Shellworks has raised US$15m to expand production of its 100% compostable material Vivomer, an alternative to plastic used in beauty packaging.
Unilever’s Wild, Hair by Sam McKnight, Wildsmith, and Sonsie are among the beauty and personal care brands which have already started using Shellwork’s technology.
With the fresh backing, the six-year-old UK start-up intends to expand its global production network and accelerate expansion into the US and Europe.
The Series A investment was led by Alter Equity, a French impact investment firm, with participation from Silicon Valley entrepreneur Nat Friedman and JamJar, the venture capital firm run by the founders of Innocent Drinks.
Existing Shellworks investors also participated in the latest funding round, including venture capital firms Founder Collective, Local Globe and Third Sphere.
For formulators, suppliers and technology developers, the Cosmetics Business Innovation Awards spotlight the kind of genuine innovation that drives the next generation of beauty products and systems. Entries open now!
Shellworks’ Vivomer material is a biopolymer made from naturally occurring microbes, fermented in the same way as beer or cheese.
The material is then extracted into granules that can produce rigid or flexible containers.
When the packaging is thrown away by consumers, microbes in the soil consume the material.
Visible signs of decomposition are seen within 12 weeks, followed by complete breakdown after around 52 weeks.
“Within the beauty industry and personal care industry packaging is often made of multi materials or it is too small to be recycled,” Amir Afshar, Shellworks co-founder told Cosmetics Business.
Not yet a Subscriber?
This is a small extract of the full article which is available ONLY to premium content subscribers. Click below to get premium content on Cosmetics Business.
Subscribe now Already a subscriber? Sign in here.