Earlier this week we shared a report on Pollen + Grace’s crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs Crowdfunding: Pollen + Grace.
On Monday afternoon @Kris will be answering any questions that you have for them, in this thread. Ask your questions now & we’ll hear from them next week 
Part of the money is to be used to ‘expand outside London’. Are there plans or negotiations already underway with other retailers?
Both the vegan and grab and go market has expanded massively in the last couple of years so there are any cheaper alternatives. What sets Pollen + Grace apart from supermarket brands that means you anticipate large growth?
You mention in your pitch deck that you’re planning to add a few more product lines, beyond grab + go, are there any in particular that you think have the most potential?
Looking at this with limited knowledge, your margins seem fairly low, for a product that’s mostly made from fruit & vegetables?
As I mentioned I have limited knowledge in this area so maybe they’re actually quite good. Is there any useful comparatives you can offer?
How much of if the fresh produce you need is grown in the U.K. and how much is imported? If a large % imported then what plans to you have to deal with a no deal Brexit and the potential for disruption to fresh food imports?
Hi Emma,
Thank you so much for your comments.
Yes, we have two confirmed deals with Tesco and Co-op which will be launching in Q2, meaning we will soon start delivering outside of London. There is another major project we are working on - we are not able to disclose the name of the client just yet but some of the locations we will be delivering to are outside of London too.
We also work with Compass Group, supplying to some of the top offices in London and we have also recently started working with our first out-of-London account in Birmingham. And there will be many more to come.
In regards to our USP - it is the quality and integrity of our products. All our products are always 100% natural (no chemicals or preservatives, ever!) and free from wheat, gluten and dairy. Our full range is designed with nutrition at the forefront - we look beyond the traditional macros and focus on the health benefits of each ingredient we choose to use, in order to deliver a high content of vitamins and minerals in each one of our meals.
But most importantly - you can trust that our food will always be really delicious! We love food and we want each meal to be an experience - a really good one! 
Hi Alex,
We love NPD and we have tonnes of product ideas!
Probably the most exciting one right now is a line of salad sauces and dressings - which we are planning to launch by the end of this year. We are famous for our dressings which we make in-house and we think there is a huge gap in the market for a really quality product in this category.
Think unpasteurised, enhanced with superfoods and really delicious!
Hi Emma,
That’s a very good question.
Since the UK is only about 50% self-sufficient for its total vegetable consumption, we are pretty much in the same boat as most businesses in our space.
Our main fresh produce suppliers are working on securing the supply chain in a case of no deal Brexit - establishing long-term deals with UK and non UK growers, hedging currency and securing labour. This is to ensure supply can continue.
We do have our plans in place - we are currently securing deals with a number of smaller suppliers, as well as planning our NPD around the limited availability of produce that is mainly imported from the EU. Other than that, we have weekly Brexit meetings to make sure we are on top of the news and can react quickly to any changes and updates.
In the meantime, we hope a deal will be achieved and we will not have to revert to any of our emergency plans, anytime soon.
Hi Chris,
Thank you for your comment.
We achieve the average of 70% gross margin after the food cost, which is very much aligned with the industry standard. Our average 2018 gross margin after food, packaging and delivery was 47% and our results are improving on monthly basis. Our aim for this year is to improve our gross margins by 4-6%, which is completely doable as our volumes grow significantly and we will make the most of economies of scale.
Our business plan is based on achieving 14% profit margin by 2020, which is again very much aligned with the business standards in our area.
I’m glad I asked
Thanks for the detailed response.
Yeah, UK gets about 30% of all of its food from EU, but more in March because things like lettuce, tomatoes, soft fruit etc are off season. A no deal scenario means higher prices but also slower freight which will be particularly tricky for fresh foods. Maybe investors interested in food businesses should also look at buying land and poly tunnels!
