An eco startup that has implemented an Australian-first closed-loop supply chain for consumable FMCG products is launching a crowdfunding campaign to expand abroad.
The company provides a sustainable alternative solution for plastic packaging of personal-care and home-cleaning products. Customers will first receive a box, which consists of a set of empty dispensers along with colour-matching refill pouches and a reply-paid postage satchel. Customers simply empty their refill pouches into reusable Forever Bottles and then send them back (in a reply-paid envelope) to be cleaned, refilled and reused for a lifetime.
Zero Co was launched by Mike Smith last year. Its focus was to produce a range of refillable personal-care and home-cleaning products. By doing so, Zero Co aims to stop the production of new single-use plastic and reduce the volume of plastic junking up the oceans.
About 10 months after its launch, Zero Co has signed up more than 40,000 Aussie households and has recently reached monthly sales of AU$1 million. The company aims to expand its reach globally next year.
“Our success so far is down to the support of our incredibly passionate and loyal customers and the strong community that has been built out of this audacious mission,” said Smith.
So far, the company has removed almost 6000kg of plastic rubbish from the ocean.
“That’s the equivalent of more than 500,000 water bottles worth of plastic that we’ve already pulled from the sea,” the company said on its website.
The eco startup has launched a $4.3 million crowdsource funding campaign for its next growth phase as the company seeks to tackle the global single-use plastic problem.
“We’re building a people-powered solution to the global single-use plastic problem,” said Smith. “We want to align the interests of our customers with those of our business and our planet. There’s no better way to do that than for our customers to become our shareholders.”
If successful, it will be the largest crowdfund in Australian history. New shareholders will join the company’s list of current investors including Koala founders Dany Milham and Mitch Taylor, and former St George Bank CEO, Rob Chapman and Atlassian co-founder Scott Farquhar.
“We have built this business together and now, we want to give customers the chance to become a Zero Co shareholder for as little as $250.”
