Marianne Lehnis, a journalist turned entrepreneur, launched The Green Techpreneur as a passion project during the pandemic.
Her interest in sustainability and entrepreneurship led her to create a platform that provides consultancy and support to help founders navigate the climate investor/pitching arena.
Additionally, through a partnership with sister company Climate Marketplace, the platform makes the path to funding accessible and affordable for high-impact climate tech startups looking to gain visibility and funding from an investor network.
Find out more about The Green Techpreneur from the founder herself.
Can you tell us about your background and what inspired you to launch The Green Techpreneur?
The Green Techpreneur launched as a passion project when the pandemic broke out by Marianne Lehnis – a journalist turned entrepreneur.
As a journalist, Marianne rallied against the negative-bias of mainstream media and wanted to create an opportunity for people making outstanding contributions to society and nature to make their voice heard.
She combined her interest in telling people’s stories with a passion for sustainability and fascination with entrepreneurship and innovation and The Green Techpreneur was born.
How do you envision The Green Techpreneur making an impact in the climate tech industry?
The Green Techpreneur (GT) is a comprehensive platform for and about climate tech entrepreneurs and investors.
It features original, high-quality interviews with successful climate tech startups and investors and authentically shares their lessons and founder launch journey.
It provides consultancy and support in helping founders better understand and navigate the climate investor/pitching arena.
Through a partnership with sister company Climate Marketplace (to be launched in Q2), The Green Techpreneur makes the path to funding accessible and affordable for high-impact climate tech startups looking to gain visibility and funding from an investor network.
The Green Techpreneur partners with investor/climate tech conference producers, helping them connect the sector and share thought leadership.
Can you share some of the success stories of entrepreneurs or startups that The Green Techpreneur has featured or supported?
Marianne helps you share your story in a real, engaging way to help your clients connect with the authenticity of your founder launch journey. She delivers the messages of your vision, mission and values to create greater impact as a sustainability leader. The level of commitment she has for helping climatetech startups succeed is a joy to watch. – Leon Gerard Vandenberg, CEO & CTO Sunified Group
Our founder launch journey story had steller engagement, told our unique story, and shone a light on our brand’s strengths. I highly recommend Marianne to business owners and entrepreneurs looking to amplify their business’ impact online. – Pratik G., Co-founder at Skyfri
What challenges have you encountered in building The Green Techpreneur platform and how have you addressed them?
Attempting to build a large resource platform with very limited resources (bootstrapping the business): initially, I took on too much myself and as a result had to stop and start working on several features of The GT.
Over time, I developed partnerships with related companies, so that I can expand in a manageable way.
What do you see as the biggest opportunities for innovation in the climate tech sector?
The energy transition, low-carbon homes/construction, replacing plastic packaging.
What advice do you have for aspiring climate tech entrepreneurs who are just starting out?
Be 100% sure that your idea can work and then be in it for the long-haul.
Success is a marathon and you’ve got to commit a few years of your life to the business to see it take off.
Find partners and collaborators – build a tribe that helps each other succeed. Lone wolves quickly get overtaken by those who collaborate and leverage each other’s success.
What are your future plans for The Green Techpreneur and how do you plan to grow and scale the platform?
The Green Techpreneur is launching a partnership with Climate Marketplace to make it easier and more affordable for startups of any shape or size to gain visibility with a fantastic network of investors.
The GT will act as a platform partner for climatetech conferences, helping them share thought leadership.
How do you measure the success and impact of The Green Techpreneur on the climate tech industry and the world at large?
The Green Techpreneur has helped startups not just share their story and gain visibility, but also get the right consulting support they need to find investors to grow.
It is an inspirational platform that spreads a positive message about the impact of climate tech and our ability to combat climate change.
The GT also helps entrepreneurs learn from each other and gain deeper insight into how to build and grow a business in climate tech.
Conclusion
For more info about The Green Techpreneur, visit https://thegreentechpreneur.uk/.
