Written by Charlotte Johnson
Michael Cassau, the founder of Grover—a billion-dollar unicorn that revolutionized the circular economy—has built his career on bold, forward-thinking ideas. With SKROL, his latest venture, Cassau is turning his attention to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), addressing their most pressing challenges through AI-driven acquisition and modernization. He joins us today to discuss his entrepreneurial journey, lessons learned, and how SKROL is paving the way for the future of SMBs.
Your career spans several industries—finance and technology being the recurring theme. How have these experiences shaped your approach to building innovative companies?
My early career in finance gave me a clear understanding of how to evaluate opportunities on a macroeconomic scale. Over time, my focus shifted from theory to execution, driven by a desire to prioritize ideas that weren’t just commercially viable but purposeful.
Those experiences laid the foundation for my entrepreneurial endeavors, beginning with Zooboo Ventures, which helped me refine the principles I later applied to building Grover. I’ve found that when you focus on solving urgent, real-world problems, ideas naturally gain momentum.
Grover is now recognized as a leader in the circular economy. What inspired its creation, and did you anticipate such significant success?
Grover started with a clear but, at the time, ambitious idea: Access to technology should be a basic human right. Traditional ownership models weren’t meeting consumer needs. Rapid product cycles and high upfront costs made it difficult for people to access the devices they needed, while e-waste was becoming a growing environmental crisis.
The solution was a circular economy model, where technology could be recirculated multiple times, generating value for users and reducing waste. I believe Grover triggered a reimagining of ownership. Seeing how deeply the platform has resonated with consumers and businesses has been incredibly fulfilling.
That brings us to SKROL. How does it build on your experiences at Grover?
Grover democratized access to technology for individuals and businesses. SKROL extends that vision to SMBs, which represent an important but frequently underserved segment of the global economy.
Many SMBs face well-documented operational challenges. But issues like aging ownership and succession gaps are often an afterthought, and these can jeopardize a business’s future.
With SKROL, we apply high-growth tech startup strategies to established businesses, helping them modernize operations without losing their heritage. We want to help SMBs transition smoothly, whether it’s by streamlining acquisitions or automating their payment workflows.
What sets SKROL apart, and how does FlowSign fit into this vision?
We’re approaching SMB management very pragmatically. We focus on simplifying the most complex, time-intensive aspects of SMB acquisition and management, rather than forcing “digital transformation” where it isn’t needed. If a business already has product-market fit, we respect that—there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.
FlowSign is one of our foundational tools. It’s an e-signature and workflow solution that streamlines contract management. Users can sign documents on their phones, collaborate on contracts in real time, and even securely process the payments, all within the platform.
It’s the first of many tools we’re building. Everything we build is designed around the idea that innovation should benefit as many SMBs as possible.
What’s your long-term vision for SKROL and its impact on SMBs?
We envision SKROL as the leading platform for SMB acquisition and transformation, on a global scale. The feedback so far has been tremendous. Alongside my co-founders, Mitja Sadar and Christopher Silva, we’ve already screened over 1,000 businesses and secured pre-seed and venture funding. It’s a promising start for what we believe will be a new standard in fintech.
Ultimately, we want to build an ecosystem where retiring SMB owners can transition their businesses with confidence, knowing they’ll continue to grow under capable leadership, regardless of staffing or tech budgets.
What advice would you give SMBs looking to stay competitive?
Be proactive about change. Outdated systems and processes can hold even the strongest businesses back. Start by identifying bottlenecks and exploring ways to digitize or automate them. Most importantly, choose solutions designed for businesses your size—what works for large enterprises might not be ideal for SMBs.
