Category Visionaries Alexis Normand, CEO & Co-Founder of Greenly: $78 Million Raised to Build the Future of Carbon Management
Greenly is transforming how businesses approach carbon management, evolving from a consumer app to a comprehensive B2B platform that serves over 3,000 corporate customers. With $78 million in funding, the company has positioned itself at the forefront of the carbon accounting market by making sustainability tracking accessible and automated for mid-market companies. In this episode of Category Visionaries, we sat down with Alexis Normand, CEO and Co-Founder of Greenly, to explore the company's remarkable journey from multiple pivots to becoming a leader in carbon management software.
Topics Discussed:
- Greenly's evolution from a consumer carbon tracking app to B2B carbon management platform
- The strategic pivots that led to finding product-market fit in corporate carbon accounting
- How regulatory pressure and supply chain demands are driving market adoption
- The company's approach to building a beautiful, educational brand in a complex technical space
- Scaling from zero to 3,000 customers through direct acquisition and growth tactics
- The differences between European and US markets for sustainability software
- Moving upmarket from SMB to mid-market to improve retention metrics
GTM Lessons For B2B Founders:
- Embrace rapid experimentation without killing past initiatives: Alexis didn't immediately abandon previous products when exploring new directions. Instead of completely shutting down the consumer app and banking API, Greenly ran multiple experiments simultaneously. This approach allowed them to maintain revenue streams while testing new markets. The key insight is that early-stage founders should add new experiments rather than kill existing ones, only sunsetting products once new initiatives prove more viable.
- Leverage market timing and external pressure: Greenly's success wasn't just about building great software—it was about timing their entry when external forces were creating demand. The trickle-down effect of large enterprises requiring carbon data from suppliers created natural buying pressure. As Alexis explained, "When companies start to pledge a real decarbonization pathway, they're asking their suppliers to track their footprint too." B2B founders should identify similar cascading market dynamics where regulatory or business pressures create natural demand for their solutions.
- Start with underserved segments to build product depth: Rather than targeting large enterprises with existing solutions, Greenly focused on SMBs and mid-market companies who couldn't afford expensive consultants. This strategy allowed them to serve 3,000 customers and encounter "all the corner cases," building a more robust product. While VCs initially questioned the SMB approach, this volume taught them which customers had staying power versus those who only needed periodic compliance help.
- Make complex topics accessible through brand and education: Greenly's consumer heritage influenced their B2B approach, focusing on education and simplification rather than assuming buyer expertise. Their core value of "making people smarter about climate" translated into clear explanations of concepts like Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. As Alexis noted, "Explaining rather complex things simply is actually harder than you think." B2B founders in technical categories should prioritize education and clarity over industry jargon.
- Follow the economics to find your true market: Greenly's multiple pivots weren't random—they followed customer willingness to pay and market size potential. When the consumer app reached 40,000 users, they calculated the banking API market at $50-100 million total addressable market. Corporate carbon accounting offered significantly larger opportunity. B2B founders should consistently evaluate whether their current path leads to venture-scale outcomes and pivot based on economic realities, not just product traction.
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