On this page we share announcements, guides and other helpful insights we gather over time. If you have something you would like us to write about, just ping us at  [info@skrym.se](mailto:info@skrym.se).

News

Max Danielsson

Jakob Nordfeldt

Prasanna Balaji

René Timmermans

## Introducing a *smoooth* integration

For the past 6 months, we have been working together with [Cervera](https://www.skrym.com/blog/cervera-skrym-live) to integrate Skrym with Klarna Shipping Assistant, and today we are happy to announce that we are bringing it out from the testing phase. 

### The problem

Our analysis of the situation was relatively simple.

- **Klarna Shipping Assistant** is included for free with Klarna Checkout and actually offers sufficient functionality to cover the needs of most stores
- At the same time, *using* the functionality of Klarna Shipping Assistant is dependent on having a third-party system, meaning many retailers miss out on it
- None of the available solutions we saw on the market seemed to seriously prioritize enabling their users to get the most out of Klarna's relatively extensive customization options

In total, all of the above meant that solving the above problems could help improve the logistics in the Nordics as Klarna Checkout has a relatively high share of the market.

### Opportunity and requirements

When we started looking into it in more detail - we came to the conclusion that there were also a lot of opportunities for synergies between Klarna and Skrym, incorporating the technology from Skrym to actually boost the capabilities of the Klarna Shipping Assistant.

![Screenshot 2024-03-18 at 16.54.43.png](https://media.graphassets.com/ddJ37Pd0QqWCMjpfh1IB)
*View of the Klarna Shipping Assistant*

In the end, these were requirements we settled on:

- **Intuitive**: The solution needs to enable novice users (inexperienced in either programming or logistics) to quickly learn how to achieve their goals.
- **Testable**: There should be no surprises - users should be able to get an immediate view of what the final result is.
- **Performant**: Skrym is responsible for *always* ensuring the shipping options are served to Klarna rapidly - regardless if external checks like postcode validations or transporter availability checks take long.

## Solution

Enough background - let's have a look at what we ended up building. The chart below shows a simple overview of the integration.

<MermaidChart
 chart={`
graph LR; 
sk([Skrym])
ret([Retailer])
kl([Klarna])
con([Consumer])


subgraph Website
con <--> ret
end

Website --> kl
kl --> Website
kl ~~~ sk
sk -- Filtering Ranking Styling --> kl
`}
/>

In short terms, the integration does the following:

1. The retailer website loads and refreshes the Klarna Checkout widget. 
2. Before displaying the shipping options, Klarna makes a request to Skrym to get the configuration of how the options should be displayed. 
3. Skrym returns the configuration based on using the retailer preferences for filtering, ranking and styling of each delivery option.
4. Klarna displays the shipping options.

#### User interaction

So how does the user actually decide *how* Skrym should apply filtering, ranking and styling? 

Well, for this purpose we really wanted to build something that was both **intuitive** and **testable**, and we ended up settling on developing a completely new flowchart interface that easily provides an overview of the logic that determines the user experience.

<IframeComponent
 src={'https://app.supademo.com/embed/1SoWMCVBqMFJ1EkyW6-_s'}
title="Using the checkout"
extraPadding={40}
extraPercent={15}
 />

Sure, it's still a little rough in the edges, but we're making quick progress here. 

#### Test and preview

Making it easy to overview and configure is useless if it's not easy to test and verify it behaves as expected. Our users love to tweak and tinker - and so do we. That's why we put a lot of effort into also enabling rapid and immediate preview of how it will behave.

In short, we built in a click-to-test functionality for the users to see exactly what their configuration would lead to.

Let's have a look at it!

<IframeComponent
 src={'https://app.supademo.com/embed/JOVGTGKUgdh5511esn7vG'}
title="Testing the checkout"
 />

#### So what do the users actually think?

During the past months, we have worked closely with [Cervera](https://www.cervera.se) to make sure we properly understand their needs and problems.

> Skrym helps us make full use of the Klarna checkout and incorporates new exciting functionality like optimization, enabling us to add new carriers and more accurately display shipping options. We get happier customers and improved margins.
> 
> <cite>Patrik Gustafson, Logistics Developer at Cervera</cite>

---

### Handling scale

It was crucial for us to build it in a way that would ensure a high-level of performance throughout the most intense periods of peak season. In this case, there was no better test for us than Black Friday.

<MermaidChart
title="Black Friday Checkout Sessions"
subtitle="The chart shows the number of checkout sessions relative to the 3h average (indexed as 1.00). The line shows the sessions on a random December day, and the bars show the sessions on Black Friday."
plotColor='pink'
chart={
`
xychart-beta
 x-axis ["03:00", "06:00", "09:00", "12:00", "15:00", "18:00", "21:00", "24:00"]
 y-axis "Checkout Sessions (1.00 = normal 3 hour average)"
 bar[0.32, 0.64, 4.09, 6.09, 5.27, 7.20, 7.31, 4.69]
line[1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1]
line[0.07, 0.13, 0.69, 1.9, 1.45, 1.36, 1.74, 0.66]
`}
/>

- From 06:00 to 09:00, the increase in checkout sessions was more than **8x** larger than on a normal high-season day
- There was a much clearer late-night spike in sessions

As it was our first time managing this type of request spike, we were of course a little worried about having missed anything in our preparations. Fortunately, we had not. 

There were no issues or major decreases in response times. Since we let our users configure their cutoffs for how long to wait for the transporters, we were also not really impacted by the highly volatile response times from the transporters.

### Future development

At Skrym, we are big believers in enabling our users to use 'what they already have'. It's the same resource efficiency mindset that we apply to everything. 

> Klarna Shipping Assistant has always been appreciated by consumers for its simplicity, and through the integration with Skrym we're taking a big step towards also making it easier to use for the retailers.
> 
> <cite>Oscar Bergling, Product Owner at Klarna</cite>

We look forward to continuing the good collaboration with Klarna to solve problems and make things easier for both consumers and retailers.

---

If you are interested in learning more about the solution, feel free to book a time to talk to us by clicking the button below.

Launching our Klarna Checkout integration

## Cervera chooses Skrym to achieve sustainable efficiency

We are thrilled to announce our collaboration with [Cervera](https://www.cervera.se) - the most beloved homeware retailer brand in Sweden. Together, we will work to improve Cervera's logistics efficiency in a sustainable way, making it easy to show accurate delivery promises and to keep them.

> Our customers deserve nothing less than the best possible delivery experience. We have found a great partner in Skrym, who have demonstrated a great ability to innovate rapidly to meet our needs and enable us to decrease both our cost and emissions.
>
> Hans Redig Bolin, CEO of Cervera

### Awareness and Purpose - from Checkout to Delivery 

With Skrym’s technology, Cervera will improve their delivery promise accuracy in the checkout and optimize the use of packaging. This decreases both shipping costs and packaging materials, benefits that will be shared with the highly conscious Cervera customers. 

It is an important step forward in reducing Cervera's carbon footprint, and highlights the potential of logistics optimization in meeting cost expectations while lessening environmental impact. It's about smart freight spending and achieving savings by being smarter - and we are proud to be providing the toolkit to enable this.

> Cervera is a dream customer. They are ambitious and unafraid of trying new things. They bring their ideas, their problems, their headaches - and they give us great feedback. We love working with them and I cannot wait to see what we can accomplish together.
>
> Jakob Nordfeldt, CEO of Skrym

## Enabling experimentation and iteration

The collaboration started three months ago with implementing Skrym as the delivery checkout provider, using a new plug-and-play integration with Klarna (blog post on that coming soon!). This enabled Cervera to make improvements to their delivery experience in time for the fourth quarter - a crucial period for a company that so many rely on for giving gifts to family and friends. 

Having access to accurate data points helped Cervera confidently introduce Early Bird as a new delivery option for their customers, and also made it easy to use their stores as pickup points and fulfilment centers.

> The Skrym team is extremely focused on delivering quality. They are happy to take our feedback as a customer and always see opportunities rather than obstacles.
>
> Patrik Gustafsson, Outbound Planner at Cervera

![IMG_0260.jpg](https://media.graphassets.com/in7YoLDfTqsbankc0Okh)

*Max Danielsson (Skrym) and Patrik Gustafsson (Cervera) at the Cervera office celebrating a successful implementation of Skrym's checkout functionality*

## Building together

Collaboration has also started on new tools from Skrym that are still in closed Alpha, but where the input from Cervera has already proved an outstanding asset in finding new and creative ways of solving old problems.

> The insights and suggestions from a highly ambitious collaborator in Cervera have enabled us to quickly improve our checkout and optimization - while also having a lot of fun together.
>
> Max Danielsson, Product Manager at Skrym

As part of the onboarding, Skrym quickly developed an integration with [PinMeTo](https://www.pinmeto.com/), allowing Cervera to effortlessly use click-and-collect information about their stores in their checkout, without needing any data duplication.

### Reach Out 👋 

Curious to hear if Skrym could help your organization? We are always interested in solving problems. 

Just send an email to **René Timmermans** ([rene@skrym.com](mailto:rene@skrym.com)). He is always ready to discuss how our solutions can help you achieve sustainable efficiency. 

If you're a developer with technical questions, feel free to reach out to our Product Manager  **Max Danielsson** ([max@skrym.com](mailto:max@skrym.com)) directly.

Cervera now live with Skrym

## Skrym and SiB Solutions partner to eliminate logistics errors

Companies that want to be part of the green transition of logistics should explore the full potential of technology to speed up their progress towards a more sustainable way of working.

Even if your warehouse and packing process is already automated, you should engage in optimising fill rate, reducing waste of space and packing materials, and avoiding unnecessary distributions and returns. 

New innovative solutions are ready to be put into action, and by collaborating we can use these tools to make a real impact for our customers.
 
> Skrym and SiB Solutions share an entrepreneurial spirit. Driven by a focus on providing customer value, we’re excited to explore new opportunities together.
>
> <cite key='skrym-hoc'>René Timmermans, Head of Commercial at Skrym</cite>

### About the partnership

SiB Solutions and Skrym will explore new opportunities at companies that handle high value or fragile goods, use expensive or numerous transports or have high traceability requirements such as most e-commerce and 3PL companies. This is where a small efficiency gain in packaging optimisation and traceability quickly saves a lot of money.

> We’re taking one step closer to flawless logistics – every day. We’ve found a good friend in Skrym who shares our passion for flawless, profitable and greener logistics.
>
> <cite key='sib_gcm'>Fredrik Ek, Channel Manager at SiB Solutions</cite>

### About SiB Solutions  
SiB Solutions provides Intelligent Video and AI Services that give logistics-intensive companies superior visibility and insights into what happens during goods handling, including protection from fraud related to inbound logistics and returns. The result enables flawless logistics, leading to improved efficiency, greater customer satisfaction, superior financial performance, and more sustainable goods flows.  
 
The company originates from Lund, Sweden with a presence in the Nordics, Benelux, UK and the USA. The company has a global reach through an extensive network of qualified partners. SiB stands for Seeing is Believing – because visual evidence is irrefutable proof about what happens in goods handling.
[Contact SiB Solutions](https://www.sibsolutions.com/contact/)

### Learn more 👇

Contact us to learn more about how the partnership between SiB Solutions and Skrym can benefit your business and reduce your environmental impact.

René Timmermans - Head of Commercial
[rene@skrym.com](mailto:rene@skrym.com)

Skrym and SiB Solutions announce Partnership

## Together with Skrym and e-motions, Jordklok optimizes its packaging management

Jordklok wants to make it easy for everyone to reduce their environmental impact by offering a nice selection of natural, organic and sustainable products online. Now they have started to improve the packaging handling together with Skrym and e-motions. 

> We have a solid environmental interest and a strong desire to contribute to a fairer and greener society. Together with Skrym and e-motions, we aim to optimize each shipment by sending the least amount of air possible.
> 
> <cite key='lars'>Lars Baric, CEO Jordklok</cite>

### About the solution

Jordklok has chosen to implement Skrym’s optimization service with an integration with e-motions' WCS aka ”e-web”. Skrym calculates which packaging is optimal for an individual order in order to send as little air as possible. The result is presented on e-motions’ packing screens, which also accelerates the packing process.

![jordklok-emotions-screen.png](https://media.graphassets.com/98pzu1TkRYGhcwqzOxDe)
*The e-motions packing screen with the Skrym recommendation in the upper right corner.*

>We are proud to collaborate with Jordklok, a company that really invests in sustainability. Together, we can work quickly to increase resource efficiency and reduce unnecessary emissions.
> 
> <cite key='jakob'>Jakob Nordfeldt, CEO Skrym</cite>

### Learn more 👇

Contact us to learn more about how Skrym’s services can also benefit your business and reduce your environmental impact.

René Timmermans - Head of Commercial

[rene@skrym.com](mailto:rene@skrym.com)

Jordklok becomes smarter with Skrym

## Skrym initiates a collaboration with the traditional packaging company aPak

Through the partnership, Skrym has the opportunity to optimize the packaging for even more businesses. In the collaboration, the companies pool their expertise with the aim of helping aPak customers reduce material consumption and air in their packaging. 

> We want to offer our customers packaging that is as sustainable as possible. Together with Skrym, we are convinced that we can find new measures that streamline use and reduce the air in the packaging.
> 
> <cite key='frida'>Frida Sidnäs, CSO aPak</cite>

### About the collaboration

By combining aPak's experience of supplying packaging with Skrym's data and expertise, it will become easier to ensure that packaging is optimized for customers' operations.

With Skrym's integrated services, aPak can also monitor packaging usage over time in customers' operations, in order to continuously increase resource efficiency.

>Working with aPak and their strong customer relationships presents a great opportunity for us to help even more businesses transition to sustainable efficiency and lower their logistics costs.
> 
> <cite key='jakob'>Jakob Nordfeldt, CEO Skrym</cite>

### Learn more 👇

Contact us to learn more about how the partnership between aPak and Skrym can benefit your business and reduce your environmental impact.

René Timmermans - Head of Commercial

[rene@skrym.com](mailto:rene@skrym.com)

---

#### About Skrym

Skrym develops software solutions to increase the sustainability and efficiency of shipping packaging. Skrym analyses product dimensions and logistics processes – from ordering to packaging to delivery. Using existing data and artificial intelligence, they help customers identify the optimal package size and shape to reduce empty space during transportation.

#### About aPak

APak is a family-owned packaging company dating back to 1917. With a focus on customers and sustainability, they ensure that customers' products are protected and packaged in the most efficient and sustainable way possible. They offer thousands of products in the standard range, but it is above all the innovative customised solutions and personal service that best describe aPak's offering.

Skrym and aPak to reduce air in packaging

## Skrym partners with e-motions, an expanding and entrepreneur driven warehouse automation company based in Jönköping, Sweden with customers like TURA Scandinavia, Almroths and Max Gaming.

### About the partnership

Together with [e-motions](https://www.e-motions.se/) we are able to offer a wide range of warehouse optimisation solutions. The complementing solutions from e-motions and Skrym enable E-Commerce retailers and 3PL companies to reduce their package sizes and speed up their logistics handling in the warehouse with automation and sorting technology. This results in reduced handling-, transportation- and packaging costs, while reducing the carbon footprint.

### About e-motions

e-motions offers scalable intralogistics solutions for picking, packing and sorting. From primarily offering stand-alone solutions in the form of sorting plants or packing machines, it has developed into more of a one-stop-shop for E-Commerce retailers who want to increase their efficiency and raise their profitability in logistics.

> A great match – We really like partnerships like this, where we increase customer value and offer an even more differentiated solution to the market. We completely agree with the purpose of the Skrym solution and we look forward to offer this to our customers.
> 
> <cite key='nils1234'>Nils Brunke, CEO e-motions</cite>

### About Skrym

Skrym develops software solutions to increase sustainability and efficiency in shipping packaging in logistics chains. Skrym analyses product dimension data and logistics processes – from the order to the packaging process to the delivery. Using existing data and artificial intelligence, the company identifies the optimal packaging size and shape to reduce empty space during transport.

> We see great value in partnering with innovative, flexible and customer focused companies like e-motions. There is a natural fit between e-motions and Skrym where our respective solutions add additional value for our customers in obtaining efficiency in their supply chain.
>
> <cite key='jakob12344'>Jakob Nordfeldt, CEO Skrym</cite>


### Learn more 👇

Contact us to learn more about how the partnership between e-motions and Skrym can benefit your business and reduce your environmental impact.

René Timmermans - Head of Partnerships
[rene@skrym.com](mailto:rene@skrym.com)

E-Motions and Skrym announce partnership

## Metrilus, the European market leader for 3D camera-based static dimensioning systems, partners with Skrym

The partnership is combining the expertise from Metrilus in measuring and collecting product dimension data with the expertise from Skrym in utilising that data for logistic optimisations. Dimensioning data is the cornerstone of being able to determine the optimal package sizes for orders, which enable our joint customers to become even more efficient and sustainable by sending less air.

Germany based Metrilus focuses on applications in the logistics industry with its high-speed MetriXFreight dimensioning technology. The solutions offered by Metrilus use state-of-the-art computer vision and artificial intelligence algorithms to create reliable data sources. 

Metrilus has many years of expertise in the analysis and evaluation of 3D cameras, and strives to promote the digitalization of logistics and the still untapped optimization potential using pattern recognition.

> This partnership allows our customers to unlock significant packaging efficiency potential, which immediately translates into important cost savings and a better CO2 footprint. The combination of Metrilus’ and Skrym’s technologies is a great example of how digitalization can benefit the logistics industry.
>
> <cite key="björn">Björn Kayser, CSO Metrilus</cite>

### About Skrym

Skrym develops software solutions to increase sustainability and efficiency in shipping packaging in logistics chains. Skrym analyses product dimension data and logistics processes – from the order to the packaging process to the delivery. Using existing data and artificial intelligence, the company identifies the optimal packaging size and shape to reduce empty space during transport.

Skrym’s optimisations are improved from the availability of good quality product dimension data, enabling more accurate calculations of the optimal package size to be used. The customers of Metrilus have the tools and processes to capture the data necessary to reduce the amount of excess air in packages with support of the solution offered by Skrym.

>We are very pleased to partner up with a market leading company like Metrilus. Together we can create data and process to save packaging- and shipping costs for their customers and reduce the amount of emissions in the entire supply chain.
>
> <cite key="jakob">Jakob Nordfeldt, CEO Skrym</cite>

### Learn more 👇

Contact us to learn more about how the partnership between Metrilus and Skrym can benefit your business and reduce your environmental impact.

René Timmermans - Head of Partnerships
[rene@skrym.com](mailto:rene@skrym.com)

Skrym and Metrilus announce Partnership

Johanna Kilponen

## Apotea, the leading online pharmacy in the Nordics, has partnered with Skrym to optimize their supply chain. 

Apotea has been committed to providing top-quality healthcare products to their customers for over a decade. They've built a strong reputation for their broad range of products, affordable prices, and exceptional customer service. 

As the demand for their products grows, the company has recognized the need to optimize their logistics to ensure they can continue to provide the best possible service to their customers by using innovative technology.

> We're excited to partner with Skrym to optimize our logistics and enhance our service offerings. In order to further develop our logistics and expand our sustainability work, we need to keep pushing boundaries, and we’re confident that Skrym's data-driven approach will help us deliver products to customers more efficiently.
>
> <cite key='pär'>Pär Svärdson, CEO of Apotea</cite>

### Efficiency from pre-payment to post-delivery 📦 

Using Skrym's proprietary algorithms for logistics optimization, the partnership helps identify areas where Apotea can reduce transportation costs and improve supply chain efficiency. 

By optimizing orders pre-payment and thus getting rid of the excess air in packages, Skrym will enable Apotea to become more proactive in their delivery checkout and save money on freight and packaging materials. This in turn will reduce Apotea’s carbon emissions and create a better experience through the delivery chain.

The collaboration between Apotea and Skrym is a testament to the power of data-driven logistics optimization. More and more companies struggle to meet the increasing cost demands from their customers while also reducing their environmental impact. 

Skrym is looking forward to providing the tools that enables operations-heavy companies respond to these challenges.

> We're proud to collaborate with Apotea, a market-leader that shares our commitment to innovation and sustainability. Despite their size, Apotea has a start-up mentality, which enables us to move fast together to increase resource efficiency and reduce unnecessary emissions.
>
> <cite key='jak'>Jakob Nordfeldt, CEO of Skrym</cite>



![IMG_2651.jpg](https://media.graphassets.com/osP3pXLqQHKC54Mykjkt)

*Skrym team members after a successful production test at the Apotea warehouse*

### Get in touch 👋 

Are you curious about how your organization can leverage Skrym's technology to enhance efficiency? We're more than happy to help.

Apotea and Skrym announce Partnership

# Schumacher Packaging and Skrym Optimize Use of Packaging Material in E-Commerce

The rise of e-commerce has brought about numerous benefits for consumers, including the convenience of shopping from home and access to a wider variety of products. However, the packaging used to deliver these products has come under increasing scrutiny for its environmental impact. 

In response, Schumacher Packaging, who supply packaging for companies such as Nike, Electrolux and Zooplus, has today announced their strategic partnership with Skrym to optimize the use of packaging material in e-commerce for their clients.

## Decreasing costs and emissions for retailers

The collaboration between Schumacher Packaging and Skrym aims to use data to reduce the weight, volume, and empty space of paper-based packaging in e-commerce, thereby reducing emissions throughout the supply chain. 

With Skrym's innovations that increase sustainability and efficiency in shipping packaging, the partnership will enable using software to analyze the logistics processes of online retailers from order to delivery, identifying the optimal packaging size and shape to reduce empty space during transport. 

By doing so, retailers' fulfillment emissions and logistics costs can be reduced by up to 15% while maintaining the same warehouse processes.

> For us, the partnership with Skrym is an important step towards future-proof 
e-commerce. With our expertise in paper-based packaging solutions and Skrym's innovative approach to optimizing logistics processes in e-commerce, we can now  design packaging along the entire supply chain for our customers more sustainably and efficiently.

Jochen Drösel, Chief Sales Officer at Schumacher Packaging. 

## Focus on Europe

The partnership will focus on clients in Germany, Poland, Benelux, and England. Schumacher Packaging, with 29 locations in Europe, manufactures individual packaging from corrugated and solid board according to customer requirements and needs. 

Packaging minimization and waste reduction are important parts of the planned EU packaging regulation, and will play a central role in the collaboration. In e-commerce, it is important to use packaging as efficiently as possible in order to reduce emissions. 

However, retailers face the challenge of finding the perfect sizes for their paper-based packaging, especially when dealing with large and varied assortments. This is where they can benefit from the cooperation between the two companies in the future.

> We are proud to partner with Schumacher Packaging, a highly experienced specialist in e-commerce, to create innovative packaging solutions that meet the evolving demands of our industry. Together, we are committed to reducing waste and helping our clients decrease both costs and emissions.

Jakob Nordfeldt, CEO at Skrym

### More information

For more information, contact René Timmermans (Head of Partnerships) at [rene@skrym.com](mailto:rene@skrym.com).


Schumacher Packaging and Skrym announce partnership

# It happened again.

Once again, we are left dumbfounded at the closing of the most important conference of the year. So much potential for achieving real progress on an international level - so little to cheer for at the end of the nearly two weeks of talks and negotiations. 

This is not a criticism of the organisers. Many were enraged by the choice of Egypt as the host country, pointing to a shaky civil rights record and high use of fossil fuels. I cannot help but feel that such criticism is a bit misguided. CO2 emissions per capita in Egypt are currently almost half of that in Sweden. As for the civil rights issues, I do not think that hosting COP means the international community condones of the political regime in the host country. 

After all, it should not come to a surprise to anyone that we will have to strike deals with our enemies as well as our neighbours if we want to limit climate change. And COP is the forum for those small incremental changes over awkward table discussions - not a *Wokestock* festival with the purpose of immediately solving all the problems and injustices in the world. 

So, here are my three takeaways from this year's edition of *Trying to agree with countries we don't like agreeing with*.

## 1. Global recession risk breeds short-termists

Let us start with the obvious. This was most likely never going to be a smashing success. A lot of countries are under immense financial pressure at the moment and have simply chosen not to do their homework. I say *chosen* because when a country like Germany decides to scale back their climate goals, it is a choice. 

Even though this is a short-term move to handle their historical reliance on Russian energy supply, it boils down to a choice between protecting your population (and your popularity...) from decreased living standards in the short term and doing the same for the future global population. 

So we have learned that economic downturns are bad for progress. Not a surprise. We have learned that war is *really* bad for progress. Definitely not a surprise. Now to the crux of it all - climate change does not care at all about our wars or financial markets. It is never going to give us that five-minute breather to "sort some things out first". 

## 2. The satellites are here!

![Screenshot 2022-11-21 at 10.17.11.png](https://media.graphassets.com/nDnk6SzfQCWIUDdUwoQp)

COP27 saw the launch of [Climate TRACE](https://climatetrace.org/) - a non-profit that uses satellite data to provide an overview of the global emissions - complete with a shiny new website. Having played around with their data a little bit, I think it is still clear that this is an early stage initiative. 

However, there is a great deal of potential in reducing the reliance on countries' official emission figures, and using satellites and other remote sensors could help us take an important step in that direction. 

What especially intrigues me about this is what will happen when climate lies potentially become easier to expose. If the emissions can be traced geographically with enough precision, this could prove a ground for more robust legal actions against greenwashing.

## 3. 🇺🇸 and 🇳🇴 launch Green Shipping Challenge

This joint effort between Norway and the U.S. was announced already in May, but officially launched during COP27. We got to learn more about the announcements from participating companies, ports and countries. Some, like Greece, seemed to have a tweet-level of commitment at best:

> Greece commits to reducing emissions at six major ports through operational efficiencies, on-shore power supply systems, and deployment of renewable energy sources.

The most exciting prospect from the [Green Shipping Challenge](https://greenshippingchallenge.org/) is of course the concept of establishing green shipping corridors. Reserving the most attractive shipping lanes and routes for ships running on more sustainable fuels is a good example of simple but effective legislation. 

Similar to car-sharing lanes, it is a very understandable effort that can receive wide political support. Economically, it dramatically changes the incentives for transitioning a fleet to more sustainable fuels. 

Now we just need to make sure we have the ships for it. 

#### What are your thoughts?

I am always curious to hear other people's thoughts and reactions to events like COP. If you have an interesting take you want to discuss, just ping me at [jakob@skrym.com](mailto:jakob@skrym.com).

3 takeaways from COP27

## Working together to help companies stop sending air

We are extremely happy to announce a new partnership with [Nöjd AB](https://www.nojd.com/), a company with decades of expertise from the packaging industry that boasts companies like Apotea, Lyko and Adlibris as clients.

> We are always looking for new ways to help meet the needs of our clients, and the partnership with Skrym is a great example of how we can help them explore a new approach to old problems. 

Thomas Nöjd, CEO of Nöjd AB

### What does the partnership mean?

The partnership means that clients of Nöjd AB will have access to a range of optimization services provided by Skrym. A common use case is expected to be helping clients to use their existing data to identify how many and what sizes of packaging will minimize their costs and emissions - all based on Skrym's optimization algorithms. 

> Through this partnership we have an opportunity to redefine the process of purchasing packaging by using data and optimization. We are going to learn a lot from working with each other - and help stop sending air in the process.

Jakob Nordfeldt, CEO of Skrym

#### More information

To learn more, you can reach out to our new Head of Partnerships René at [rene@skrym.com](mailto:rene@skrym.com) or +46-72 997 90 90.



Skrym announces partnership with Nojd AB

### Introducing a new series. 


E-commerce logistics is a very complex and interesting industry, constantly developing. We were curious about what people working within logistics think about the changes, trends and challenges we are facing today. Thus, we decided to start an interview series where we get to know profiles from the industry a bit better and hear their thoughts on this topic. First one up is Stefan Svensson. He has more than 15 years of experience from logistics, for instance as a Logistics Manager at NetOnNet, and is currently the COO of Nelly Group. Skrym is also happy to have Stefan as one of our amazing advisors. 


### Interview with Stefan.


#### What would you say are the biggest trends in e-commerce logistics today? Anything you think is being hyped too much or not enough? 


Automation, last mile and profitability/efficiency. When large parts of the economy and business sector transitions from growth to profitability, logistics will take the same direction. This is fundamentally positive. Although, it is important to not lose track of customer focus and sustainability aspects in this transition.


#### Do you have any useful tips on how you have used data in order to improve your own logistics? 

Data is and should be the foundation of most decisions to improve efficiency. For example, we are using ongoing customer data in order to offer the right delivery options. 


#### What changes within the industry would you like to see in the upcoming years?


A proactive problem solving for the customer. A lot of things are working as it should in the e-commerce flows of today, but there are a lot of improvements to be made in the cases when something goes wrong. 


#### When was the last time you got pissed due to a logistics problem? 


When a package couldn’t be delivered to a box and I had to pick it up on the other side of the city. Small things, but still annoying 😉


A big thank you to Stefan for sharing your thoughts!

Meet Stefan Svensson - COO of Nelly Group

## It's about more than just money.

You only get to choose your first investors once. All things well, you'll be stuck with them for a while, which means you might as well find people you want to work with. For me and the rest of the team, this meant that we needed to find a partner that shared our vision on how to build organizations, and that had a commitment to sustainability that goes beyond the boilerplate VC statements.

In March 2022, we closed our pre-seed round, with BackingMinds coming in as the lead investor. With this post, I wanted to take the chance to give an insight into our reasoning and the process behind the investment round. 

## How we got in touch with BackingMinds

SLUSH. The bonanza of neon, hubris and hype that together make up Europe's largest startup 'festival'. We were invited as part of the final pitch in the Mastercard Lighthouse program. During the pitch event, Sara Resvik (CEO of BackingMinds) was part of a panel discussing about gender inequality in funding. 

This meant that she also watched my 3-minute pitch of Skrym. As I walked off stage, I passed her and she nodded and said "nice." And gave me a term sheet. 

Okay, not the term sheet part. But I then reached out to her afterwards and said it would be nice to have a chat and see if there might be opportunities to work together. 

![Slush Afterparty pic.jpg](https://media.graphassets.com/Hck2OIxiT9ikqH7UV83X)
<center>*Max, Johanna and me at SLUSH 2021*</center>

## The process and decision

When I had the first chat with Sara, we were already quite far along in discussions with several angels and a handful of early-stage VC:s. Sara told me they were in the middle of closing a deal and were very busy, but that I should let her know if we needed them to move fast to a decision. When I emailed her two weeks later saying this was the case, Sara said she would connect me to their new investment manager Niklas Thörnestad. I thought this meant they wanted to pull out but in a courteous way.

It was the complete opposite of that. We had a great meeting (not difficult since Niklas is a fantastic guy) and soon after he came back with an offer to do a larger round, but at a higher valuation as well - with the motivation to help us "run a bit faster". 

The same evening, we sat down the whole team and discussed the pros and cons, acknowledged the increased pressure that would come from a VC. In the end, there were three factors that guided our decision to enter due diligence with BackingMinds.

1. Genuine commitment to sustainability in a wider sense than just some synthetic KPI:s.
2. Clear value-add in terms of e-commerce experience and network.
3. A shared vision of how you build organizations (by backing minds, not by whacking minds).

Since they were our preferred lead investor we decided to grant them an exclusive two-week due diligence period. This of course meant that we effectively burned our bridges to the other VC:s (no one likes being second choice), but we felt it was worth signaling our commitment to closing a deal.

![IMG_1005.jpg](https://media.graphassets.com/l3xhoYSTIWhhF0AQxXEQ)
<center>*Content production day with BackingMinds for announcing the round*</center>

Due diligence was fast, smooth and at a fair level. The tech part was outsourced to a guy who was used to doing later stage evaluations, but that helped us gain an understanding of what would be needed from us tech-wise further down the line (e.g. penetration testing and other fun things). The negotiations regarding the Shareholders' Agreement were also rather quick, and we closed the deal in good spirits. 

## Looking ahead

Given that the market went for a complete nosedive about 6 weeks after we closed the deal, we really don't regret taking in a bit more money than initially planned. It feels great to know that we have a partner that supports our journey, and we can help them grow their portfolio support ecosystem by talking about our needs. 

My advice to founders raising their first round is to just keep trying. For me, it was a painful process of rejection upon rejection. I hated it. Until we found prospective investors we actually clicked with - those discussions felt fair, rational and efficient from the first meeting. 

For us, that partner was <a href='https://www.backingminds.com/' style={{color:'#f4ebc9'}}>BackingMinds</a>. It might not be the same for you. But our experience was very positive, so I would like to put in a good word for the work they're doing. 

*A big thank you to our angel investors who topped up the round and who are also great supporters*

How we chose our first investors

<h3 style={{color:'white'}}>As e-commerce has increased, so has the amount of air in packages. Today, more than 30% air per package is shipped. With the use of AI, PostNord TPL together with Skrym are now going to reduce the amount of air in packages by finding optimal package sizes for the logistics flows. </h3>

> ## "It's hard to think of a better use case for our system than together with the largest 3PL in the Nordics - especially considering our mutual ambition to reduce air in packages. "
Jakob Nordfeldt, VD på Skrym

Skrym's technology can analyze millions of orders and products to find the portfolio of packages that minimize both emissions and shipping costs. The system also acts as a decision support for warehouse workers by calculating which package or packages is the optimal choice for every order - before picking has even begun. 

PostNord TPL will be able to help its clients to reduce resource use, primarily carton material usage. Smart packaging use also opens up space in shipping trucks, which helps reduce the overall capacity need for shipments to deliver the same number of orders. The picking and packing flows are also impacted positively, since the picker will be more efficient as the package choice is already made. Of course, it also means the end consumer gets a better experience with more well-filled packages without unnecessary air. 

The project is named *AI for smart logistics flows*, and the Swedish Energy Agency has granted financial support until September 2023. 

> ## "Air in the packages leads to unnecessary costs and emissions for everyone involved. By partnering with Skrym, we're taking an important step by using new technology to systematically reduce the amount of air in our flows."
Mathias Krümmel, CEO PostNord Sweden

The project is expected to contribute to:

- Reduced CO2-emissions as fewer vehicles are needed
- Better resource optimization as smaller packaging reduces need for cardboard
- A more sustainable customer experience for consumers