Avery Dennison, in partnership with Highline Beta, launches the 3rd cohort of AD Stretch, a non-dilutive global corporate pilot accelerator program

Avery Dennison, a global materials science and digital identification solutions company, in partnership with Highline Beta, is launching the third cohort of the AD Stretch accelerator program, focusing on complex industry problems through executing pilots with startups across the globe.

About the Program

Innovation and sustainability is part of the core values of Avery Dennison. Now, through AD Stretch, Avery Dennison is on a mission to expand innovation throughout the business and to reach out beyond their own walls to collaborate with innovative startups on new ideas, insights and discoveries. 

AD Stretch, launched in 2022,  aims to harness the power of innovative thinking from around the world to help Avery Dennison solve some of their most pressing business challenges while accelerating the growth of startups to drive win: win outcomes.

AD Stretch provides an exceptional opportunity for startups that are revolutionizing the energy storage space by enhancing its efficiency, those dedicated to shaping the future of packaging, and those that understand the significance of establishing meaningful client connections through labeling. The AD Stretch accelerator is an excellent opportunity to run pilots with Avery Dennison – a Fortune 500 company – to drive innovation that makes an impact.

“The synergy of our company’s technical knowledge, business experience and mature distribution network matched with the uninhibited instincts of startups to innovate creates a dynamo for generating new solutions and successfully bringing them to market,” – Shruti George, Vice President, Strategic Innovation Platforms, Avery Dennison Materials Group

Challenges Areas

After running two cohorts, Avery Dennison is expanding the areas of collaboration with startups. For this third cohort, the challenges are 1) Next generation of storage materials, 2) Maximizing consumer experience and 3) Sustainable packaging.

Theme 1: Next-generation energy storage

• Improve the performance of batteries
• Optimize costs for energy storage

Theme 2: Maximizing consumer experience

• Enhancing physical and digital retail experience
• Brand protection

Theme 3: Sustainable packaging

• Enable packaging reuse

Who Should Apply? 

We are looking for startups that solve one of the above-mentioned challenge areas and can benefit from collaborating with Avery Dennison to accelerate their growth and drive innovation that can make an impact.

You should apply to AD Stretch Cohort II if you:

• Are between Seed to Series C, or if you are commercial-pilot ready
• Have a product in the market with existing customer validation and sales traction
• Have experience working with corporate clients (preferred, not required)
• Have a solution that fits within Avery Dennison’s challenge areas above
• Have a founding / management team that can dedicate themselves to executing a pilot with Avery Dennison over a 6-month period

What Will Startups Get?

Participating startups will get the opportunity to execute a funded commercial pilot with a Fortune 500 multinational manufacturer, Avery Dennison, over a condensed 6 month period. By participating in the program, startups will also establish further industry credibility and grow their customer base by collaborating with a globally recognized leader in their field. 

Additionally, participating startups will receive access to world-class experts and mentors in manufacturing and operations and materials science as well as access to a global network of mentors and advisors. 

Finally, startups will receive hands-on pilot planning and execution support from Highline Beta and Avery Dennison pilot champions, all of which will help accelerate their growth faster than they would otherwise. 

Location & Timeline 

The AD Stretch program has worked with 13 startups across the globe, with pilots from China, UK, USA and Brazil, among many other locations. For this cohort, the goal is to find a handful of companies from all over the world.

Applications are now open and will be accepted until Friday, November 17th at 11:59pm GMT.

There will be two information sessions throughout the application process to have a better understanding of the program and the application, including: 

• Interactive Info Session for Startups in Asia Pacific & Europe
  [Wednesday, October 4, 2023]
• Interactive Info Session for Startups in North & South America
  [Wednesday, October 25, 2023]

The final selection of startups will be announced in January 2024. Pilots will take place between March and August 2024.

How to Apply?

To learn more, read the full program deck here.

To apply, click here.