Startup founders require many qualities if they are to succeed – but chief among them are resilience and a capacity for hard work.
Sisters Adi and Kati Hristova, who are looking to redefine how hospitality businesses operate with growyze, know all about this.
Now based in London, their upbringing in post-Communist Bulgaria shaped them as people and, perhaps, as entrepreneurs.
鈥淔rom a very young age we helped our parents with whatever extra jobs they took on to support the family – whether we were four years old or 11,鈥� Adi tells 老九品茶Cloud. 鈥淭hat experience shaped a lot of who we are today.聽
鈥淚t taught us not to be afraid of hard work, to stay resourceful, and to keep going despite challenges or uncertainty. In many ways, that upbringing set the foundation for the resilience we鈥檝e needed as founders.鈥�
She adds: 鈥淥ur family dog was called Democracy 鈥� a very on-brand name for the times. She鈥檇 even bark if someone said 鈥楥atch the Communist!鈥欌��
Millions saved
Before founding growyze in 2020, Kati led complex operational and energy programmes for organisations including SSP, Inspired Energy and Gatwick Airport, where she claims to have saved them more than 拢20 million through process improvements and loss-prevention strategies.聽
Adi, meanwhile, built her career around helping organisations work smarter and more sustainably. Her background spans roles in EU-funded innovation projects, sustainability consulting, international business development and implementing automation systems.
She also played for the Bulgaria U19 national football team.
鈥淲e saw the same challenge repeated across the hospitality sector: operators relying on tools that were clunky, complex, costly – or built entirely on spreadsheets, despite increasing pressure on margins and staffing,鈥� says Adi.
鈥済rowyze was built to address that gap with a modern, intuitive solution which streamlines purchasing, stocktaking, invoice validation, recipe costing and waste management – giving restaurants, bars, caf茅s and hotels complete operational control.鈥�
Pivot
Adi says the platform was initially built for smaller hospitality businesses as they were the ones most visibly struggling and often closing due to poor cost control.
鈥淏ut early on, it became clear that larger operators 鈥� including those with hundreds or even thousands of locations 鈥� were facing the same challenges, just at a far greater scale,鈥� she adds. 鈥淭hat insight pushed us to design the platform so it could support both independent venues and complex multi-site groups.鈥�
Bridge round
growyze has since raised over 拢1m from angel investors, Syndicate Room and 00 Investments. Today the platform is used by brands including Holiday Inn, Ramada, Ibis, Great British Inns, Birleys and Padel Social Club.
It has six full-time staff, supported by a wider group of subcontractors, advisors, a non-executive director and external specialists. 鈥淭his model keeps us agile while giving us access to deep expertise as we scale,鈥� says Adi.
opening a bridge round to the public to share more about their journey, product and traction as they continue scaling across the UK.
鈥淥ur bridge round is structured as a convertible – running on a leading crowdfunding platform – and forms part of our main raise,鈥� explains Adi.
鈥淚t allows us to maintain momentum ahead of a larger institutional raise, strengthening our position as we scale the team, enhance the product and deepen our market reach.鈥�
The longer-term plan is to expand into new international markets.
Sister Act
So what鈥檚 it like running a business with your sibling?
鈥淚t has been one of the most rewarding parts of this journey,鈥� answers Adi. 鈥淚n the early days, there was definitely an adjustment period – understanding each other鈥檚 strengths and weaknesses, navigating different working styles, and yes, the occasional bit of bickering.聽
鈥淏ut the foundation has always been trust. We listen to each other, challenge each other and ultimately make decisions based on what鈥檚 best for the company and our customers.
鈥淲e bring very different strengths but share the same values, work ethic and determination to solve real problems for hospitality. That combination makes our collaboration stronger and our mission far more personal.聽
鈥淭he honesty and trust you get when working with family is something you simply can鈥檛 manufacture – and it鈥檚 incredibly powerful when you’re building something from the ground up.鈥�
Kati adds: 鈥淲orking with my sister means building a company on trust, honesty and shared purpose. We challenge each other in the best possible way, and our combined experience helps us look at problems from every angle.聽
鈥済rowyze isn鈥檛 just a business for us 鈥� it鈥檚 something we believe in deeply, and building it together makes the journey even more meaningful.鈥�