Why we invested in Irrigreen
If you’ve ever been standing on a sidewalk just to be sprayed by a misdirected stream of water being fired onto concrete, you know how idiotic the traditional sprinkler is. Existing sprinkler systems suck and there are no substitutes. They are wasteful, expensive, unreliable, difficult to install, maintain, and control. They just spray water in an arc regardless of the shape of the target surface, wasting billions of gallons of usually potable water every year. Finally, the humble sprinkler is getting a much-needed upgrade. Irrigreen is solving the fundamental problem that circles can’t cover a square.
Irrigreen’s new generation of sprinkler takes the logic of inkjet printing to fire water from a central point evenly over the exact outline of your grass (check out the video on their homepage). Their website automatically calculates the cost and savings, so you know exactly how much money and water you will save. It’s a brilliant piece of technology - a deceptively simple and effective intervention that clearly resonates with the market and is proven to save more than 40% of outdoor water usage (currently 8bn gallons per day in the US). We’re thrilled to announce our investment in Irrigreen. Shane, Gary and the entire team - thanks for letting us hop aboard. Here’s why we did it.
Major leap forward in a legacy market
There is an awful lot of irrigation that goes on from residential lawns to sports fields to golf courses, even before you get to agriculture. And with sprinklers that have to overlap their arcs to achieve full coverage, you’re effectively watering twice as much as you need to. The controller is all very well, but if the mode of delivery sucks (the sprinkler itself), you’re still pouring water, energy, and money down the drain. The elimination of the overlap is the secret. They built the first unit as an answer to the question “what if we could print the water to a specific lawn shape from a single point source?” Their solution allows them do the work of up to 40 regular sprinklers with just five Irrigreen sprinkler heads. It’s a no-brainer for homeowners and contractors alike.
Founder track record and experience
Co-Founders Shane (CEO) and Gary (CTO) have the ideal overlapping circles of experience. Shane (CEO) founded three previous companies and brings 20 years worth of deep deep IoT knowledge, as well as experience selling into irrigation. Gary (CTO) has been responsible for much of the history of the inkjet printer through Creative Innovation Strategies, HID Global, and Fargo Electronics. Together they have been able to build the foundations of their company around a sophisticated, differentiated, affordable, reliable product, with a clear value proposition and go-to-market strategy.
Remarkable results and growth
Irrigreen has experienced tremendous growth 2-5x per year and they’ve maintained excellent unit economics while transforming the customer experience. They have a rapid learning cycle customer by customer, especially through landscaping contractors. Contractors have yielded major market insights that have allowed Irrigreen to establish themselves in the market quickly as an enabler of the key gatekeepers. Because it is so much simpler and faster to install, as well as being more reliable, contractors double their profitability with the Irrigreen system with no difference in price to the end user.
Considerable Moats in a HUGE Market
Irrigreen’s moats are considerable. They’ve proven a 40% increase in water efficiency via a third party study and have brought together an impressive IP suite (with more to come) that make it them difficult to follow - and respond to. The residential market alone is enormous, and the headwinds from the “turf revolution” are minimal given the rapid expansion in irrigation requirements from rising temperatures. Plus more and more of the country (and indeed the world) requires irrigation. If they can get the product plan right, they’ll be ready to dominate secondary markets including sports fields, golf courses etc., before applying their technology to agriculture. It’s a potential efficiency revolution for more than half of all water use.
Irrigreen sprinklers print the water to the grass. It’s nothing less than a paradigm shift in this thirsty area of the economy. It’s a simple idea made real through sophisticated technology and a highly skilled team who are driven by a deep sense of urgency in reducing pressures on our water supply. We’re deeply excited for the possibilities ahead. Thanks, Shane, Gary and the entire team at Irrigreen for welcoming us onto your lawn.