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Croatian tech prodigy Ivan Mrvos, CEO of Include, created revolutionary smart street benches while at high school and has now sold more than 1,300 units worldwide

• Include opens its first UK office with a plan to become the largest provider of wi-fi enabled smart benches in the UK in five years
• Mrvos –ranked in Forbes’ top 30 talents under 30-years of age – believes Include’s smart city solutions can help architects to revitalise towns, cities and high-streets where 1 in 12 shops have closed in the past five years

The number of shoppers heading to British high streets, retail parks and shopping centres has declined by 10% in the past seven years.

With 1 in 12 shops having closed in the past five years, local authorities, property owners, developers and architects are looking to re-model Britain’s high streets away from retail and into residential, experiential and community spaces.

At the same time towns and cities want to become smarter – save time, waste, and consumption, creating better places for people to live, work and travel across.

Enter the arrival of smart street furniture.

Young Croatian tech prodigy Ivan Mrvos created his first ever smart bench in 2014 while still a teenager at high school.

Now 24, Ivan has sold more than 1,300 items of smart street furniture around the world – but only three so far in the UK, in Wales.

Opening the London office is part of a plan to become the largest provider of smart benches in Britain over the next five years and a partner for local authorities looking to develop smart city solutions.

The London office is Include’s first European office outside of Croatia.

Smart, wi-fi enabled street furniture is expected to be a huge global growth market over the new decade as towns and cities upgrade their high streets and parks to make them more attractive, increase dwell time and move to creating more connected, better informed smart cities.

Include’s range of minimalist, iPhone-inspired benches are among the most highly regarded in the world.

Solar-powered, energy-efficient, vandal proof and protected by CCTV, Include smart benches allow members of the public to access wi-fi and charge their smartphones while on the go or relaxing and chatting to friends on the street.

Despite Brexit, Include believes the UK has the potential to be one of the world’s largest markets for smart benches as the UK is one of the world’s fastest adopters of digital and smart technology.

Smartphone use on the move is very popular in the UK with more than half (53%) of 16-75-year-olds using their smartphones while walking. For younger consumers aged 16-24, the proportion rises to 74%.

Like much of Europe the UK is upgrading infrastructure to 5G and has now rolled out the technology to 70 towns and cities.

Ivan believes the smart benches are a highly-visible, comfortable and cost-effective way for local authorities to improve internet connectivity in towns, cities, and communities.

Ivan Mrvos, CEO of Include, said: “High streets across Britain and the rest of the world are changing as more and more people choose to shop online rather than in physical stores.

“At the same time towns and cities across the world need to become better places for people to live, work and travel across.

“We know as with many countries there are issues with connectivity and infrastructure in Britain.

“Include’s smart street benches help to solve all of these problems by increasing dwell time in towns and cities, and creating better, more connected places and communities.

“While we know Brexit brings worries for some we don’t see any potential problem for us with Brexit, mainly because we strongly believe that the British market is strong and very developed.

“Like many people in Britain, Include is committed to making towns and cities better connected, so although Britain is leaving the European Union we are positive we will find many friends and allies here.

“We also know that the British public sector is focused on smart city projects and for this market we believe Include is their natural partner.”

While Britain’s leading Smart Cities – London, Bristol, Manchester, Cambridge, Birmingham and Leeds –

have the potential to be significant markets, Ivan also believe there is a real need to improve internet connectivity in Britain’s lesser known towns and cities.

As part of the UK’s move towards developing smart cities Include’s smart benches can provide in-depth analytics offering insight on: number of users, public dwell time, differing usage depending on time of day and seasonality, amount of data downloaded, etc.

From its new office in Finsbury Circus, Include will introduce two main product lines of smart benches Steora and Monna.

Equipped with CCTV for security and built-in LCD displays for advertising, Steora is believed to be the world’s most advanced smart bench.

While Monna, which also includes bike racks for cyclists, is believed to be the best equipped multifunctional street bench for both urban and rural areas.

Include’s selected products for the UK market are:

– Steora CCTV smart bench model which is developed to improve the safety of public spaces

– Steora Urban the first street bench ever with a built-in LCD

– Monna models – Monna Street, Monna CITY and Monna COUNTRY, each equipped with the options of charging smart devices, Wi-Fi, street light, digital advertising, sensors, data collecting – and a unique solar-powered cycling point that comes with bike racks, repairing tools, and electrical sockets for charging electric bicycles. Include’s UK office is based at 25 Finsbury Circus, London, EC2M 7E.

Include will exhibit their products in the UK for the first time at Futurebuild on 03-05 March 2020

Useful links:
Include Steora – https://www.include.eu/steora/
Include Monna – https://www.include.eu/monna