Tevis Howard

Biography

Africa's wood demand is accelerating quickly, with no end in sight. Most natural forests are gone or disappearing fast: a top cause of climate change. Traditional plantation forestry is severely growth constrained by limited land & high costs. With this business-as-usual, Africa's wood supply deficit will be $30 billion/year by 2030. This is a big business opportunity.

Africa has millions of poor farmers eager to make more money growing anything, including trees. Komaza's core innovation is simple: partner with thousands of farmers to collectively grow enough trees to feed a vertically-integrated industrial wood business. Once mature, Komaza buys and harvests the trees, returning life-changing income to farmers and supplying sustainable wood to market.

Critically, Komaza's model also delivers disruptive cost savings. Because farmers provide all land and labor, Komaza plants trees for 80% less than plantations, ultimately yielding much higher unit economic returns. Superior profitability means tremendous potential to scale, inspiring Komaza's long-term ambition to grow into Africa's largest forestry company.

After nearly a decade of slow bootstrapping, Komaza's growth has accelerated significantly over the last three years. By planting over 3,000 acres in 2018, Komaza is now among the largest active forestry planters in Africa. To date, Komaza has planted over 2 million trees with 14,000 farmers in Coastal Kenya, with operations currently on track to plant another 1 million trees with 7,000 farmers in 2019.

Tevis Howard, Komaza's Founder/CEO, grew up in the California Bay Area. Following his parent's footsteps, he was a biotech science nerd in his youth. After a quarter-life existential crisis, Tevis started Komaza while in university and has been maniacally driven ever since.