The Story Behind EarthSuds Zero Waste Shower Tablets
In 2017, a video showing researchers removing a plastic straw from a sea turtle's nose had just gone viral with 37M views. The plastic bag ban in California was in full swing. Society was starting to take notice of the consequences of single-use plastics.
A 19-year old Canadian student at Laurier University, Marissa Vettoretti wondered: What other single-use plastics are hurting our environment? Perhaps plastics that may not be talked about as frequently as straws, plastic bags, and other consumer goods? She decided to enter a circular design challenge focused on plastics to find out more.
During the competition, Marissa discovered that amenity bottles (ie. shampoo, conditioner, body wash) found in hotel bathrooms can't actually be recycled. They are filtered out at recycling facilities because the bottles are too small, have a low quality grade of plastic, and are often still contaminated with soap.
As a result, 5.7 Billion plastic amenity bottles are sent to North American landfills every year. This, is the dirty side of soap. It's a shocking discovery and she got to work creating a more sustainable solution to this problem.
Fast forward to the start of 2018 when classmate Daniel Moll takes notice. He's passionate about environmental preservation and equally frustrated about the amount of plastic waste produced by the hospitality industry. More importantly, he's had past success running his own startups and building brands. The two decide to join forces.
Together they co-found EarthSuds, a business that believes in a plastic-free economy where sustainability does not compromise quality.
They build a team of superstars in pursuit of an ambitious goal; to replace all single-use plastic bathroom products with sustainable EarthSuds alternatives.
EarthSuds achieves all three dimensions of sustainability; economically it generates and re-invests profits, socially it employs adults with developmental disabilities, and environmentally it eliminates single-use plastics.
Although EarthSuds tablets started as a solution for hotels, most consumer hair products are also packaged in plastic. Hotel guests have been asking the EarthSuds team for months: How can I purchase some tablets for myself?
Now, the wait is over.
Join the movement of users cleaning the Earth, as they clean their hair!
