The Oater (OIY Solutions GmbH)

While our competitors also actively solve for the packaging and sustainability problem, they neglect the milk taste and foam, which we guarantee through our innovative, patent-pending low-temperature fermentation process, among other advantages.

We offer a holistic oat milk ecosystem, which in addition to the machine also consists of a smart ordering platform and the regular delivery of ingredients (,,Oater Packs"). The business model is ,,oat milk as a service". Our business customers, including cafes and retailers, borrow the machine for free and pay only one price per liter for the delivery of raw ingredients (fixed price 1.40 €/l results in 54 % Gross Profit Margin). This model ensures constant revenue streams and higher scaling potential than traditional hardware models. It also guarantees minimal barriers to entry for our price- and risk-sensitive customers. A machine reaches full cost recovery after about one year with an average consumption of 4,200 liters per year.

We have developed an innovative single-batch low-temperature fermentation process and apparatus for the production of plant-based milk and have submitted our German patent application in 01/2023 which we will expand EU-wide and internationally. This secures us the exclusive use of the hyper-centralized plant-based milk production technology. With our patent, we create market entry hurdles for comparable machines and ensure our dominant position as the only ingredient supplier for our machine.
As part of our vision, we aim to expand our on-site production innovations to other dairy alternatives and will likely patent these in the future.

Even prior to our market launch and without active sales, we grew our waitlist to 37 customers. Of these, we are focusing on key strategic partnerships and acquisition channels, including a development and sales cooperation with one of the globally most integrated coffee machine manufacturer, a leading canteen supplier, a leading food producer, and a leading distribution company for coffee and other gastro machines. Pilot projects will start in Q2 2023.

Our first product, The Oater Barista, is made for cafés, hotels, offices, and no-waste stores. This initial market helps us to establish a brand and develop further product categories. After developing a second, larger version of the machine in 2024, the ‘The Oater Retail +’, we will also sell B2C and tap into the entire multi-billion-dollar oat milk market, before expanding even beyond oat milk.
Both machines use our innovative, patent-pending low-temperature fermentation process to produce market-leading oat milk in Barista-quality with no pasteurization. We have understood that Barista quality foam and natural sweetness without added sugar are a requirement among B2B customers. While our competitors also actively solve for the packaging and sustainability problem, they neglect the milk taste and foam. This makes us the only sustainable alternative adept to compete in the food services segment with the best consumer experience.
Our initial customer group consisting of small business owners and baristas are currently forced to keep using packaged brand oat milk. It is the only product that meets their foam and taste requirements regardless of how dissatisfied they are with packaging, pricing, supply chain issues etc. Many businesses have tried making their own oat milk, either manually or with the aid of consumer kitchen appliances. However, they have all returned to the packaged oat milk due to the complexity and manual nature of the production process which is not feasible for a fast-paced food services workflow as well as the lack of barista quality (foam + harmonic taste with coffee).
All customer groups, including retail, have the key challenge of attracting people to their stores, and our fresh, high-quality product enables them to offer a unique experience, thereby growing their business overall.