Forbes
Meet Trashless, A New Service Delivering Pantry Staples In Sustainable Packaging
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Overview
video
We are a zero-waste, local online grocery service delivering everything from meal-kits, ready-to-eat-food, snacks, pantry items, cleaning supplies, beverages, to pet food and more, all with no trash. We are also an evolving platform that provides the tech and infrastructure for brands to adopt a trashless business model.
The Problem
As the world increasingly sees the effects of man-made climate change - forest fires in the West, hurricanes on the East Coast, rising oceans and more - the majority of people around the country say they support prioritizing climate policy, with more than two-thirds saying the federal government is doing too little.
But in everyday busy modern lives, it seems to us that conscious consumption can be next to impossible. With single-use plastics at every turn, most grocery stores sourcing from massive factory farms, we believe many consumers have few options that are also convenient — even though our assumption is many feel strongly about protecting the environment.
The Solution
Trashless is bringing consumers a guilt-free shopping experience for high quality sustainable products, and a hub for environmentally conscious consumption free of single-use packaging.
Our service is reducing our collective carbon footprint, while offering lower prices and healthier, local options for consumers.
The Market
Our TAM is the U.S. food retail industry, where there are over 38K stores averaging over $17M in revenue each year.
When combined with the wide spectrum of polls showing support for climate friendly products and the recent surge in growth of environmentally sustainable products in the consumer packaged goods market, we are well positioned to capture the market.
Polls show consumers increasingly more focused on protecting the environment with their every day decisions and moving toward a more sustainable life, and our platform provides them with the necessary infrastructure to achieve that goal.
Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, now more than ever, consumers want things delivered to their door. Unfortunately, this has resulted in a significant increase in packaging waste - boxes within boxes, meal kits delivered from long distances with nonrecyclable insulation, coolant bags, plastic wrapping and more. Consumers want to lower their carbon footprint, without losing the convenience of delivery. We believe these trends put us in a good position to build a strong, fast growth business.
Our Traction
When we relaunched in October 2019, after a brief pause to operationally restructure and rebrand our company, we had a fully mature digital platform - ready to scale, product line fully streamlined, operationally optimized, and marketing-channels ready for a wider deployment.
Over the last few years, we have perfected the cycle of sourcing sustainably produced local ingredients, delivering them in reusable packaging, collecting it back up, sanitizing it and repeating this process over and over again - affordably. Now we are ready to expand to new markets via a lean model.
We were also featured in Forbes in 2020 as a positive move towards sustainable lifestyles. We’ve filed for trademarks for ‘Trashless’ and ‘The Milkman for Everything’.
What We Do
Although we offer many amazing environmentally-friendly options for consumers, we are more than just a sustainable product-focused business: we’re offering a new truly environmentally-focused paradigm - not only for consumers but also for other brands to leverage our infrastructure to create a Trashless society.
Our platform, Trashless.com, enables various entities to buy and sell with each other, driving down the cost of sustainable products and creating a hub for consumers and vendors to congregate.
This testimonial may not be representative of the experience of other customers and is no guarantee of future performance or success.
This testimonial may not be representative of the experience of other customers and is no guarantee of future performance or success.
This testimonial may not be representative of the experience of other customers and is no guarantee of future performance or success.
The Business Model
We operate as a traditional B2C ecommerce company, buying and producing in wholesale and selling at retail.
GIF
We are able to take in recurring revenue streams from planned deliveries and subscription plans, which has helped us maintain high recurring revenue per delivery, while bringing down our average cost per delivery (not including cost of goods) to around $3.50.
Since we have no retail location, we are able to keep overhead low by renting out cheap warehouses, which we can use 24/7 to get the most out of our investments.
How We Are Different
Our competitors are grocers (online and physical stores) and subscription meal services that produce huge amounts of packaging waste and have an environmentally unsustainable supply chain.
For us, sustainability is our whole mission. That’s why in addition to our wide range of everyday products, we also offer unique sustainability services like dead battery pick up, compost, and pet food bag pick up from animal adoption centers, for free or a nominal fee.
The Vision
We are making solid progress to achieve profitability in the Greater Austin area by the end of 2020, while expanding the product line.
Through this raise we plan to use the capital to expand into the Houston, Dallas and San Antonio markets in early 2021, which would significantly increase our TAM and kick in powerful network effects on both the supply and the demand side.
Based on learnings, capital availability and economic conditions, we plan to start expansion beyond Texas in the second half of 2021, with a lean operational model, low customer acquisition costs and increasingly cheaper procurement costs because of higher buying power. We want to continue scaling as large as possible, because we believe in our mission and know that the better we do as a company, the better it will be for consumers and the planet.
Actual plans for where and when we expand will be based on further research, capital availability, economic environment, and partnership opportunities.
OUR LEADERSHIP
We are a team with a diverse set of experiences, ranging from years in tech, operations, culinary arts, content development, analytics, and customer support.
The one thing that brings us all together is a sense of purpose to give back to our communities by providing them with an opportunity to treat the planet better.
We like to say that our best ‘advisors’ are our customers and data. In today’s cutthroat business climate, you don’t get too far without data-backed decisions, so while we are laser-focused on the environment, we understand none of it matters if people aren’t clicking that order button.
Why Invest
We are already seeing forest fires, rising oceans, volatile weather, and mass extinctions as a result of man-made climate change, and if we don’t do this now we will all pay the price.
Company | : | Trashless, Inc. |
Corporate Address | : | 4701 Red Bluff Road, Suite B, Austin, TX 78702 |
Offering Minimum | : | $10,000.00 |
Offering Maximum | : | $406,890.00 |
Minimum Investment Amount(per investor) | : | $250.00 |
Offering Type | : | Convertible Promissory Notes |
Type of Equity Converted Into | : | Series Seed-1 Preferred Stock |
Conversion Trigger | : | $3,000,000.00 |
Maturity Date | : | November 01, 2022 |
Valuation Cap | : | $6,000,000.00 |
Discount Rate | : | 20.0% |
Annual Interest Rate | : | 5.0% |
What is a Convertible Note?
A convertible note offers you the right to receive Series Seed-1 Preferred Stock in Trashless, Inc. . The amount of Series Seed-1 Preferred Stock you will receive in the future will be determined at the next equity round in which the Company raises at least $3,000,000.00 in a qualified equity financing. The highest conversion price per security is set based on a $6,000,000.00 Valuation Cap or if less, then you will receive a 20.0% discount on the price the new investors are paying. You also receive 5.0% interest per year added to your investment. When the maturity date is reached, if the note has not converted then you are entitled to receive Series Seed-1 Preferred Stock equal to your investment and interest back at a price per security determined by dividing the Valuation Cap by the aggregate number of outstanding equity securities of the Company as of immediately prior (on a fully diluted basis).
COVID Relief
This offering is being conducted on an expedited basis due to circumstances relating to COVID-19 and pursuant to the SEC’s temporary regulatory COVID-19 relief set out in Regulation Crowdfunding §227.201(z).
Expedited closing sooner than 21 days
Further, in reliance on Regulation Crowdfunding §227.303(g)(2) A funding portal that is an intermediary in a transaction involving the offer or sale of securities initiated between May 4, 2020, and February 28, 2021, in reliance on section 4(a)(6) of the Securities Act (15 U.S.C. 77d(a)(6)) by an issuer that is conducting an offering on an expedited basis due to circumstances relating to COVID-19 shall not be required to comply with the requirement in paragraph (e)(3)(i) of this section that a funding portal shall not direct transmission of funds earlier than 21 days after the date on which the intermediary makes publicly available on its platform the information required to be provided by the issuer under §§227.201 and 227.203(a).
*Annual Interest Rate subject to adjustment of 10% bonus for StartEngine shareholders. See 10% Bonus below
Company Perks*
Early Bird
Volume
*All perks occur when the offering is completed.
The 10% StartEngine Owners' Bonus
The Company will offer 10% additional bonus shares for all investments that are committed by investors that are eligible for the StartEngine Crowdfunding Inc. OWNer's bonus.
Eligible StartEngine shareholders will receive a 10% increase in the annual interest rate on Convertible Promissory Notes in this Offering. This means your annual interest rate will be 5% instead of 5.5%.
This 10% Bonus is only valid during the investors eligibility period. Investors eligible for this bonus will also have priority if they are on a waitlist to invest and the company surpasses its maximum funding goal. They will have the first opportunity to invest should room in the offering become available if prior investments are cancelled or fail.
Investors will only receive a single bonus, which will be the highest bonus rate they are eligible for.
A crowdfunding investment involves risk. You should not invest any funds in this offering unless you can afford to lose your entire investment. In making an investment decision, investors must rely on their own examination of the issuer and the terms of the offering, including the merits and risks involved. These securities have not been recommended or approved by any federal or state securities commission or regulatory authority. Furthermore, these authorities have not passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this document. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission does not pass upon the merits of any securities offered or the terms of the offering, nor does it pass upon the accuracy or completeness of any offering document or literature. These securities are offered under an exemption from registration; however, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has not made an independent determination that these securities are exempt from registration.
Hello investors and followers!
Shipments from most food delivery services - you know, the Blue-this, Hello-that and the Fresh-whatnots - come with an incredible amount of packaging waste. During the pandemic, demand for such services has increased tremendously - creating an environmental pandemic of sorts - flooding municipal waste systems with insulation material, plastic wrapping, cardboard boxes, and, ice packs.
Ah, ice packs! Those pesky little things - save them - they pile up; trash them - and you’re guiltily adding to the climate crisis. Despite all the attempts to make them feel like they are environmentally friendly - they just aren’t: Plastic bag, chemicals inside, long distance travel out the wazoo - from the extraction of raw materials to manufacturing to final production facilities to your home. Uggh!
Well, we thought, how about we turn this on its head: A FREE service called the Ice Pack Give Back:
Few days in, and we have already picked up hundreds of them!
This is not only wonderfully circular, it also makes business sense:
Environment: We’re helping the environment, one ice pack at a time by reusing them.
Cost Saving: We need them anyway - now we don’t need to buy them (better still, our wasteful competitors are buying them for us :)).
Awareness: Services like this bring us awareness that otherwise costs money - leading to more customers coming on board at a lot lower Customer Acquisition Cost - something that’s already happening in this case.
Thank you Cristina Guerra for the idea!
The Ice Pack Give Back joins our Dead Battery Pick Up service that’s been helping the communities we serve a convenient way to dispose used batteries.
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Meanwhile, we just passed $100k in funds raised (thank you Sundeepa for your investment that tipped us over this milestone)! We appreciate all your support and belief in what we’re doing. Onwards towards our larger mission of making everyday household consumption sustainable, local and zero-waste! Perks due for all the investments thus far going out shortly!
Sincerely,
The Trashless Team
Hello investors and followers - we hope your 2021 has started off on a great note!
In 2018, a jaw-dropping 7.9 billion units of rigid plastic were created just for beauty and personal care products (Source). Most of it, not recyclable.
Trashless recently took a serious step to take this on, bringing on over 30 amazing personal care products, each with dozens of options to our growing customer base through a new brand partner, Luxe Refill. Mostly produced locally using premium natural ingredients, beautifully packaged in reusable containers and delivered trashlessly - this product line is off to a great start.
The ecommerce segment of the personal care products is about $35 billion, growing at about 10% year over year (source). When shipping materials are considered, the packaging waste toll goes up further. With Trashless, these products are delivered in 100% zero-waste packaging.
Considering these products are made from natural ingredients, locally sourced when possible, the positive ecological impact goes up even further.
We look forward to promote and grow this new category, in the process attracting a legion of new environmentally conscious consumers - a fast growing segment.
[The following is an automated notice from the StartEngine team].
Hello!
As you might know, Trashless has exceeded its minimum funding goal. When a company reaches its minimum on StartEngine, it's about to begin withdrawing funds. If you invested in Trashless be on the lookout for an email that describes more about the disbursement process.
This campaign will continue to accept investments until its indicated closing date.
Thanks for funding the future.
-StartEngine
Hey everyone! Happy Holidays!
Just in time for the festive season, our Soda Maker 60L Cylinder Refill Service, CO2 for YOU went into full service!
There is a lot of rightful consternation about the ecological impact of water sold in plastic bottles. When something is almost FREE coming out the faucet and can be easily filtered, and refilled into reusable bottles, why buy plastic bottles? That’s pretty straightforward.
But, when it comes to sparkling water, it’s not so straightforward. How to get CO2 - a gas that is in the air we breathe, into the water so it becomes sparkling - in a zero-waste way that is also easy, affordable and convenient?
This is clearly not so easy, resulting in consumers in the US purchasing $24.5 billion worth of sparkling water each year, growing at an annual rate of 11.8% (Source)! The carbon footprint of this is staggering: The production, transportation, discarding, recycling of all that packaging material, plus the sourcing, packaging and transportation of what is essentially water and available almost everywhere.
Enter home soda makers, such as Soda Stream, Drinkmate and other brands. They work great! But what happens when the CO2 in them runs out? This is where the rub is - ecologically, financially (for the consumer) and in terms of convenience. The choices are to take it to local stores who are usually out (not convenient, and they are usually out). Or put them in a box and ship them long distance, and receive refilled ones the same way - the air we breathe needn’t be transported on planes in heavy tanks!
Enter Trashless’ CO2 for YOU - a local 60L soda maker cylinder refill delivery service - the most convenient, environmentally friendly and cheapest way to make your drinks fizzy.
Here’s why CO2 for YOU is the best way for consumers to add fizz to their drinks:
Cheapest: At $14.99, including free delivery for a refill, and $29.99 for a new cylinder - this is the cheapest way to fizz up your drinks. That’s about 10c per 12 fl.oz of fizz (will vary based on the amount of fizz you add).
Most Environmentally Friendly: Beats plastic bottles (uggh!), aluminum cans (boo!), long distance shipping of refilled cylinders (ridiculous!), refilling at stores (umm, why do that!?).
Most Convenient: No boxes to crush or repack, never run out, fizz up to the amount you want, and more!
Also behold our specially curated collection of locally made Artisanal Syrups that are perfect for refreshing drinks - alcoholic or non-alcoholic. More syrups, including Real Sugar Cola, Root Beer, and even Coca Cola coming soon!
Learn more about CO2 for YOU at www.trashless.com/co2
In terms of our business model, services like these are driving more customers to us, building greater retention and spawning more complimentary local partnerships (in this case, with local gas suppliers, small syrup producers and more), and the margins are great because so many costs (such as delivery) are spread across all our products and services.
Hey investors and followers!
Thank you for your continued support for our campaign - we appreciate it.
Did you know that 2 billion pizza boxes are used in the US every year. And it takes millions of trees to produce those pizza boxes - most of which are not recyclable because of the grease on them. Wow!
We are on a mission to stop this destruction, while creating the Holy Grail of Pizza.
Magic Pizza Kits (www.trashless.com/pizza) are our newest product line that’s already getting rave reviews. Here’s how this is a disruptive innovation in a mega space ($30B worth of pizzas sold in the US every year, and it is the food category most ordered for delivery) that hasn't seen much innovation in a while.
Healthy, Sustainable Pizza, Thanks to the Highest Possible Quality, Local Ingredients: Hand-tossed crust milled locally from heirloom grains - supporting regenerative agriculture; gourmet cheese blends; and fresh sauces and toppings using produce and meats from local farms. Healthy and Pizza are 2 words that rarely go together. Now they do. It’s pizza you can eat every day.
Fast & Easy: 3 minutes of prep, 15 in the oven: Making customers feel like Italian pizza chefs, while getting comfortable in the kitchen.
Zero-waste: These kits are delivered trashlessly.
Competitively Priced: The price is the best part - at about the same as a typical pizza from a local pizza store, while maintaining healthy margins for us. This is possible because of our business and operational model highlighted above on the campaign page.
Safer: During these pandemic times, the safest food is the food you make yourself.
We look forward to rapidly growing this product line, bringing the Trashless experience to a whole new audience!
Meanwhile, we also:
Received some coverage in the Austin Business Journal in anticipation of our roll out in Dallas.
Fully rolled out our new site - mostly without a hitch.
And made deliveries Free - no minimums, no commitment.
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Yogesh and the rest of the Trashless team
[The following is an automated notice from the StartEngine team].
Hello!
As you might know, Trashless has exceeded its minimum funding goal. When a company reaches its minimum on StartEngine, it's about to begin withdrawing funds. If you invested in Trashless be on the lookout for an email that describes more about the disbursement process.
This campaign will continue to accept investments until its indicated closing date.
Thanks for funding the future.
-StartEngine
Thank you early investors for a great start to our campaign!
Political choices and governmental action are a big part of what needs to be done to reverse climate change. Equally important, perhaps even more, are the choices we all make everyday - both as consumers, and solutions we invest in - individually and as a society. Trashless is aiming to create a new sustainable consumption paradigm - one that will take a while to set in - just like electric vehicles, renewable energy and others. It may take a while, but with your participation, we will get there. Collectively, if you believe the scientists, we don’t really have a choice.
While our country sorts out the political situation it’s found itself in, we keep marching on - and we hope you will join us!
Welcome to the Trashless campaign! We thank everyone who has taken the time to look through it, favorited it and invested.
Climate change is real, and packaging waste is a big contributor to it. Trashless is creating a comprehensive solution from the ground up, bringing sustainability to modern lifestyles. We are excited that now anyone who believes in this vision can invest us through this campaign - helping us create the future of local, sustainable, zero-waste commerce.
We look forward to engaging with you and having you on board!
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