Rotterdam scale-up Corekees already raises over 150,000 euros with crowdfunding

Rotterdam, March 14, 2024 - The green investment platform Corekees wants to reach more people with their sustainable, international projects. This requires capital and investors can therefore buy shares in the Rotterdam-based scale-up via crowdfunding. Even before going live on crowdfunding platform Seedblink, over 150,000 euros was raised in the preliminary round.

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Photo: Team Corekees with products representing their projects.

120 acres of reforestation with 60,000 trees 

Currently, the family company Corekees (owners Nick and Tamar van Heesewijk are cousins) manages investments from over 1,500 investors in six projects and total assets under management of 2 million euros. Since its founding in 2018, Corekees has been successful through a concept of four t's: tangible, monitoring, transparent and against greenwashing. Participation in the projects is very tangible. For example, for 22.50 euros you plant a tree back in Paraguay, in an area where many trees were previously cut down. The nuts of these trees consist of vegetable oil, which can be converted into biodiesel. The trees will be planted along with trees native to the area. In this way, the project provides local biodiversity and employment. With the reforestation project, Corekees already raised 1.2 million euros, good for 60,000 trees and 120 hectares of reforestation.

'What makes our projects unique is that it is super tangible what you are investing in and that we actively manage the projects,' says Nick van Heesewijk. 'We are really on top of things, together with our local partners and the local population. This allows us to communicate transparently and in detail to our investors.'

Society wants green investment, but gets greenwashing

Such project management is needed. Many news media have reported in recent years on investments in so-called green investments, some of which end up in fossil projects or companies. Such a picture also emerges from research by the ASN Bank emerged. Half of sustainable investors feel misled when it appears that a sustainable fund is investing in the fossil industry, that report states. Posing as greener or more socially responsible than an organization actually is is called greenwashing.

Corekees' projects raise the bar. They are examples of impact investing: investing with a positive impact on society, environment and climate. This goes one step further than corporate social responsibility or ESG (Environmental, Social and Governmental). ESG is about minimizing negative impacts on people, the environment and the climate. 

That strategy goes extremely well with returns. The investment projects have an expected return of 6 to 8 percent per year.

Crowdfunding for the good cause 

Crowdfunding takes place through SeedBlink, one of Europe's largest crowdfunding platforms for scale-ups. The crowdfunding gives investors the opportunity to become co-owners of Corekees and contribute to the growth of Corekees' impactful investments. In addition to the Paraguayan tree project, these include reforestation of the Amazon, innovative bamboo cultivation in Portugal and the cultivation of organically grown ginger and turmeric. Nick van Heesewijk: "With the money we raise through crowdfunding, we want to make current projects bigger and start new ones. In addition, we hope to serve our current investors even better and appeal to new investors, including companies.' 

The more than 150,000 euros raised in the preliminary round came from current customers. From 2,500 euros, investors can get in.