55 billion parcels are shipped in bubble wrap every year. 98% of plastic packaging is single-use and plastic bubble wrap is reliant on fossil fuels. You can imagine the negative impact on the environment from all this plastic.
The packaging problem was first-hand seen by the founders of Woola. The lack of options in sustainable andScalable protective packaging led to them re-discovering wool, an unused resource that is elastic and regulates temperatures and humidity.
Their startup uses leftover sheep wool to replace bubble wrap. The ultimate goal of these wool-based packages is to make the solution closed-loop so nothing goes to waste.
The first product of Woola was launched in December of 2020. The first products to hit the market were wool envelopes. The UK, France, and Germany are where it is going to expand. The next product will be for beverage companies.
They raised 2.5 million in a Seed round. Future is joined by co-investors, among them, Kaarel Kotkas, Janer Gorohhov, Zem Joaquin, and Bryan Meehan. Woola has previous investors that include the co-founders of Pipedrive, Bolt and the angel fund.
Anna-Liisa Palatu, CEO and co-founder of Woola, said that bubble wrap has been dominating the packaging industry for a long time. Fossil fuel reliance and single-use mindset are the reasons why the industry is broken. We need to get rid of both of them. She is joined by two other people.
Steve Jurvetson said that single-use plastic packaging is out of control. It is possible to replace it all with beautiful envelopes made from scrap wool. The world needs sustainable alternatives to the economy.
Europe throws away more than 200,000 tons of sheep wool each year. This is enough to fulfill 120% of the global bubble wrap demand, according to Woola.
The startup will compete with other companies.
