Black Winch – Scalable ‘As-A-Service business model’

Black Winch is a group of experts whose goal is to help and support companies transition to the ‘As-A-Service business model’ when a product is involved. This model is defined as selling the use of a product rather than selling the product itself.

In addition to the many economic benefits of As-A-Service, one of the consequences of this model is that it allows for the extension of the use of life, promotes the reuse of the product and additionally reduces the social and environmental impacts of its production. This enables a deeper and more sustainable change towards a better world. Their vision is to “shift from planned obsolescence to regenerative business culture thanks to As-A-Service”.

As-A-Service: a doorway to a circular economy

After 20 years of implementing subscription-based models, 12 years of which he served as CEO of Econocom Dutch Operations, Yann Toutant founded Black Winch in 2020.

The As-A-Service concept from Black Winch provides the customer what they want without the ball & chain of ownership whilst ensuring one’s own more predictable recurring revenue stream at minimal risk. In addition, it reduces the social and environmental impact of the business activities due to reducing the resources.

From a linear business model to a circular one

For most organizations, the linear business model dominates. Manufacturers are responsible for the production and distribution of goods by transferring ownership to the customers. This linear model is strongly linked to planned obsolescence and is responsible for vast amounts of waste. Thanks to the centralization of ownership, the As-A-Service business model is no longer fragmented – the manufacturer can completely retrieve the value of their product after many life cycles. The product’s life cycle is in the hands of the manufacturer or integrator, which guarantees that the end of life is taken care of: reuse, recycle, refurbish.

Black Winch has already managed 10 As-A-Service projects for various companies established across 8 countries within Europe and North America.

www.blackwinch.eu