Walk15, a Vilnius-based sustainable mobility startup, has secured €1 million from venture capital fund Coinvest Capital, the “8NGLS” syndicate led by Justinas Pašys, CEO of PVcase, and others. The company, which promotes sustainable movement and living, engages employees, clients, and community members in activities across multiple markets. With over 640,000 users and 1,300 businesses worldwide, Walk15 plans to use the funding to expand into the German market, following the opening of a new office in Berlin.
At the end of last year, Walk15 reached a valuation of 15 million euros and attracted a €500K investment – among the investors was Mantas Mikuckas, co-founder of the Lithuanian unicorn Vinted.
“This investment was driven by three key factors: sustainability, global reach, and women’s empowerment. We concluded negotiations for the investment with the founder of the startup, Vlada Musvydaite, according to the philosophy of Walk15 – with a one-and-a-half-hour walk late in the evening in the beautiful Old Town of Vilnius. The results achieved by the entire Walk15 team, high-quality business and risk management, strategy, Vlada’s personality and enthusiasm, the global and unrestrained vision to make healthiness an everyday habit for everyone, inspire and unite all investors into a strong support team. We are delighted to become an equal part of the Walk15 team”, says Viktorija Trimbel, CEO of Coinvest Capital.
“Impressive achievements of the startup and trust in the founders – that’s what determined our decision to invest in Walk15. We have been collaborating with Vlada Musvydaite and her team for four years now, and we are impressed by their ambition and results – over the past three years, the startup has grown 8 times, significantly expanded its business client and app user base, and made successful strides internationally”, says Justinas Pašys.
The startup team actively engages employees and clients of companies, along with community members and educational institutions, in sustainable mobility activities across markets including Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Denmark, Romania, Germany, the United Kingdom, and beyond. The list of strategic Walk15 partners and clients includes international organizations and businesses such as Euroleague, ERGO, PENNY, unicorns Vinted, Nord Security, and others. It is calculated that more than 10,000 step challenges have been created over the past four years.
“We are growing very fast – this is evidenced by our client geography, the attention of international investors, and our portfolio of competencies. Today, we can be proud not only of a fully formed international team of experienced professionals but also of collaboration with scientists. On a global scale, we address the problem of decreasing physical activity in society and the resulting personal health and healthcare system issues at the national level. I thank the business angels of Lithuania for their continuous support and belief – the latest investment for our team will allow us to reach one of the most important world markets – Germany”, says Vlada Musvydaite-Vilčiauskė, founder and CEO of Walk15.
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Originally published on ArcticStartup : Original article