Foundedin2015inBerlin,Germany,Groveris currentlyactivein:Germany,Austria,theNetherlands, Spain,andtheUS.WehaveofficesinBerlin,Lisbon, andMiami.We’reateamofover450,with73 nationalities,whoworkin30countries
Grover is the global leader in tech subscriptions, enablingpeopletoaccesstechbysubscribingtotheir favoritedevicesinsteadofbuyingthem.WithGrover, private customers and businesses can access thousands of tech products on a flexible monthly basis.
Devices range from smartphones, tablets, and computers to gaming consoles and VR goggles, e-scooters, and home appliances. After the rental period, the devices are returned to Grover, made readyforreuse,andrentedoutagain,thusextending devicelifecycles.
Our latest addition is the Grover Card, which gives subscribers the opportunity to earn Grover Cash every time they spend. Grover Cash can then be allocatedtowardsanymonthlysubscriptions.
We’reateamofover450people,with73 nationalities,whoworkin30countries.
Whiletheworldhasbeenconfrontedwiththeimpacts of the climate crisis and a changing climate for some time, the heatwaves and droughts throughout Europe duringthesummerof2022havemadeitclearthatall parts of the world will be heavily affected by climate change.Ourcurrentwaysoflivingandconsumingare notsustainablefortheplanetandpeople.We’reusing moreresourcesthanourplanetcanprovide.
Technology is central to our daily lives, so our consumptionhabitscontributetothis.We’rebecoming increasingly connected and tend to own more and more devices as a result— up to 10 connected devicesperpersoninWesternEuropeandevenmore in North America. While this enables us to do more thingsmoreeasilythanbefore,italsoperpetuatesthe electronicsindustry’snegativeenvironmentalimpact.
The most prominent problem is increasing e-waste. In fact, e-waste is the world’s fastest-growing domesticwastestream, with over 50milliontons of devices per year becoming e-waste and often discarded to landfills. This leads to many detrimental effects on our environment and toxic materials are released into bodies of water, groundwater, soil and air, affecting land and sea animals—aswellaspeople.Thosewhoworkaround or on those landfills are affected by severe health consequences.
The social and environmental hazards connected to mining virgin resources, the depletion of rare materials, and the ensuing geopolitical conflicts areincreasinglygainingattention.
But there are smarter alternatives to the linear take-make-waste approach that fuels these problems.We don’t need to own things in order to get the best out of them. By offering renting as an alternative to buying, Grover is working towards a
OUR SUSTAINABILITY VISION:TOBEA LEADINGFORCE FORCIRCULAR ELECTRONICS ANDBECOMETHE SUSTAINABLE ALTERNATIVETO ACCESSINGTECH FOREVERYONE.
Grover’s core activities are centered around a dual mission: on one hand, we work to enable everyone to access the tech they want, striving for equal opportunities in an increasingly digital world. On the other hand, we run a circular business model that provides access rather than ownership, ideally decoupling value creation from resource consumption.
Of course, we don’t have all the answers to all the issues of the consumer electronics industry, but we seek to contribute to a more sustainable, equal path forward and are committed to driving positive changeforboththeplanetanditspeople.
We’re bringing tech consumption into the circular economy, using a more sustainable model than the traditional take-make-waste approach that’s reliant onfossilfuelsandshort-termresourceuse.
We assess our sustainability work according to an ESG framework—which stands for Environment, Social,andGovernance. Thereportapproachesour sustainability efforts, ambitions, achievements, and opportunities for improvement in the same manner. The same is true for our first ESG Action Plan that hasbeenintroducedandsignedoffbyourExecutive andAdvisoryBoards.
Wewanttomake techmore accessible:getting thedevicesyou need,foraslongas youneed them—while extendingtheir lifecycletosave resources.
LindaRubin,
The first step for developing a sustainability strategy is to identify the most relevant topics and areas to the company and its stakeholders. This is generally done through a materiality assessment and ensures that our effortshavetherightfocus.
Weidentifiedalongerlistofimpactareasalongthethree categories of: environment, society, and governance (ESG).Wethenderived8prioritytopics.
These topics span our environmental impact, with respect to resource use, emissions, and waste generation;oursocialimpacttowardsourcustomersand employees, and our activities to ensure transparent and professionalprocesses.
These findings then form the base for developing a holisticcompany-widesustainabilitystrategy.
Overthenextyears,weplantorevisitthisassessment and will carry out a dual-materiality analysis in consultation with different stakeholder groups. This ensures a diversity of perspectives, a holistic consideration of our sustainability impact, and reassurance that we’re working on the topics most relevanttoallstakeholders.
GHGemissionsand climatechange
CircularEconomyImpact
Social Accesstoand Affordabilityoftech
SocialResponsibility
Governance
BusinessEthics/ Compliance
Governance& Accountability
Packaging&Waste
Diversity,Equity,and Inclusion
The topic of sustainability is so much bigger than just the environment. Sustainability is a set of guiding principles: rangingfromthewaywetreatthemostvulnerablemembers of our society to ensuring that we don’t spend all of the Earth’sresources.Byactingsustainably,thehopeisthatwe’ll be able to leave the world to our children in the same, or ideallybetter,condition.
While our circular business model puts sustainability at the heart of Grover, we are putting increasing emphasis on consciously reflecting on the positive (as well as negative) impact that we have on the environment and those around us. This has culminated in our first ESG report, which was eagerlyawaitedbyourinvestors(bothequityanddebt)asa validationofourworkandESGimpact.
MitjaSadar,SVPFinance,HeadofDebtCapitalMarkets
In 2015, all member states of the United Nations (UN) adopted a set of globally-recognized goals through the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, known as the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These goalsareablueprintforapeaceful,sustainable,andprosperousworld.Becausewewanttoensurethatourimpact isofuniversalandglobalimportance,wereviewedourbusinessmodelinrelationtothe17SDGs.
WeidentifiedfourprioritySDGsandthreesecondarygoals onwhichwehavethegreatestinfluence—explained further below. Moreover, at the beginning of each chapter in this report, we indicate how our efforts and achievementsacrosstheareasofEnvironment,Social,andGovernancerelatetothesegoals.OutofallSDGsour mainimpactisseenwithinnumber12.
We contribute to the goal of decent work and economic growth (8) in two ways. On one hand, we have a responsibility as an employer to provide a prosperous work environment and development opportunities to our 450+ employees. Then, on the other hand, our alternative approach to tech access enablesworkandeconomicgrowth.
Weestablishedanewbusinessmodelintheconsumer electronics industry and work with business partners along the value chain to promote a sustainable, circular transition of the industry and driving innovation(9). Offering rental as a valid alternative to linearconsumption,weareacrucialpartofthecircular economy, promoting and enabling a moresustainable wayofconsumption(12)
Last but not least, rental has the potential to prolong devicelifecycles,whichinturn,reducesthenumberof
As an employer it is important to consider and act on the impact on our employees’ health. In addition, we can indirectly impact the healthandwellbeingofour customers(3) by making it easier for people to work out with the products in our health and fitness category.
Reducing the tech divide and enabling access by offeringdevicesmoreflexiblyandwithouthighupfront costs has the potential to reduce inequalities (10). Moreover, we have a responsibility as an employer to setgoalsaspartofourDiversity,Equity,andInclusion (DEI) policy. We strongly believe in collaboration and actively engage partnerships, thus also contributing to theSDGpartnershipsforthegoals(17)
The circular economy—with renting as a key part—is integral to lessen human impact on our climate and environment, while safeguarding our planet and ecosystemforcurrentandfuturegenerations. As a business, we differentiate between two kinds of environmentalimpact:
● The negative impact of the Carbon emissions of our business practices, as summarized in ourCorporateCarbonFootprint
● The positive impact of the circular business activity, meaning the potential benefits associated with continuously recirculating devices.
Additionally, our business has an impact on key areas likewaterandwaste.
Assessedthepositiveimpactofrentingand calculatedapotentialof160kfewere-waste productsthroughrentinginsteadofbuying.
*basedonourportfolio2015-2021
CalculatedourCorporateCarbonFootprint,totalling 43,139tofCO2eemissionsin2022.
(incl.Scope1,2,and3)
Movedover90%ofshipmentsintheUSandall shipmentsinSpaintoroadtransport.
Rareearthmaterials,preciousmetals,andplasticsare needed for almost all electronic devices, with extraction depleting fossil resources. Then, increasing useofconsumerelectronicsleadstoarisingstreamof e-waste—which often ends up in landfills. Moreover, many production sites and other steps along the supply chain are powered by fossil fuels and require global transport, exacerbating the Carbon emissions that are part of the manufacturing process—already themajorityofconsumertech’simpact.
Exacerbating this negative impact are short use cycles. E.g. a GoPro bought just for the next snorkelling trip, or a TV for a semester abroad—examples are endless. As a result, many devices end up ageing in drawers or elsewhere, despitepotentialforreuse,plusthematerialsusedfor theproductionthencan’tberecoveredorrecycled.
Getting devices repaired can often be a hassle and become rather expensive quite quickly, whichiswhy there might be hesitation towards getting broken devicesrepaired.
For businesses, renting can solve many additional problems. Renting means no need for a dedicated team to maintain equipment, device storage, or high upfrontcosts—especiallywhenexperiencinggrowth.
Allofthisemphasizestheimportanceandurgencyofa newapproachtoconsumingandusingourtechthat provides us with the access we need while minimizingthenegativeeffectonplanetandpeople. While we don’t claim to solve all of these issues—we justhavealimitedimpactontheglobalconsumertech industry—wedoprovideasolutionthathelpstotackle theseproblems.Ataglobalscalethishasthepotential tobeatruegamechanger.
By enabling both individuals and businesses to rent technologyinaflexiblemanner,whileensuringdevices are repaired and then passed on to new consumers when they’re not used anymore, we contribute to keepingdevicesintheloopforaslongaspossible.Our focus is to increase the useful lifetime of technology, andunlockmorevaluewhileproducingfewere-waste products,onerentalcycleatatime.
As of December 2022, we have realized over 1.2 million rentals, have over 580,000 active subscriptions, and carried out over 1,500 repairs on averagepermonthtokeepallourtechlike-new.
Throughout this chapter, we will have a closer look at the environmental impact of a circular approach to tech,andtheimpactofourbusiness.
The current, established economy is based on: extracting materials, making and purchasing products,beforethrowingthemaway—alinearway of consuming. As mentioned before, this cycle creates many problems within consumer tech, namely: the depletion of fossil resources, carbon emissions throughout device lifecycles, and the increasingstreamofe-waste.
Clearlyanewvisionforelectronicsproductionand consumptionismoreurgentthaneverandherethe circular economy comes into play. Circular businesses and practices are aimed at eliminating waste and pollution, circulating product and materials,andregeneratingnature by closing the loopforrawmaterials,components,andproducts.
This also includes the 5 Rs: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, and Recycle. How is Grover partofthese?Wepurchasedevices,likeyournext iPhone, Lenovo laptop, or GoPro. Then, we offer these for rental periods between 1-24 months. When returned, we refurbish, clean, perform technical checks, wipe any data, and repair if needed. So, business models around resale and rental—likeGrover—populatethestagesofReduce andReuse.
When items can be rented out again,they serve anotherlifecycle.Thisallowsmaximumvaluetobe extracted from each product and a more sustainable use of devices. Increasing the number ofusecyclesandthepotentiallifetimeoftechhas the potential to prevent e-waste products. Moreover, raw material extraction, wasteful resourceuse,andemissionscanalsobereduced.
Whendevicesreachtheirendoflife,weworkwith partners to investigate other reuse options, and finally, ensure proper recycling treatment (90% of partscanbereusedsomewhereelse).
With that, Grover and our subscribers can contribute to saving resources and reducing e-waste.
While the circularity of our business can lessen the negative impact on the planet, we recognize that our broader activities also create emissions that we must takeresponsibilityfor.
To measure these emissions and form a quantitative base for setting goals, we carried out our first Corporate Carbon Footprint (CCF) assessment for 2021,beforethenadvancingour2022calculations.
Establishing a more holistic CCF for the entire organizationwasanambitiousproject,chieflyasitwas aimedtobeascomprehensiveaspossible.Wesetout to also improve data quality and granularity compared toourfirstCCFin2021.
For our latest CCF we worked with Watershed, who carriedouttheextensivecalculationsonourScope1,2 and3emissions,whilealsoprovidingexpertiseandan objective perspective to the endeavor. The resulting total emissions are given in CO2e —which includes othergreenhousegasses.
The CCF includes direct emissions of our business activities (Scope 1 and 2), as well as indirect value chain emissions (Scope 3). Most importantly, all indirectemissionsassociatedwiththeproductionof anydevices wepurchased areincludedinourcarbon balance.
Our Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions explained: Due to our operational set-up, our Scope 1 and 2 emissionsareratherlow.Thesecovertheimpactfrom air conditioning in our office and from purchased electricityandheatingforouroffices.
Asformostcompanies,ourbiggestimpactcomesfrom Scope 3. The lion’s share of these emissions are associatedwithproductsandserviceswepurchase, includingthemanufacturingofthedevicesweholdin our portfolio. As per international GHG standard, we accountforalldeviceproductionemissionsintheyear we purchase it, adding vendor-specific and life-cycle analysis (LCA) data. This is despite retaining the devicesandrentingthemagain.
Other noteworthy contributors are marketing activities and our operations. All rented products are shipped to our customers and then back to us again for checks, refurbishment and repairs. These shipments incur emissions that are accounted for under transport too. And there’s the impact from warehousing - meaning storing,picking,andpreparingorderstobeshippedto ourcustomers.
Watershedisanenterpriseclimateplatform.Weuse theirsoftwaretorunend-to-endclimateprograms withquantifiableresultsandworkcloselywiththem alongthewholeprocessofcarbonaccounting.
By calculating our CCF, we create a baseline for transparency and better understanding of our impact. Moreover, it’s a crucial input for our overall ESG strategyandsettingclearreductiongoals.
We’restilloptimizingprocessestomakecalculatingour CCF a regular experience. Additionally, ensuring accurate data was extremely arduous, by ways of relevantdatanotalwaysbeingavailableinthedesired quantityandquality.Wherethisisthecase,weworked withWatershedtomakeinformedassumptions.
Our operational set-up also changed considerably during 2022. We engaged new strategic logistics partners and moved our HQ into a new office space. Due to these significant changes, it was decided to focusonimprovingdataqualityandaccuratecoverage ofbusinessareasfirst.Basedontheseadvancements, weplantosetclimatetargets.
Although we haven’t set specific emission reduction goals yet, we have identified impact hotspots and are working on tangible projects to reduce our emissions. Reducing emissions will be our main priority moving forward before considering other measures, like investments in offsetting via avoidance and removal projects.
That being said, we’ve already made progress, especially in our operational set-up. During 2022 we managed to move over 90% of shipments in the US andallshipmentsinSpaintoroadtransport.
To accommodate our growing team, we moved to a newHQinBerlininfall2022, where we will prioritize the use of renewable energies. When looking for the interior of the new office, we paid close attention to the sustainability of it. We chose Linoleum instead of vinyl for our floors and the most sustainable (and recyclable!) furniture we could find. Fun fact: one of our office chair types can be fully recycled! Unfortunately,thisisn’tthestandard.Thismightseem small,butwebelieveitalladdsup.
For facilities that we don’t own but use, we’re in close collaboration with our partners to identify options to reduce energy used in the first place and switch supplierswhereverpossible.This,however,isjustthe firststepofouremissionreductionmeasures.
As outlined, the majority of our impact is scope 3 and comes from the manufacturing of the devices in our portfolio.Wecan’tdirectlycontrolmuchofthatimpact.
As a consequence, in the long-term we want to pursueadualstrategytoworkwithourpartnersand customers to tackle these emissions. This means close collaboration and exchange with our warehouse partners, vendors, suppliers, and brands to identify future opportunities for impact reductions and informingcustomerstransparentlyabouttheimpactof theirchoicesandrenting.
Moreover, understanding the impact of our portfolio
Grover’s circular supply chain is focusing on the reduction of carbon emissions and of waste. Hand in hand with Grover’s sustainability team and 3PL partners we have been optimizing transportation volumes, mode of transportation, andpackaging. SebastianStanelle,DirectorSupplyChain
While the greenhouse gas emissions accounted for in our Corporate Carbon Footprint make up our biggest environmental impact, it isn’t limited to that. Although we don’t produce any products ourselves, our operations still use materials, consume water, use packaging,andcreatewaste.
As part of the holistic sustainability strategy we are currently developing for Grover, we plan to set goals and track our progress in additional environmental areasbesidesclimateimpact.
At our offices, we are working on recycling standards as well as reducing the paper used for office work. Since we have offices in multiple locations with differentnationallawsandrestrictions,wehavetofind a suitable and individual approach for each of our offices.
Movingforward,weaimtoassessdifferentpossibilities tosaveenergy,water,andreducewaste.
We’re committed to the function and condition of the devices we rent to our customers. To protect them sufficiently, they need to be properly packaged. Our shipping boxes are made from 97-99% recycled content. While we still use plastic-based tape and filling material, we’re revisiting our current packaging set-up,adjustingvolumesandmaterialssothatwecan sendallrentalsinthemostefficientway.
4ofourcamerasin ouractiveportfoliohave beenrentedmorethan 20times.
Inthefuture,weaimtomaximizerecycledcontentfor allpackagingcomponents,sendingoutorderswithout any virgin plastic and ensure our packaging is recyclable in all markets while optimizing box sizes to minimize air shipped. Additionally, we plan to explorereusablepackagingopportunities.
Toenablethecontinuousrecirculationofourtech,we also grade, refurbish, and repair the devices when needed. For this, we work closely with a dedicated partnernetworkacrossEurope.Currently,werepairon average over 1,500 devices per month and, as of December 2022, have refurbished almost 300,000 devices (since 2020). By onboarding more repair partnerswemanagedtoincreasetheshareofdevices thatwecanrepairtoalmost90%—upfrom50%within thepasttwoyears.Whilerepairingiscrucialtoprolong the lifetime of devices, it also induces an environmental impact through extra shipping, parts productionandotheroperationalprocesses. Since launching in 2021, we’re now refurbishing and re-renting returned devices within the US, too, reaching almost 1500 refurbished devices by the end of2022-Meaningwe’veachievedcircularityacrossall ourmarkets.
We aim to recirculate devices for as long as possible, though unfortunately, we can’t do so forever. Once a devicereachestheendofitsusefullife,wesellitonto our re-commerce partners for responsible handling. The large majority of devices are sold on for another lifecycle after their life at Grover. As we gain more economiesofscalewiththecategoriesthatwecover, we aim to bring some of these outsourced functions in-housetohavebettercontroloftheprocesses.
Usersenjoycarefreeaccess aslongastheywant
Circularityisinherenttoourbusinessmodel.Whenour customersdon’tneedtheproductanymore,theysend it back, and we rent it out again. This means devices canbesharedamongseveralusersandservemultiple lifecycles. Through maintaining and repairing our devices, we aim to prolong the lifetime and value createdbyeachindividualdevice.
Byrentingoutourdevicesagainandagain,wehave the potential to reduce the amount of total e-waste, whileprovidingthesameaccessandbettervalue. addition to less e-waste being generated, fewer resourcesneedtobeextracted.
To estimate our impact, we built an extensive impact modelbasedonourhistoricaldatafrom2015-2022.
Overall,wereachedover 1.2millioncirculations throughdevicesrented outtocustomersuntil December2022.
Onaverage,eachdevice isrentedoutbetween 3-4times,dependingon theproductcategory.
Withourproductportfoliofrom 2015-2021,weestimateareductionof ~160,000e-wasteproducts.This translatestoapotentialof250tof e-wastesavedthroughGrover circulation.
In2022,weaddedover380,000 productstoourportfolio.Whilethese deviceshavejuststartedtheirrental lifewithus,throughmultiplerental cyclesthesehaveanestimated potentialtoavoid500,000e-waste products.Thiscanbetranslatedinto savingspotentialof~800tof e-waste
Ourmethodology:
Weevaluatetheperformanceofourbusinessmodel viatheaveragenumberofrentalcyclesperdevice to then estimate the number of potential e-waste products saved in each product category (e.g. smartphonesandtablets).
We then translate the number of e-waste devices prevented into CO2e emissions saved, using averageweightsandaverageCO2eemissiondataby productsubcategory(e.g.smartphones).
We account for potential additional consumption induced by our rental model and adjust our impact estimate based on insights from a customer survey performed in December 2021. Emissions from additional transportation, repairs, and refurbishment activitiesarealsoaccountedfor.
Right now, there isn’t an internationally-recognized standardforcalculatingpreventede-wasteproducts oremissionsthroughrenting.We’veputalotofeffort into building up a holistic impact model and have intensively discussed it with a variety of stakeholdersandexperts.Atthesametime,wehad to work with some limitations and assumptions. To ensure plausibility and high standards, we worked together with Fraunhofer IZM who examined our assumptions and methodology carefully and helpeduswithrecommendationsforimprovements.
Going forward, we plan to continuously improve our data set, assumptions and methodology and will work with external stakeholders and experts to continueonthisjourney.
By discussing our approach with external stakeholders, we also want to contribute to the overall advancement of the industry and the development of comparable impact measures of circularbusinessmodels.
Significantprogresswasmadeinunderstandingour environmental impact in the last years. Both in the negative impact we have as a business with our operations and activities, and the positive impact wehavethroughthecircularityofourbusinessand
We’re determined to be transparent and set a solid baseline for our organization to understand the key leversofourimpact.Theinsightsandlearningsfrom ourworkoverthelastyearshelpustobecomeeven better in the future, and most importantly, guide us in developing and implementing a holistic sustainabilitystrategyforGrover.
Moving forward, we want to further boost the circularity impact of our business and minimize We have already started to identify strategic initiatives and lighthouse projects in collaboration with different departments. This includes a review of our global packaging set-up andimplementingmeasurestoreduceourresource
We’rerefiningandoptimizingourdatacollectionand quality in the lead up to calculating our Corporate CarbonFootprint2023.Fromthis,weplantodefine clear reduction goals based on 2023 emissions. In addition,we’llcontinuetodevelopourmethodology on estimating our business model impact calculations in collaboration with external
When it comes to social responsibility, our efforts are centeredaroundtheimpactwehaveonourcustomers and as an employer. For our customers, we focus on offering a service that provides maximum access and flexibility, ensuring a great customer experience,aswellastransparencyandsupport.
As an employer, we focus on creating an inclusive working environment where all our employees can thrive. Within those areas, we identified customer satisfaction, treatment of vulnerable customers, gender diversity and employee development as our mainfocuses.
Rolledoutanewhealthbenefitsplan,includingmental healthsupportandadiscountedemployee membershipforsports.
Introducedcompany-widesalaryandcareerlevels aswellasanEmployeeStockOptionPlan.
GrewourB2Bbusinessby80%thatisespecially tailoredtofreelancersandsmallbusinessesupto 200employees.
Inlinewithourmission,weseektofindnewwaysfor ustoprovidepeoplewiththetechtheyneedbeyond ourcorebusiness.
This is why we are hoping to explore more projects andinitiativestrulyaimingatthat.
We’ve already engaged in a partnership with a social organizationanddonatedselecteddevicesthatwere neededfortheiroperations.Whiletheseareonlyfirst and small steps,we are looking into opportunities to increasetheseefforts.
Furthermore, we plan to look into establishing longer-term partnerships with NGOs, charitable and educational organizations,as well as strategic social partnershipopportunitieswithbusinesses.
RentingwithGroveroffersourcustomerstheopportunity togetthetechtheyneed,whentheyneedit,andforas longastheyneeditfor.Keyfactorsforourbusinessare flexibility and removing the need for upfront costs. That way there’s no need for getting into debt or other financingoptions.
In our offerings and communications, we make all this transparenttothecustomers.Therearenohiddencosts andallpaymentsareclearlyindicatedinourofferings.
When it comes to our customers, it’s important to us to maximize the access to tech while being transparent and ensuring a fair treatment of all customergroups.
Technology is becoming more critical for learning, work,andgenerallife.Bycreatinginnovativeways for everyone to get the tech they need, we give peopletheopportunitytoaccesstechwithoutthe impact of buying, or shouldering repair costs. And we reach a variety of people with that: our customers come from a variety of educational backgrounds,haveawiderangeofincomelevels, and age groups, with our biggest customer group being25-34yearsold.
To reduce risk for us but also for customers to get into debt, we have advanced risk screening processes that rely on a mix of algorithms and machine learning. Additionally, we have dedicated risk screeners in our team that ensure fair treatment whenever the algorithm might be inconclusive. We actively exclude certain data points to avoid bias and only ask for additional informationordataforthescreeningprocesswhenreally necessary.
In the event that our customers do encounter any financialstress,wehavesetupclearinternalcollections policies to find a solution together with the customer on thesituation.Weevaluatecasebycase,andweprotect vulnerablecustomersandhelptheminanywaywecan. The fact that the asset is with the customer makes the process much smoother, as just returning it covers the majorityoftheexposure.
We continuously strive to become a more attractive, inclusive,anddiverseemployer. Ouremployeescome from 73 different countries, working in different locationsspreadover30countries.We’refocusedon attracting diverse talent and provide support during visa processes and relocation. But that’s not enough—we want to make sure that each one of our employeesfeelsincludedandasenseofbelonging.
Diversity,Equity,andInclusionPolicy
Toensurethat,wesetthegoalofdefiningaDiversity,
In the last years, Grover has enjoyed significant growth as a company. Despite rapid growth, our commitmenttohiringemployeesfromawiderangeof backgrounds, and promotion of a diverse working environment,remainedkey.
Moreover, to increase transparency and visibility into payroll and career decisions and further improve respectivedecision-makingprocesses,weintroduced company-wide salary and career levels and company-wide performance review cycles in the beginningofMay2022.
In2022,werolledoutanEmployeeStockOptionPlan for all unlimited employees of Grover in the US and Germany.Hereweenableouremployeestobeapart of the company’s success and ensure that every decisionismadewithan"ownermentality”.
41%
Female% AllEmployees
37%
Female% Leadershiproles (TeamLead andabove)
Another large goal for 2022 has been to advance our employee perks and benefits. As part of this, we introduced a new health benefit plan as of June 2022. This includes mental health support through online sessions with certified experts, and a discountedsportsmembershipthatenablesaccessto a diverse range of activities and providers around the globe.
In 2022, we implemented a bi-annual performance reviewcycleinordertofosteraconsistentfeedback culture company-wide. This helps identify areas where individual employees have seen success, as well as where they can improve. To support this, an annual training budget is available to all employees. We also have existing training in the areas of safety, security, and GDPR, which we would like to increasingly expand to the areas of anti-harassment, anti-bribery,andfraudprevention.
Around25%ofemployeestookthe opportunitytodeveloptheirskills,with around €77,000investedin2022.
Maximizing access to tech has always been a crucial partofourbusiness.Forthefuture,weaimatrealizing abiggerimpactenablingmorepeopletoaccesstechin the way they want, especially people that would otherwise not have access due to social circumstances.
We always want to treat our customers fairly and decently in a transparent manner.In 2022, we made great progress to make this official and to put policies in place. This way, we can ensure that we have processesinplacetoactandreactappropriately.
Aspartofoursocialcommitment,wehaverolledouta charity day, in which all employees are entitled to one day per month to use on any social cause of their choice.
After our main focus in 2022 was kicking-off our sustainabilityambitionswithsettingupabaseforourE of ESG, we are planning to double down on our ambition and initiatives related to social topics especiallywhenitcomestoaccesstotech.
OneofGrover'smostvaluableassetsisitspeople.Operating with a truly global mindset every day, the company has built an environment which allows people to show up as their authentic selves, no matter their background or beliefs. Grover’s business opportunity is vast, and the growth opportunities for people with an entrepreneurial spirit who trulyembracethecorevaluesisequallyvast.
LaraSweet,BoardMember
The G (Governance) in ESG covers the governing of E andS,butmostimportantlyofthewholeorganization.
Ourgovernanceisdesignedtoserveasagatekeeper function. But its purpose is rather to ensure that our valuesandethicalstandardsaretakenintoaccountin everybusinessdecision.Thissetofvaluesistherefore notonlysetoutinourpoliciesandguidelines,butisan integral part of our business functions. For example, the hiring process, in which we conduct a mandatory cultureinterview,aswellasstandardonboarding.
We want to make sure that our targets are met in the different functions. Targets within Governance cover leadership and Board diversity, as well as supplier compliancewithoursustainabilityrequirements.
Increasedgenderdiversityinourboardto 56%femaleBoardmembers.
Introducedariskandauditcommitteetomonitor internalandexternalrisksandthecompany’saudit process.
DefinedourfirstCodeofConductandstartedrollingit outintheendof2022,withfurtherroll-outin2023.
An effective governance structure is essential to embed values and our sustainability strategy throughout our organization, as well as deliver long-term goals. Our aim is to enable our people and our customers to drive positive change, while supporting our partners and stakeholders to make a difference.
During the reporting period, we were successful in appointing outstanding individuals to our Advisory Board and while significantly increasing the proportion of women present, which has risen from 14% to currently 56%. We hope to achieve similar representation at the level of operational management aswell.
Over the next reporting period we will be making considerableendeavorstostrengthenourmeasuresin the areas of process optimization, decision-making, documentation,anddelegationofauthority.
Female/ non-binarymembers
LeadershipTeam AdvisoryBoard
40 Averageageof Leadershipteam
56% Female/ non-binarymembers
57 Averageageof Advisoryboard
WithGrovergrowingmoreandmoreandbeingmoreof a scale up by now, a main focus of our legal and HR teams were to establish processes and committees forrisk,audits,approvals-overallabetterbalanceof responsibilitiesandfairnessfordecision-making.
In 2022 our newly established Risk and Audit Committeetookuptheirwork.Thecommitteeconsists ofindependentandpermanentboardmembersaswell as management from Grover and will monitor internal andexternalrisksandthecompanyauditprocess.
Moreover,weintroducedanenhancedprocessforthe approval of expenditures and outbound contracts as well as a new contract lifecycle management to track workflowsandapprovals.
With the objective of greater transparency in its data handling processes, Grover has adopted various data protection policies for its employees, job applicants as well as business partners. To ensure continuous confidentiality, integrity and availability of information, the company-wide Information Security Policy is regularly reviewed and improved. Moreover, the Business Continuity Plan, Disaster Recovery Plan, and Business Impact Analysis Methodology have been createdtoassesstherisksoforganizationalprocesses withaviewtocreatingpolicies,plans,andprocedures tominimizeanypotentialimpactacrossteams.
Lastly,wedefinedourfirstSupplierCodeofConduct in 2022 to improve sourcing standards in order to ensure overall compliance and ensure to use
SustainabilityhasaspecialplaceatthecoreofGrover,so we’re proud to say that so many of our investors place particular emphasis on it. While our model is intrinsically more sustainable to begin with, we recognize that there’s stillmuchworktobedone—andappreciatethebeliefand supportthatwe’rereceivingtodoit.
BalintVeres,VPCorporateFinance
Groverisbackedbyinvestorsthatbelievein the importance and impact of our business model. Some of these are Impact Investors and as such have a special focus on acceleratingasustainabletransition.
These investors include Energy Impact Partners, M&G, Circularity Capital, and neosfer.
We’re happy to include some of the voices fromourinvestorsinourESGReport.
WebelieveGroverwillreinventsociety’srelationship with consumer tech, and as a result allow us to continue using the products we need while minimizing harm to our planet. Our investment in Grover is part of a mission to help scale start-ups from all over the world who have the ability to advancethetransitiontoamoresustainablefuture.
Nazo Moosa, Managing Partner at Energy Impact
Energy Impact Partners LP (EIP) is a global investment firm leading the transition to a sustainablefuture.EIPbringstogetherentrepreneurs and the world's most forward-looking energy and industrial companies to advance innovation. With over $3 billion in assets under management, EIP invests globally across venture, growth, credit, and infrastructure – and has a team of over 80 professionals based in its offices in New York, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Palm Beach, London,
Grover’s focus on developing sustainable ways to access technology is changing consumer habits for the better. By providing financing through the form of an Asset Backed Security, we are helping Grover to expand its reach, while providingourinstitutionalclientswithattractivecashflows.
ZacharyWebb,HeadofInvestments-EMEAatM&G AboutM&G
M&G Investments is part of M&G plc, a savings and investment business with over €400 billion of assets under management (as at 30 June 2022). M&G recognizes the importanceofresponsibleinvestingandisasignatorytothe United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI) and is a member of the Climate Bonds Initiative PartnersProgramme.
M&G plc has committed to achieve net-zero carbon emissionsonitstotalbookofassetsundermanagementand administrationby2050andcommittedtoreduceoperational carbonemissionsasacorporateentitytonet-zeroby2030.
We believe in the competitive advantage of circularbusinesswhichiswhywe’vebeena proactivesupporterofGrover’sgrowthsince we first invested in the business back in 2018. Grover has proven its economic successtodateandthepowerofitsflexible rental model in disrupting today’s linear ‘take-make-dispose’ model of tech ownership.
Jamie
Butterworth, Founding Partner at CircularityCapitalAboutCircularityCapital
CircularityCapitalwasfoundedin2015bya team who believes that developing a deep understanding of how circular business models drive value, as well as the common challenges they face, is key to supporting entrepreneurs with their growth ambitions. Circularity uses the circular economy as a framework to support investee businesses in decoupling their growth from resource constraints, enhance resource productivity anddrivecompetitiveadvantage.
We are constantly examining our existing policies and standards, acknowledgingboththegreatworkwe’vedonethepastyearand recognizing the need for continual improvement. Today, our position is much stronger, and we are positive to accomplish the nextstepstowardsachievingcertificationforISO27001.
LucianBecher,SVPLegal&Compliance
Putting in place the right standards, policies, and processesistrulycrucialforabusiness.Andwemade majorprogresswhenitcomestothat:introducingtwo new committees, five processes, nine policies, five guidelinesandtwohandbooks.
Looking forward we are continuously improving and strengthening our compliance and are vigorously preparingforadataprotectionauditaswellastheISO 27001 certification to demonstrate our adherence to themostrigoroussecuritycontrolsandbestpractices.
To this end, new data governance and management processes have been introduced and integrated with the company-wide existing systems; the process of handlingdataprivacyrequestsisbeingadvancedwith a sophisticated data governance tool, and periodic audits of vendors by automated security reviews will takeplace.
As a leading force behind the circular economy in consumer electronics and a pioneer in the circular economy more broadly, we want to go beyond our own business and contribute to the development of thewholesector.
With this in mind, we joined several partnerships and initiativesfromtheelectronicssectorthatarefocused on closing or extending loops in electronics to minimize any negative impacts from our everyday tech.
With this shared goal and combined focus, we are confident that these and future partnerships will help leadthechange.
Weseeourroleasadvocatesforcircularpracticesin tech and a need to be transparent and provide insightsonourjourney,methodologies,andlearnings. We did that at several conferences in 2022 most notably as a partner of the Greentech Festival in Berlin.
Collaborationacrosstheindustryandvaluechainsare crucial to shift from negative impact to increase positive impact across all dimensions. Therefore, we wanttocontinueworkingcloselywithpartnersand initiatives to shape the change we want to see. Moreover, we plan to look into ways to assess our efforts, i.e. through certifications to hold us accountableandbettertrackprogress.
Additionally,wewillbemakingaconsiderableeffortto strengthen our processes, decision-making, documentation, and company-wide engagement, over thenextreportingperiod.
In2022,GroverpartneredupwithCircularity, a German professional network and do-tank in ordertopromotethecirculareconomy.Aspartof this, we are a strategic partner of CiCEL, Circularity’s strategic program on Circular Consumer Electronics. CiCEL brings together practitioners from the electronics industry in Germany to set up industry collaborations to implementandboostcircularsolutions.
In 2022, we also became a member of the Circular Electronics Partnership, a global coordination platform for industryleaders,partnersandthewiderstakeholdernetwork which drives collective and converging action on circular electronics initiatives. Together, we aim to address the main barrierstoachievingacircularelectronicsindustryby2030.
You can probably tell that we’ve reached quite a few milestones when it comes to sustainability since setting up a teamfullydedicatedtosustainabilityat Grover Most notably: We calculated our Corporate CarbonFootprintforthesecondtimebynow,setupa comprehensive model to estimate the positive impact fromourcircularoffering,introducedfurtheremployee perks and benefits, and put numerous policies, committees,guidelines,andhandbooksinplace.
It took support from numerous teams across Grover for us in the sustainability team to put together this informative report. This just shows how sustainability resonatesthroughsomanyaspectsofwhatwedo.
Theseeffortsformthebaselineofeverythingtocome. So, our next steps are to bring this ambition into practice by working closely with internal and external stakeholders. We plan to continue to develop and implement initiatives to bring our ambitions around Environment, Social, and Governance to the next level. Moreover, we want to advance this baseline we set, improve our impact calculations and set goals and reduction targets for our footprint based on it. Our overarching goal is to minimize our negative impact on people and the planet and maximize the positive one.
Thisreportandalltheinitiativesofthepastandfuture have been a combined effort not just of the sustainability team, but so many teams and people at Grover.
We are still far from where we want to be when it comes to our environmental, social, and governance impact. But looking back at the past year and ahead towards all the goals and initiatives planned, we’re excitedtoseewhat’stocome.
Westillhavealottolearn,anditwilltakealotofwork and learning from past hiccups, but we couldn’t be more excited to challenge ourselves and our colleagues to develop sustainability at Grover further and reduce our negative impact while simultaneouslyincreasingthepositiveimpact.
Considering that the sustainability team was establishedatGroverjustaboutayearandahalfago, we’re extremely proud of what we could achieve together with our fellow sustainability enthusiasts—whowe’reluckytocallcolleagues.
Lastly, we hope to see you here again in time for our nextreport.We’llbepleasedtosharewhatwe’vebeen up to and share progress on our promises. Until then, stay up to date by following us on our social media channelsorreachouttotheteam.
Thanksforbeingontheroadwithus,
P.S.:Aspecialshout-outgoesouttoMarianneKuhlmann whocoveredforSophieduringherparentalleavein2022, and therefore played a critical role in developing this report.
Page 8
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/1190270/number-of-devices-and-connect ions-per-person-worldwide/
- https://ewastemonitor.info/gem-2020/
Page 15
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jiec.13119
Page 16
- https://ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/topics/circular-economy-introduction/o verview