infinitely more rewarding to work with people who have a passion and zest for life and for whatever they do!

6. What motivates you to keep going?

Knowing we can make a positive difference with our business and that we can help kids learn about food. Not to mention working with people who are just as excited about education, food, and sustainability as we are!

7. If you were to start again, what would you do differently?

Invest in design and our branding from Day 1 – we’ve since learned how absolutely critical design is to our success! I still laugh when I look at our first mushroom kit box and initial POP signage!

8. Where do you see your business in five years, and how will you get there?

Back to the Roots wants to spend time on product development, and hopefully in five years will have a fuller product line with more options for people to learn about growing their own healthy food. We’re focusing more attention on what we do best – brainstorm new products and develop them – and making the BTTR brand a well-known name in the food industry so that people know we’re a resource in sustainable food.

9. If you weren’t working on Back to the Roots, what would you be doing?

We’d be in investment banking and consulting – we actually gave up job offers in those fields when we decided to start BTTR.

10. Tell Springwise a secret…

Creating new products and building a company can be daunting, but it’s always fun!

11. Any final words for aspiring entrepreneurs?

Hustle!

Thanks Nikhil and Alejandro!

You can read more about Back To The Roots here, or visit the Back To The Roots website here.

The new businesses we feature on Springwise are constantly growing and developing new products and services, and we thought it time to share some of their news with you again. The businesses below have all kept us up to date with their recent progress:

Skoog

The soft, spongy cube we first covered in 2010 is actually a musical instrument for people with physical disabilities. Now, students with motor difficulties across the UK will have the chance to make music thanks to a partnership between Skoog and Lancashire Music Service which will provide two Skoogs for every special education school in the country. In the UK the educational curriculum states that every child should have the chance to learn a musical instrument, and Skoog is making this a reality. Read our article on Skoog >>

Tagwhat

Tagwhat was already an interesting proposition when we came across it in 2011 – an app that located the user and then delivered stories, articles and multimedia content to their phones, specific to the area they were in. Now, with the introduction of location analysis software through their iPhone app, users can also receive deals from local businesses. Read our article on Tagwhat >>

Raise5

Regular readers may well remember Raise5, a fundraising platform with a twist that received support and funding from Richard Branson after winning the Screw Business As Usual competition. Now the founders are jetting off to South Africa to spend three days with the famous entrepreneur, to receive business tips and see his work in action.
Read our article on Raise5 >>

Pickie

Since we covered Pickie last summer the app has proven popular, with Apple naming it one of their ’10 Essential Apps’ in the Catalogs category of their app store. Now the retail app — which recommends items based on what the user’s friends are discussing on social networks — has built an exclusive catalog for the online designer brand outlet, One Kings Lane. Read our article on Pickie >>

Ella’s Kitchen

To celebrate their new dairy range, Ella’s Kitchen has built a tiny milk float to deliver dairy products to young children. The float is 60 percent smaller than the full-sized, more common version and was built by the father of the company’s namesake, Ella.
Read our article on Ella’s Kitchen >>