Mercadona and Lanzadera promote the development of companies capable of contributing to the sustainable development of the food production chain in order to respond to society's growing demand for environmental care and sustainability. Both have launched a Corporate Program aimed at innovative entrepreneurs in the following 5 areas: healthy products, energy savings, reduction and elimination of plastic, urban distribution model, and waste management.

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The Corporate Program is designed to complement Mercadona's innovation strategy from areas outside the company itself, with the aim of offering solutions to large corporations.

Through this initiative, Lanzadera adds new actions to programs already implemented in collaboration with large companies from very diverse fields, which have resulted in proposals that offer innovation and progress to the company and to the Spanish business fabric. 

Now, it will be Mercadona who leads the Lanzadera Corporate Program by providing sector knowledge and a business management methodology inherent in the accelerator. Both entities will promote startups capable of solving the challenges posed, with customer benefit as the focus of all decisions.

"Lanzadera is proud to be able to support Mercadona in its firm commitment to innovation by supporting entrepreneurs capable of solving the challenges that the company is currently facing," says Javier Jiménez, Managing Director of Lanzadera.

According to Nichan Bakkalian, Mercadona Organization Manager, “the Corporate Program will enable us to access people and ideas that want to join us and act as drivers of change to advance sustainability. We will work together to face these five great challenges and seek disruptive and innovative proposals that have a transformative effect in areas where society is demanding solutions. At Mercadona, we want to create this open environment to attract external talent of people determined to innovate, with daring and brave proposals. It is a great opportunity for everyone.”

A panel, formed by experts from Mercadona and Lanzadera, will carry out the process of selecting entrepreneurs, whose proposals must be implemented and materialized throughout the acceleration program, which will begin in January 2020 and will last up to 11 months.

During this phase, Mercadona will be able to acquire the products or services that the startup has developed and thus, become its customer. The Corporate Program is “equity-free”, which means that the entrepreneur is not required to assign any percentage of the company for participation.

Throughout the process, the selected companies will have financial support and training and access to mentors and professionals from both organizations. They will also have the support of Mercadona specialists and corporate centres to validate the progress made. In addition, they will be able to learn and apply the Total Quality business management model.

The entrepreneurs will have at their disposal the facilities of Marina de Empresas to develop their proposals and be in contact with other startups in an enriching work atmosphere.

The registration period for the Mercadona Corporate Program is now open and will end on November 4. Entrepreneurs may submit their application through the Lanzadera website, regardless of the degree of maturity of their proposals: from ideas that need to be developed to those already implemented in companies.

About Mercadona

Mercadona is a physical supermarket and online sales company with presence in Spain and Portugal. With a workforce of 87,000 personnel, with 900 in Portugal, in 2018, it achieved sales of 24.3 billion euros, registering an increase of 6% over the previous year. The company, which, in 2018, made a record investment worth 1.5 billion, achieved a net profit of 593 million euros. And, within its shared growth policy, it has distributed a total of 325 million euros among its workforce under the concept of bonuses for objectives achieved.

This initiative is part of Mercadona's commitment to society: to share with it the wealth it generates. With this objective, the company's Social Responsibility Plan is developed, which addresses the social and ethical component through different sustainable lines of action that reinforce its commitment to shared growth. An important part of Mercadona's Social Responsibility Plan is environmental sustainability, focused on, among other aspects, logistics optimization and management of urban distribution, energy efficiency and savings, the reduction of plastics and waste, and promotion of healthy eating.

About Marina de Empresas and Lanzadera

The Lanzadera startup incubator and accelerator comprises the Marina de Empresas entrepreneurship hub, together with EDEM Business School and the investment company, Angels. This is an initiative of Juan Roig, located in the Marina de València, whose mission is to provide training, advising, and financing for the entrepreneurs of today and the future and that constitutes a commitment to the creation of wealth and employment and promotion of the culture of entrepreneurship.

Lanzadera offers different programs depending on the type and maturity of companies and projects. Additionally, it has corporate agreements with another 8 large international projection companies from various sectors, in which entrepreneurs are offered the possibility of solving new innovation challenges posed. To become part of the programs, entrepreneurs may send their project to www.lanzadera.es.

For more information visit the Corporate program website.

Nichan Bakkalian, Mercadona Organization Manager with Javier Jiménez Marco, Lanzadera Managing Director, at the Marina de Empresas installations.

Javier Jiménez Marco, Lanzadera Managing Director, and Nichan Bakkalian, Mercadona Organization Manager, during the signing of the new Corporate Program agreement.