EY Announces Back to the Roots as an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2021 Northern California Award Winner

OAKLAND, Calif., Aug. 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) announced on 4 August 2021, that Co-founders and Co-CEOs of Back to the Roots Nikhil Arora and Alejandro Velez were named an Entrepreneur Of The Year^® 2021 Northern California Award winner. Back to the Roots is changing gardening for the next generation by disrupting the $48 billion gardening industry by making gardening accessible for everyone, everywhere with its line of indoor organic grow kits, 100% USA grown seeds, sustainable peat-free soils, seed starting pots & mixes, and raised beds. All products are available in more than 14,000 locations including at Walmart, The Home Depot, Target, Lowe's, Whole Foods Market and on Amazon.

The Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards program is one of the preeminent competitive awards for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies. The award recognizes those who are unstoppable entrepreneurial leaders, excelling in talent management; degree of difficulty; financial performance; societal impact and building a values-based company; and originality, innovation and future plans. Back to the Roots was selected by an independent panel of judges, and the award was announced during the program's virtual awards gala on August 4.

In the past, the Entrepreneur Of The Year program has honored the inspirational leadership of entrepreneurs such as: Brian Niccol of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc, John Mackey of Whole Foods Market, Howard Schultz of Starbucks Corporation, Jodi Berg of Vitamix, Reid Hoffman and Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn, Hamdi Ulukaya of Chobani, James Park of Fitbit and Daymond John of Fubu.

"It is such a great honor to be named Entrepreneur of the Year for Northern California. We are inspired and motivated by this recognition to continue to push not just our industry forward as we bring a new generation into the garden, but also to build a sustainable business that helps drive more conscious, multi-stakeholder capitalism.", says Nikhil Arora. Alejandro Velez adds: "We hope our story can inspire other young entrepreneurs to dream big — this whole journey started off for us in college with just a $5,000 grant from our chancellor. And we feel like we're just scratching the surface as we look to build the garden brand for a new generation - reconnecting every kid and family back to their food and the land." 

For 35 years, EY US has honored entrepreneurs, whose ambition, courage and ingenuity have driven their companies' success, transformed their industries and made a positive impact on their communities. Back to the Roots will go on to become a lifetime member of the esteemed multi-industry community of award winners, with exclusive, ongoing access to the experience, insight and wisdom of fellow alumni and other ecosystem members in over 60 countries — all supported by vast EY resources.

As a Northern California award winner, Back to the Roots is now eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2021 National Awards. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner, will be announced in November at the Strategic Growth Forum^®, one of the nation's most prestigious gatherings of high-growth, market-leading companies.

Sponsors
Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are nationally sponsored by SAP America and the Kauffman Foundation. In Northern California, sponsors also include SolomonEdwards and Woodruff Sawyer.

About Entrepreneur Of The Year^®
Entrepreneur Of The Year^® is the world's most prestigious business awards program for unstoppable entrepreneurs. These visionary leaders deliver innovation, growth and prosperity that transform our world. The program engages entrepreneurs with insights and experiences that foster growth. It connects them with their peers to strengthen entrepreneurship around the world. Entrepreneur Of The Year is the first and only truly global awards program of its kind. It celebrates entrepreneurs through regional and national awards programs in more than 145 cities in over 60 countries. National overall winners go on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ title. ey.com/us/eoy

About Back to the Roots:
Back to the Roots is the world's fastest-growing organic gardening company. Alejandro and Nikhil founded Back to the Roots during their last semester in college at the University of California, Berkeley, growing a $5,000 grant from their college chancellor into a $100 million garden brand in the years since.

The company is dedicated to sustainably bringing anyone and everyone into the garden. Reconnecting a whole new generation to the land and to the food they eat. No backyard or green thumb needed. Back to the Roots has helped create millions of new organic gardens through their game-changing line of organic indoor grow kits, 100% USA grown seed packets, peat-free potting soil, live plants and raised beds.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Ida Bo Frazier
The Rose Group/Back to the Roots
[email protected]

SOURCE Back to the Roots

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