By GREGORY ZELLER //
An early-stage Long Island enterprise with a knack for being helpful has won a Greater New York business competition – and will share the spoils with other regional startups.
Long Beach-based Trellus Same-Day Local Delivery – which launched in 2021 as an Island-centric response to mighty Amazon and other massive online retailers – has introduced the Trellus Local Delivery Grant, offering $500 worth of local delivery services to 20 eligible small businesses.
The $10,000 pot is a true pay-it-forward effort by Trellus, which in December won the 1010 WINS Small Business $10K Challenge, a business-strategy contest cosponsored by Audacy and Dime Community Bank.
JR Jensen: Busting barriers.
Trellus, which offers same-day delivery service from a growing list of registered local businesses, won over the judges with a solid business plan – and the company’s stated intentions to share the prize money with the Long Island small-business community, should the Long Beach startup emerge victorious in the winner-take-all regional competition.
With Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer JR Jensen representing the last-mile trailblazer in the competition’s virtual Dec. 15 finals – an online faceoff of five small businesses, including Nassau County-based app-maker Baby Size Me and Amityville-based apparel originator Amity Harbor Sports, culled from hundreds of applicants – Trellus earned that $10K Challenge victory.
And now it’s making good on its promise, launching the Trellus Local Delivery Grant to “break down barriers to help independently owned businesses survive,” according to Jensen.
“Small businesses deserve a win against the likes of Amazon, Walmart and other e-commerce giants,” the co-founder added.
Trellus has done well since Jensen and Co-founders Adam Haber and Brian Berkery flipped the switch 24 months ago.
The company now boasts 16 full-time employees, 80-plus gig drivers and an Island-wide operational range, guaranteeing same-day product deliveries (50 pounds or less) for a registered marketplace of 300-plus local businesses. Flowers and pharmaceuticals, bagels and books, clothes and candy, printed materials and plant-based merchandise – a prime selection of products and services is just a click away, giving Long Island mom-and-pops a fighting chance against the e-commerce kings.
The Local Delivery Grants will cover $500 worth of Trellus subscription and delivery costs for eligible small businesses. Applications will be accepted through Feb. 14 from brick-and-mortar retailers, professional-service providers and home-based businesses, with extra attention paid to community-focused enterprises owned by women, BIPOC entrepreneurs and military veterans.
While a $10,000 cash infusion certainly wouldn’t hurt his company’s bottom line, spreading around the business competition prize money will have a much more significant effect on regional socioeconomics, according to Jensen.
“We’re thrilled to share this $10,000 with independent businesses on Long Island,” the CTO said. “They’re driving local economic growth and breathing life into our downtowns.”
