From Waste Stream to Revenue Stream: Scaling Brewcycle Across Europe

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

Brewcycle is an Austrian startup operating at the intersection of circular economy, biotechnology, and sustainable gardening. The company upcycles brewery by-products, primarily spent grain, into high-quality, organic compost for home gardeners. By transforming a costly waste stream for breweries into a valuable soil improver, Brewcycle creates environmental, economic, and societal value across the entire value chain. The product is fully organic, peat-free, plastic-free and compliant with EU regulations, addressing growing consumer demand for sustainable and transparent gardening solutions.  

Brewcycle’s composting process leverages controlled microbial decomposition to convert brewery waste into a nutrient rich soil amendment that improves soil health, humus content, and plant growth. Compared to conventional compost products, Brewcycle offers superior organic matter content, clear nutrient declarations, and a truly circular production model. The solution targets end consumers through both direct-to-consumer and retail channels, positioning Brewcycle as a premium yet accessible sustainabilitydriven brand in the gardening market. 

Goal 

The goal of the Brewcycle project is to prepare the company for a structured and scalable market entry beyond Austria, with a particular focus on identifying the most attractive European expansion market and defining a clear go-to-market strategy. To achieve this, the project focuses on three core objectives: evaluating and comparing potential target markets based on market size, readiness and resource availability; developing a customer-centric value proposition and pricing strategy aligned with willingness-to-pay and designing a step-by-step market entry and commercialization plan.  

These efforts aim to validate Brewcycle’s business model in an international context, reduce market entry risk and create a solid strategic foundation for future scaling and potential fundraising activities. 

Methodology 

The Brewcycle project follows a mixed-method research approach combining secondary market research with qualitative primary insights. Secondary research includes the analysis of macroeconomic indicators, market size calculations, regulatory frameworks, competitor benchmarks, and sustainability trends across selected European markets. This is complemented by primary research in the form of expert interviews with retailers, wholesalers, procurement specialists, and industry professionals in the gardening and soil improvement sector.  

Additionally, customer interviews and pricing benchmarks are used to assess willingness-to-pay, perceived value, and key purchase drivers. The collected insights are synthesized into a market scoring model, pricing logic, and actionable go-to-market recommendations tailored to Brewcycle’s operational and strategic capabilities. 

Results 

The project delivered a comprehensive strategic package to support Brewcycle’s international expansion. A structured market comparison identified Germany as the most attractive entry market due to its large gardening market, high demand for sustainable products, strong retail infrastructure, and favorable regulatory environment. Based on customer insights and competitor analysis, a clear target group, sustainability-oriented home gardeners, was defined, along with a premium positioning strategy.  

Furthermore, the project resulted in a validated pricing framework combining cost-based and value-based logic, a detailed go-to-market strategy covering both direct and indirect sales channels, and a phased action plan for market entry and scaling. Together, these outcomes provide Brewcycle with a clear strategic roadmap to enter the German market, validate demand, and build a scalable foundation for future European growth. 

Cooperation Partner 

• Brewcycle 

Contact Person 

• Angeliki Sitara; angeliki@brewcycleinfo.com 

Student Team 

• ​​​Ferraris, Nicolas; Poprady, Levente; Pribernig, Michael; Gailer, Valentina-Maria and Schneider, Felix​​ 

Project Manager 

• ​​​Horvath, Dorothee and​ ​Monsorno, Benjamin​​