.png)
London-based start-up NextDistrict to launch a non-fungible token (NFT) crowdfunded sustainable sandwich shop governed by its community.
NextDistrict was founded by two friends who are leveraging web3 technology to catalyse a fundamental change in how businesses operate. They want to disrupt the dominance of big brands, empower consumers, and build sustainable businesses, all by starting a sandwich shop?
Co-founders of NextDistrict, Amin Omarouayache, and Oliver Duffy envision a future where our beloved UK high streets are filled with purpose-led, independently owned, and sustainably operated businesses that are governed by the communities they serve. They believe that this vision can be realised through the power of web3 technology, and the use of an alternative capital raising model known as decentralised crowdfunding.
Amin and Oliver met at Imperial College London, where they instantly became great friends and eventually roommates. Throughout university, they were set on starting a company together but were unable to move any ideas past the conceptualisation stage. Two years later and with valuable experience under their belts, they have co-founded a company in the web3 space with a compelling proposition: Use web3 technology to realise positive social and environmental change.
They argue in their whitepaper that,
“At present, consumers mostly buy from brands that they have no say in. This is because those brands, for the most part, are financed by institutional players and are therefore obligated to meet their investors’ interests, which often means bottom-line growth.” …
“The beauty of decentralised crowdfunding is that it allows business owners to prioritise their communities’ interests and values from the start, as the communities that use their business are also the initial ‘investors’. Such a relationship between consumers and businesses is a much healthier and productive one, and one that allows businesses to prioritise values that have been ignored by the traditional capitalist model for far too long, such as sustainability, social action, and biodiversity preservation.”
NextDistrict believes that a new model for financing and operating purpose-led businesses is required. A model that prioritises the community first and allows businesses to focus on what matters most to their customers.
Using NFTs to crowdfund businesses in a decentralised manner is not a completely novel idea, however, it has yet to be executed upon successfully. NextDistrict aims to change this fact by crowdfunding the first ever sustainable sandwich shop DAO in London. This will be done through the sale of 2 NFT collections, one in Q4 of 2022 and one in Q1 of 2023. They plan to launch the physical location in the summer of 2023 to prove that NFT crowdfunded, and sustainably operated businesses can not only succeed but thrive.
In return for purchasing an NFT, investors will receive a range of real benefits including governance over the strategic direction of the store, lifetime in-store discounts, exclusive access to events, random cash drops, and more.
More importantly, investors will be helping support the creation of one of the most sustainable FnB retail locations in London. NextDistrict has detailed its sustainability strategy on their website, something they claim most businesses that claim to be sustainable should have, but often do not.
This strategy is centered around 5 pillars: food, store, operations, technology, and projects. Each of these pillars has a defined framework that they intend to operate the sustainable sandwich shop within. For example, they are committing to sourcing only organic produce that is seasonal and local, as well as only sourcing pasture-fed beef and lamb for their meat offerings.
The NextDistrict Co-founders say they already have a lot of exciting and ambitious ventures in the pipeline that aim to build on this model and ultimately do good. If you want to be part of a community of early adopters and world changers, then NextDistrict could be the place for you. For more information on what the team at NextDistrict is up to, read the whitepaper they have just published below.
Learn more about NextDistrict and their plans for a sustainable and decentralised future of business at their website Here