#065 - How to care about sustainability to get rid of plastic bottles (and still make a profit), with Moritz Waldstein of Mitte, Germany

The Hardware Entrepreneur

My guest in this episode is Moritz Waldstein-Wartenberg of Mitte from Berlin, Germany.

We all drink water, mostly, I guess. I drink it in my tea, usually Fennel Anis Cumin bio tea, I drink it many times per day. Or I consume water in its pure form. But is water really pure? If it’s not pure, for example tap water, which we drink many times in Europe, how do you make sure you have a high quality water at home without going to the supermarket, paying for it and without taking, then throwing out the plastic bottles? And if you get it in the supermarket, is that good enough water for us?

Mitte addresses these points mentioned. With Moritz we talked about different technologies to purify water, how Mitte started out, the milestones they reached and how they got to the current investment round of 10 million. We also covered some of the strategies and tactics they used. We also touched on agile transformation, a topic covered in the last episode.

Enjoy this episode.

Raw transcript is available at: https://www.thehardwareentrepreneur.com

Show highlights can be seen below:

• What Mitte adds to their product that makes it unique and how they go beyond the standard for every user [2:40]
• Some very important actions to consider on your way to a successful crowdfunding campaign [8:55]
• Designing contracts when working with bigger companies as partners and other helpful skills in the initial start-up stage [14:56]
• A nature-like technology that’s a good offer for both people and the planet [19:28]
• The difference between working in silos and work streams [23:18]
• If you could go back in time in your 20s, what notes would you give yourself? [27:00]
• If you had to name a book, which one had the biggest impact on your entrepreneurial career? [28:00]
• Why morning routines are important for Moritz [30:33]
• Why diversity brings strength to companies and what it requires [31:28]
• What is the best way to reach Moritz? [33:51]