Romanian farmers looking for opportunities to collaborate with different companies in the HoReCa segment, as well as having better access to corporate and individual customers, now have the Farmvio e-commerce platform, which required an initial investment of 50,000 euros.
According to estimates, in 2022, Farmvio, launched by entrepreneurs Andrei Mihăiță and Dragoș Popescu, will take its first steps towards regional expansion, entering the markets of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, according to a press release issued Wednesday by Agerpres.
According to forecasts, the company’s turnover will reach about 500,000 euros by the end of 2022. Farmvio’s founders plan to reach 2,000 active farmers on the site by the end of 2021, and within the first year of launch the platform will encompass 10,000 farmers and 50,000 customers, both individuals and companies in areas such as HoReCa or processing.
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“Farmvio is, from all our observations, the most complex platform of its kind in terms of its operating mechanism. Basically, the website integrates an AI-based algorithm that allows us to take different data from farmers, such as available harvest or price, and generate highly specialized offers for the HoReCa segment. We create an ecosystem where we incorporate technology, with suppliers’ offers and logistic and marketing tools, the goal being to help farmers come up with competitive offers, compared to the big retailers”, explained Dragoș Popescu, founder of Farmvio.
Farmers will be accepted on the basis of documents proving that they are producers, Farmvio being conceived as a virtual shop from which all categories of food that can be produced on a farm can be bought: vegetables, fruit, meat and meat specialties, dairy and eggs, bakery products, preserves and jams, natural non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages, etc. The founders of the platform have designed a system that uses, in addition to AI-based systems, also IoT, to perfectly match customers with suppliers, depending on exact needs, available stocks and proximity.
Farmvio distinguishes itself from other platforms on which farmers can market their products through several features. These include the ability to manage the account, build a visual identity, market products and receive direct customer feedback, free of charge, for as long as the farmer is active on the platform.
According to the founders, another asset is product traceability, a process through which customers can always know which farm and batch the products come from, which seasons they are available in or when pre-orders can be placed. Farmvio has also created an ecosystem where farmers active on the platform can help each other on a supply and demand basis.
“If, for example, one farmer needs bumblebees for pollination, he can get them as soon as possible from another farmer who has an account on Farmvio. We will also act as an aggregator in cases where an order exceeds the delivery capacity of one farm. We have thought of this platform as a way to encourage farmers and support them in finding customers. Entrepreneurship in the agricultural segment is one of the drivers of growth in this sector in Romania, and our aim is to make life as easy as possible for farmers. We wanted to give them the opportunity to tell their story in relevant words and images and help them reach customers of all kinds, whether we are talking about HoReCa players or people who want to eat as healthy as possible and buy for their own consumption”, added Dragoș Popescu.
Farmvio is a self-funded concept, and for the next stages of development, the two entrepreneurs will call on European funds and private investors.
Farmvio is a start-up launched in 2021 by Romanian entrepreneurs Andrei Mihăiță and Dragoș Popescu, which brings together farmers and customers, be they companies or individuals. The platform manages and coordinates B2B orders, with everything else that involves interacting with individuals then becoming the responsibility of the farmer. There are currently 4,000 pre-selected accounts on the platform for farmers to activate. One of the goals is that by the end of 2021, Farmvio will have 2,000 active and 30,000 pre-selected accounts. According to the founders, the company’s turnover will reach around €500,000 by the end of 2022.
Edited for English