The commerce platform offers merchants with software making it easy and profitable to take part in the circular economy.
The World Economic Forum predicts the future will consist of people renting whatever they need instead of buying it. They also predict that people won’t own anything at all; instead, they’ll be happy with nothing to their names. This is because the forum believes the world will change in one of eight ways by 2030. One of these changes is said to be a reflection of our excessive desire to consume.
Supplying what the changing consumer demands spurred Rentle to raise $3.8 million in funding. This enabled them to assist merchants in a circular economy commerce platform. After this funding, Rentle intended to expand their global presence with the intention of assisting merchants in increasing their inventory in a sustainable manner. The funding was provided by leading financial service investors such as Maki.vc, Anthemis, Tera Ventures and The Fund. Additionally, Rentle secured backing from U.S. and European family offices and angel investors.
Rentle is a commerce platform launched in 2019. It focuses on the circular economy and offers software for easy participation. The platform claims to be different from other platforms such as Shopify due to its ability to launch a circular business model quickly. Rentle’s merchants include small businesses, ski resorts, Decathlon UK and Motonet brands, and other entrepreneurs.
Rentle co-founder and CEO Tuomo Laine said, “Our goal is to end the world’s consumption of disposable products. We plan to accomplish this by ending one-time purchases at individual merchants. We’re developing technology that helps vendors transition to more profitable and sustainable circular business models. Consumers will benefit from easy access to higher quality products at lower prices.”
Sophie Winwood, the Anthemis School principal, said that a significant behavioral shift requires a technological foundation. She added that this is necessary when people move from buying products to leasing them. Rentle is the necessary foundation for this shift, which Winwood said would funnel significant business opportunities and revenue streams from fintech and insurtech services.
