Internet of Things company, Novek, to receive share of $1 million Mastercard Strive Community grant
Summary
Novek, an Internet-of-Things (IOT) company has been announced as one of eight global recipients of the inaugural round of grants from the Strive Community Innovation Fund.The UK-based company working with micro-retailers in Kenya, will receive a share of $1 million in total grant funding towards their work developing an IOT-enabled washing powder dispenser enabling Kenyan micro-retailers to better serve their customers.Small businesses are key to our success as a company, said Zahid Mitha, CEO of Novek. We believe that if we improve both the product they deliver to customers and their incomes, we will ultimately drive economic prosperity for everyone.Washing powder is a widely sold, everyday commodity which comes with a large environmental impact due to its use of single-use plastics, and customer demand is varied in terms of quantities leading to complexities in stock management. Novek, alongside the seven other awardees, is transforming how small businesses operate and are supported in a world that is rapidly digitizing.Strive Community is a global philanthropic initiative launched by the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth in partnership with Caribou Digital. Since companies that struggle to make effective use of new technologies risk being left behind, the Innovation Fund was established to spark truly innovative, digital, and data-first solutions that will boost small businesses efforts to go digital.Digital technologies are rapidly transforming the way businesses interact with their customers, with their employees, and with a global marketplace, said Shamina Singh, President of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth. This will help micro retailers better serve their customers, leading to more sales and revenue.The other winners, chosen from more than 650 applicants globally, are as follows:Trialling a new service that combines data analysis, behavioural science and conversational commerce to empower small retailers with insights to make them more resilient.Using behavioral insights, open banking data combined with tried & tested game-mechanics to drive improved financial management and financial decision-making by small business owners.Testing the potential of virtual reality (VR) to upskill small businesses, by bringing learners into immersive experiences.Creating a marketplace that leverages open data about government contract awards to seamlessly connect small businesses winning contracts with financial institutions who can offer them credit.Connecting traditional merchants to the most appropriate digitization tools by creating a marketplace.Building new features that reduce friction in the sales process for small businesses selling via social commerce.