Millennials from Berlin, the very heart of the EU, believed in the vision of two Generation X dads from Manchester so much, that they began a collaboration just months after the UK had officially left the EU to help establish a new UK company called Play It Green.

This is a heart-warming story of how two dads, aged 44 and 49, worked with a group of young people all in their twenties in Berlin on a weekly basis for months to establish a company that would help make people and businesses greener. A story that shows cross-generational, multi-national, EU British relations are alive and well amongst the people and it was all due to one reason. Play It Green would help fight climate change.

Devy Digital Cofounder Nicole Cacchiotti said “It was our pleasure to work with Chris and Richard on bringing their ideas to life. We were inspired by their sincere dedication to making Play it Green a reality and it was our honour to contribute to such an exciting sustainable venture. We’re looking forward to the impact this awesome company is sure to have!”

The two co-founders of Play It Green Chris Thair and Richard Dickson were being quoted up to six-figure sums from UK companies to build the website. They had a sizeable five-figure war chest however not the required funds to proceed with their original vision. It was a sizeable hurdle to get over because it would mean going back to the drawing board or closing the business before it had even launched.

Richard Dickson had contacts in the Kairos Society, an invite-only organisation set up specifically for young entrepreneurs and backed by former US President Bill Clinton and business tycoon Richard Branson. It was from these meetings, Play It Green co-founders were put in touch with various tech companies run by young people whose mission was to help make the world more sustainable; this included David Gegenchkori and Nicole Cacciotti from Devy Digital.

Play It Green cofounder Chris Thair said “The artistic designs were beyond what we had seen before, there was great energy amongst us all and we quickly agreed to proceed. Devy Digital were professional, innovative and delivered great design and functionality for what we required.

“Devy Digital are an amazing team of people who moved us from an idea on a piece of paper to a fully functioning green tech business that has had sign-ups every day since launch. Communication throughout the project build was extremely good, they fixed problems and moved at pace whilst never compromising on quality. We simply wouldn’t be here without them.

Thair continued “We’ve spoken to many people during this start-up phase and it has been extremely noticeable at how the young people in their twenties and thirties, think completely differently about money, life and the environment to people my age and older. It has been an eye-opening experience and inspiring to me as a slightly older person who is now trying to live a more sustainable life and engage others of my generation in the issue.”

Following months of collaboration Play It Green launched to the public in early Spring of 2021 to fantastic reviews. Site navigation was easy, as was the sign-up process and customers loved their Forest Gardens, a bespoke web page for the user they could edit, upload photos to and make their own. Even asking friends and family to plant more trees with them for their birthday or whatever campaign they decided to run from the Forest Garden.

So a team of young people in Berlin helped a group of old people in Manchester realise their dreams. The Play It Green website is a hit and together they have ensured more people and businesses will become more sustainable and help fight climate change. Who said EU-UK relations were dead!

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