Subscription Tech Firm Grover Closes €250M In Debt Equity

Berlin-based “pay as you go” tech subscription startup Grover has closed an asset-backed financing deal that adds to its existing debt facility with Varengold Bank to the tune of €250 million, according to a report by TechCrunch.

Grover said it’s going to use the money to expand and attempt to scale up. The capital is an increase of an existing €55 million debt facility it has with Varengold, and it’s from a supporting debt investor that hasn’t been named.

Grover’s business model, of buying expensive electronic items and allowing them to be rented out, is fairly cost heavy.

The company currently works out of Austria and Germany, and it plans to add more markets this year. Grover calls its business part of the “circular economy,” where customers choose renting instead of owning, with an option to buy eventually should they choose to do so. The company was started in 2015. It has over 1500 tech products available, including virtual reality (VR) gear and wearables.

The idea behind the way Grover operates is that it provides a better way to consume objects, as they’ll have more owners over their lifetime, and it’s more sustainable.

Grover offers subscriptions on its website for customers, and it has also teamed up with electronics retailers, which means customers can choose to rent at the point of sale instead of buying.

The company has a good presence in Germany, and says it’s in 500 brick-and-mortar stores throughout the country. It also says that it’s available in the online ecosphere of eight electronics retailers in Europe.

The company also has plans to expand its business to business (B2B) department to keep up with the demand from its business customers. Also, the company wants to develop out its eMobility business, with an eventual goal of making micro mobility vehicles available to customers month by month.