IoP Journal
Avery Dennison, global materials science company, has just announced in Brazil the launch of AD Stretch, program for the labels and tags industry aimed at establishing partnerships with innovative startups. The objective of the project launched this Wednesday, February 9, 2022, is to identify and solve major challenges in the areas of sustainability, customer experience and value chains, bringing to the market disruptive solutions for the most pressing business challenges.
The program aims to combine Avery Dennison’s experience and global scale with promising startups and inventors to collaborate and grow together in different regions of the World. “Innovation has always been at the heart of Avery Dennison. Now, we are on a mission to expand it and go beyond our own walls to access new ideas, insights and discoveries. The combination of internal and external resources will be a powerful way to drive positive impact and create a collective problem-solving culture that generates real value for our stakeholders and for society as a whole in Latin America and the world”, says Ronaldo Mello, vice president and general manager of Avery Dennison Latin America, in an official company note.
The launch will take place in stages, starting with Latin America and Asia, then progressing to Europe and the United States by the end of this year. For the first stage, which includes Latin America, registration takes place until March 20th. Then, three phases will be carried out to select from 6 to 10 finalist companies. The pilot plan, with the selected companies, is expected to start from the first half of May, extending until November 2022.
The chosen startups will have funding and support for the execution of the pilot program, access to world-class experts and mentors, a network of industry startups they can collaborate with, as well as guidance to support funding and scaling goals.
AD Stretch looks for startups with solutions that fit the areas of regional challenges, that have a product to market and sales traction, and that have dedicated resources for the duration of the program to successfully pilot. The central themes will focus on connecting consumers to brands through new experiences, creating sustainable, responsible and efficient (SRE) value chains and the development of materials and packaging 2.0.
Specifically for Latin America, the challenges will seek to find possibilities for greater engagement and interaction between consumers and their favorite brands, new solutions for reuse, recycling and sustainability of packaging, as well as liner/skeleton waste and the search for new multifunctional materials and materials created from recycled waste.
“When faced with a complex ecosystem, there are challenges and opportunities in equal measure,” says Shruti George, senior director of strategic innovation platforms at Avery Dennison. “In some cases, the solutions are on the existing scale and infrastructure; in other cases, in agility and a blank page, waiting for new ideas. By combining our financial potential with the agility of innovative startups, we are intensifying our efforts to increase supply chain efficiencies, creating the next generation of packaging and solving environmental challenges.”
The acceleration program is partnered with the Highline Beta studio to attract the best, brightest and most innovative startups. For more information about AD Stretch, details and how to participate in the program, visit the website: https://www.adstretch.com/pt/p/1
