NatureGreen becomes a leading green roof supplier |
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NatureGreen brings greenery to otherwise unused spaces
NatureGreen, a full-service supplier of extensive green roofs in Europe, is experiencing rapid growth, particularly in Germany. This success is partly due to the dedication of four German colleagues. "But there is still plenty of growth potential in the Netherlands as well," says Geert Schimmel, founder of the company. Growing up on a farm, he always had a strong connection with greenery, but it wasn't until he moved to a residential area that he realized how important it is to green the living environment. 'Especially rooftops—spaces that would otherwise remain unused.'
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NatureGreen has grown rapidly in a short time. Its customer base now includes a wide range of businesses such as wholesalers, landscaping companies, green roof contractors, webshops, architectural firms, construction companies, garden centres, roofing companies, other green professionals, and municipalities. According to Schimmel, the company's growth is the result of its distinctive approach, which is built on three core promises to its clients. 'Companies appreciate our commitment to top-quality products at a fair price,' he explains. 'We always put our clients first—by going the extra mile or thinking along proactively. That effort is recognised and valued. In addition, we are known for our flexibility and custom solutions. As a small company, we're able to respond quickly.'
Optigrün
At NatureGreen, knowledge is highly valued. 'Ideally, our advisers are involved at the drawing board stage of a project,' says Schimmel. 'A large part of our work involves calculations and providing advice for our clients' projects." NatureGreen is also a partner of green roof specialist Optigrün and handles all enquiries from non-partners that come in through Optigrün. These can involve extensive green roofs, retention roofs, or pitched roofs. 'We offer solid solutions for these,' the owner explains. 'Together with Optigrün, we continue to develop and refine them.'
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'We aim to continue growing in the countries where we are already active, but we also want to expand our services to other European countries'
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Extensive product range
NatureGreen's catalogue features more than 100 products, including several standard systems for flat roofs, pitched roofs up to 30 and 45 degrees, and retention roofs. The range of living products includes sedum vegetation mats, herb-sedum mats containing 16 native herb species, herb cassettes, lightweight sedum cassettes, carbon green roofs, herb seed mixes, and a wide selection of plugs and sedum cuttings.
Strong focus on innovation
The company is also actively engaged in innovation. For example, it supplies carbon green roofs, available as carbon cassettes, carbon substrates or carbon vegetation mats. This substrate is enriched with a special type of rock and micro-organisms that help break down CO₂. 'As a result, approximately 1 tonne of CO₂ can be removed per 100 square metres at standard substrate thickness,' Schimmel explains. Based on a CO₂ removal simulation and measurement method developed in part with TNO, NatureGreen has received accreditation from the National Carbon Market Foundation (Stichting Nationale Koolstofmarkt, SNK). 'This means SNK certificates—carbon credits—are linked to this system, allowing companies to demonstrably offset their CO₂ emissions,' he says.
 | | NatureGreen recently welcomed three new colleagues, who were able to get started right away. |
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Locations
NatureGreen's fresh products are harvested daily at a nursery in North Brabant that works exclusively for the company. With warehouses in North Holland, Brabant and Gelderland, and an office located along the A12 motorway in Ede, NatureGreen has national coverage in the Netherlands. 'We supply our clients from these locations every working day,' says Schimmel. 'In addition, all of our colleagues find it important to work for a company that truly delivers added value. What do we love most about our work? We are always focused on actively greening places that would otherwise remain unused. That commitment runs deep in our company's DNA—and it's something we expect from new colleagues as well.'
Looking ahead
According to Schimmel, the future of green roofs looks promising. 'The market is still growing. Green roofs are becoming more mainstream, and people increasingly recognise their benefits. Let's make green roofs the standard, instead of black roofs.' He also notes that customer demand is becoming more diverse. 'In the past, 95 percent of requests were for standard green roofs with twelve sedum species. Today, the questions we receive are much more varied—and that makes our work even more interesting. For example, demand is rising for retention roofs that capture large volumes of water and can even be linked to weather apps like Buienradar. We're also seeing more interest in pitched roofs, green roofs planted with region-specific herb mixes, and projects in which we collaborate on unique planting plans with specialist plug plants.'
There is still plenty of room for growth at NatureGreen, the founder concludes. 'We aim to expand further in the countries where we're already active, but also want to broaden our services to other European markets. We're investing heavily in streamlining our processes, which gives us more time to focus on our clients and to continue innovating across a wider product range. Ideally, we do this in collaboration with our regular partners, so we can develop smart, value-added concepts together.'
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