Nordrhein-Westfalen’s Hot Startups Behind ‘Toniebox’
Cover photo source=Digital Hub Website
From Children’s Audiobooks to Vegan Foods, Biotechnology, Logistics, and Smart Grid Platforms
Located in western Germany, Nordrhein-Westfalen (NRW) is the country’s most densely populated region and borders Belgium and the Netherlands, making it easy to expand into other parts of Europe. In other words, it offers optimal conditions for a wide range of industries to flourish. Until the 1970s, it held an important position in the German and European economy thanks to the booming mining and steel industries; since then, it has maintained a robust economy built on ‘hidden champion’ companies in high-tech industries and services. Today, we introduce the rising startups of NRW.
‘Toniebox’, a Smart Audiobook Player for Children
Toniebox is an audiobook player that is commonly found in German households with children. A set consists of a small figurine containing a story and a box-shaped speaker. When the figurine is placed on top of the speaker, music or stories start playing. By purchasing new figurines, children can change stories or music, and new content can also be downloaded via an app. Once charged, it can be used wirelessly for about seven hours, making it perfect for outdoor use.
Toniebox founders Patric and Marcus. Photo=tonies.com
The startup behind Toniebox is Boxine GmbH, which opened in Düsseldorf in 2016. The two founders, Patric Faßbender and Marcus Stahl, are both fathers. They were working as ordinary employees in an advertising agency and an electronics company, respectively, when they felt the need for a smart audiobook player while raising their children and subsequently founded the company.
Toniebox gained sensational popularity, selling 30,000 units immediately upon release. Becoming more widely known after winning the German Design Award in 2017, its sales exceeded 100 million euros by 2020, with over 2 million Tonieboxes and 20 million Tonie figurines sold. Initially, it was sold in a limited manner in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland with only German content. However, with the launch of English content, it expanded into English-speaking markets such as the UK, US, and Ireland, growing significantly. Recently, Toniebox has also started to gain popularity among Korean parents interested in English education.
Biotech Startup ‘Numaferm’
Numaferm is one of the most successful startups in Düsseldorf. Founded in 2017 as a spin-off from the Institute of Biochemistry at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, it is a biotechnology startup.
Numaferm research team. Photo=numaferm.com
Numaferm can produce peptides derived from amino acids at a low cost—about one-tenth of conventional methods. Peptides, as the “smallest units with protein functions,” can be utilized in various fields, making the substance itself close to a platform technology. Notably, Numaferm possesses innovative technology that shortens the production period to within 6 to 9 months when using peptides as active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Although the company size is small, it holds solid technical capabilities driven by a research team of over 15 PhD-level experts. Numaferm’s technology can be used in vaccinations, allergy treatment, diagnostics, oncology, diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular diseases, and has infinite potential with broad applications in agriculture, aquaculture, cosmetics, and food.
Vegan Ice Cream Brand ‘Nomoo’
Nomoo is a startup that makes vegan ice cream. University students Rebecca Göckel and Jan Grabow decided to found the startup after watching the Netflix documentary ‘Cowspiracy’. The documentary explores the hidden truths of animal agriculture, highlighting the negative impacts of factory farming, meat consumption, and the livestock industry on the environment. The two founders decided to reflect on animal product consumption and contribute to future society by creating delicious vegan food ingredients.
Limited edition Rosé Basil sparkling wine and cherry ice cream produced by Nomoo. Photo=nomoo.de
It all began in 2016 by renting a small kitchen in Cologne to produce various ice cream prototypes without additives, based on fruits, herbs, and coconut milk. Once confident in the taste, they opened a cafe to meet consumers directly and gather feedback. In 2018, they initiated factory production and established a logistics system to create a distribution channel. In 2019, they began supplying German organic supermarket chain Alnatura and wholesale supermarket Metro. Currently, Nomoo’s ice cream can be purchased in over 1,500 supermarkets across Germany. This year, they are expanding into Austria and Switzerland, continuing their steady growth.
Intelligent Smart Grid Platform ‘Envelio’
Envelio opened its doors in 2017 as a spin-off from the Institute for High Voltage Technology at RWTH Aachen University, a prestigious German institution. By integrating information and communication technology into the processes of electricity generation, transmission, and consumption through their intelligent smart grid platform, they build intelligent power grid systems, providing software platforms to energy and electricity operators, and leading the way in energy transition.
Software from the intelligent smart grid platform Envelio. Photo=envelio.com
The five founders joined forces while co-authoring a paper on “intelligent smart power distribution networks.” Deciding to develop real-world software based on the algorithms studied in their paper, they moved from Aachen to Cologne to start their business. Today, it has grown into a global startup with over 70 employees from 19 different countries. Their client base now numbers 35 across Europe and South America, including major energy corporations like Vattenfall.
Workers’ Physical Labor Analysis Tool ‘MotionMiners’
MotionMiners also began with a paper. In 2017, Sascha Feldhorst, who was working at the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics in Dortmund, published a paper titled “Automatic Activity and Context Recognition for Picking Process Analysis.” The paper was inspired by fitness tracking apps used during jogging. This led to the creation of an analytical tool for real-world use, marking the beginning of MotionMiners. The company fully spun off from the Fraunhofer Institute in 2019.
MotionMiners, which efficiently measures and analyzes workers’ physical movements. Photo=motionminers.com
Through its MotionMiners tool, the startup helps logistics companies optimize processes and ergonomically analyze workers’ movements to build efficient systems. It is also used in healthcare. The tool is applied to suggest optimal paths and movements for nurses or caregivers moving beds from rooms to operating or treatment rooms, and to optimize supply prep and cleaning in operating rooms. Having completed successful projects with Deutsche Bahn and logistics giant DHL, MotionMiners was named NRW’s top digital startup in 2020.
Eunseo Yi eunseo.yi@123factory.de
This article was edited and adapted from the “European Startup Chronicles” series in BizHankook.