Verdafero featured in SJ Biz Journal "The Pitch"

Verdafero was featured in the February 5, 2010 edition of the Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal section on emerging start-up companies entitled "The Pitch". The cover photo featured CEO Merc Martinelli and COO Alastair Hood with the accompanying article giving an overview of the business plan 'pitch'.

The Business Journal reaches over 40,000 local business people every week and is part of bizjournals.com, the media division of American City Business Journals, the nation's largest publisher of metropolitan business newspapers. The full text of the article reads as follows:

THE BUSINESS: Verdafero Inc. has developed a software-as-a-service platform that can be used for sustainability planning, energy efficiency and carbon management services for small and medium enterprise businesses. Customers use the tool to develop a sustainability plan by analyzing best practices and specific savings potential in their energy and material use as well as the environmental impact of their products and associated waste byproducts. Verdafero says it helps its customers stay ahead of supplier approval requirements, increase competitive advantage and improve profitability through cost reductions across their business operations.

HOW IT MAKES MONEY: Monthly or annual subscription fees. Verdafero also offers consulting engagements for its clients.

BUSINESS OR TECHNOLOGY IT COULD DISRUPT: Rather than being disruptive to existing businesses, Verdafero hopes to partner with consultants and cleantech companies.

MANAGEMENT TEAM: CEO Merc Martinelli is a certified sustainability consultant and previously worked at Cisco Systems Inc. where he led the new product introduction department within the enterprise line of business. Chief Operating Officer Alastair Hood is a business, technology and energy efficiency consultant, and he has worked with emerging companies in the U.K., Ireland and Australia. Previously he worked at Agilent Technologies Inc. and was a founding team member and development director of Nanosight Ltd., a U.K. nanotechnology startup, where he helped raise in excess of $10 million in startup funding.

BOARD OF ADVISERS: Steve Anderson, founder and managing partner at Marquis Advisory; Sean Murphy, founder of SKMurphy Inc.; Darcy Hitchcock, president of AXIS Performance Advisors; Laura Meadors, former vice consul, renewables and financial services, at the British Consulate General.

MONEY BEING SOUGHT: $950,000

PARTNERSHIPS, AFFILIATIONS: Verdafero has partnered with AXIS Performance, a sustainability consulting practice. The company co-sponsored the first Green Software Unconference in August at the Computer History Museum. In September, it announced a sales and promotion agreement with Greening Point Inc., which helps businesses and communities reduce their carbon footprints and other environmental impacts.

POTENTIAL MARKET: A recent study by Pike Research said the multibillion-dollar market for products and services in carbon management is poised for a 40 percent compound annual growth rate until 2017. Verdafero estimates the U.S.-based small and medium enterprise portion of that market to be in excess of $1 billion.

LIKELY COMPETITORS: Verdafero says there are a number of competitors addressing the large enterprise space, and for the most part there is not a focus on providing these services to smaller businesses.

At-a-glance

Verdafero Inc.
Headquarters: Palo Alto
CEO: Merc Martinelli
Founded: 2008
Employees: 5
Web: http://verdafero.com
Phone: 650.206.2441