Munich Startup: What does Savrr do? What problem are you solving?
Nico Gemkow, co-founder of Savrr: Savrr is the new approach for sustainable growth in e-commerce. With our “Save Now, Buy Later” payment solution (SNBL), we address both economic and social challenges. From an economic perspective, merchants benefit from increased sales, long-term customer loyalty, and a higher share of wallet, and find in Savrr a solution against cart abandonment and low customer lifetime value. On the other side of our B2B2C business model are consumers who are rewarded for saving for a product or brand. The social problem we want to counteract is the growing indebtedness of society through the use of seemingly attractive “Buy Now, Pay Later” services (BNPL).
Munich Startup: But that already exists, doesn’t it?
Nico Gemkow, co-founder of Savrr: Of course, the concept of saving is not new. And the idea of “Save Now Buy Later” has been circulating in the fintech bubble for some time now. What is new is the simple integration of a customizable SNBL solution into online shops. Other competitors, of which there aren’t particularly many on the German market, are currently pursuing more of a marketplace approach using savings apps.
Savrr wants to positively influence financial behavior
Munich Startup: What’s your founding story?
Nico Gemkow, co-founder of Savrr: The fundamental question we asked ourselves in the context of an innovation project together with Volksbank Mittweida and venture builder Mantro was: “How can we have a sustainable positive impact on Germans’ financial behavior in times of rising debt and short-term credit?” One of our main concerns, however, was not to hinder the business of (online) retailers, but ideally to support it positively. With Savrr, we’ve accomplished exactly that – a win-win situation.
Munich Startup: What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Nico Gemkow, co-founder of Savrr: Our biggest challenges undoubtedly include the development of our MVP (Minimum Viable Product). On the one hand, we were under time pressure, as our MVP was far from 100 percent complete when we won Zalando as our first major test partner. On the other hand, understandably, our own demands also increased to ensure our product met the standards of Europe’s largest online fashion retailer.
Munich Startup: Where do you want to be in one year, and where in five years?
Nico Gemkow, co-founder of Savrr: In one year, we want to have successfully established our SNBL payment solution on the German market. During this period, we want to see the first positive effects on consumer financial behavior and increase our business customer base to a low double-digit figure. For the next five years, we have ambitious goals. We plan to offer our services not only in Germany, but throughout Europe or even globally. The long-term goal is to be recognized as a leading provider in the SNBL solutions space.
Munich as a startup location: interested and open community
Munich Startup: How have you experienced Munich as a startup location so far?
Nico Gemkow, co-founder of Savrr: Munich has proven to be an extremely positive location for us. There is a great variety of relevant events here, such as Royal Jungle or the Bits & Pretzels, which offer us valuable networking opportunities. The interest and openness of the Munich startup community have been very helpful to us. By the way: For everyone at this year’s Bits – please stop by our booth and say hi – we’d love to see you!
Munich Startup: Outsource or do it yourself?
Nico Gemkow, co-founder of Savrr: Do it yourself. We decided to handle all aspects of our business ourselves together with Volksbank Mittweida. Additionally, Mantro as an incubator also provides us with the necessary resources and support to implement everything in-house and remain as flexible as possible.
