Cleanery eyeing expansion into US

Cleanery, is gearing up for a major milestone: expanding into the US market. Known for its innovative approach to household cleaning, Cleanery focuses on reducing packaging waste by offering dissolvable products that customers can mix with water at home. 

“We’ll be going on shelves in a major Southern Californian supermarket next month,” said Mark Sorensen, co-founder at Cleanery. 

Above: Mark Sorensen, co-founder at Cleanery

As a Kiwi company, Cleanery has found some unique advantages in expanding to the US. Mark explained.

‘People in the US admit that they are behind Australia and New Zealand when it comes to adopting to either the low waste, environmental concept.’

Cleanery has already made a name for itself in New Zealand and Australia, refining its offering and cracking into the supermarket market. That remains the focus as it looks to expand in America for a simple reason.

‘We’re 100% retail first. People buy these products in supermarkets,’ Mark noted.

The company sells refills of powder that customers mix with water at home, significantly reducing the need for single-use plastic bottles and packaging.

The idea for Cleanery began in 1993 when Mark wrote a school essay on the costs and environmental impact of excessive packaging. Fast forward to 2020, and Cleanery was born with a focus on the circular economy - where resources are reused, reduced and recycled to minimise environmental impact.

‘My background’s engineering and I’ve done a lot of work in finance, but I’ve always wanted to start a scalable business with an eye on the circular economy – with it being a solution to a lot of problems with waste.’

While identifying the problem was straightforward, developing a solution was more complex.

People need products that work – especially when it comes to health and hygiene - and creating one that is environmentally friendly was a significant challenge.

‘We invested millions, with help from Callaghan Innovation, to develop both the science and then the manufacturing systems to make products that truly work.’

That manufacturing system also proved tricky ‘Getting the manufacturing process right was the big challenge,’ Mark said. ‘We needed to work out how you can go and make this product. Building a pilot plant was a challenge, and then scaling to commercial volumes was even harder…’

Another problem was breaking out of the existing beliefs consumers had about environmentally sustainable cleaning products – that they’re ineffective and expensive.

‘[The regular shopper] is different to an ecowarrior,’ he says, ‘who will go out of their way to spend more time and money and compromise on products that don't work because they fit their values. That's great. But that's only 5% of the market.’

Cracking the remaining 95% opens a massive potential market, according to Mark. However, creating a new products that work and is more environmentally friendly is one thing; convincing customers to switch brands is another. But with the right people in place, it is possible.

‘We spent a lot of time learning how to get customers’ attention. We bought on people with the right expertise to build a brand and a market strategy. Peter Cullinane, who became a household name when he started Lewis Road Creamery, saw the concept, invested in it and has worked closely with us. Along with him, Nicola O’Rourke, who was the GM at Lewis Road, is now on the Cleanery board and has been heavily involved.’

Mark doesn’t want to stop with the US, Australia and New Zealand, with the UK next in his sights.

But he is keen to keep the company working in and for New Zealand, and says he has the facilities to do it in an eco-conscious way.

‘We can make 100,000 refills a week from just a little factory. Just a twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) can fit 200,000 refills when packaged. If we send in bulk, we can put half a million refills in a TEU, so that the impacts of shipping are minuscule.’

Geographic expansion isn’t the only route Mark and his team are exploring. New products continue to be researched and developed from their base in Auckland. They’ve recently launched a dish spray, which helps clean dishes while reducing the need to run a full sink of water.

With Booster on as an investment partner, Mark is excited about the future.

‘We're super pleased to have Booster on board and to go and make the most of this opportunity.’ 

You can find Cleanery products in New Zealand at New World and Pak’n’Save as well as through the Cleanery website.

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Read more about the Booster Innovation Fund (BIF) and some of the exciting companies it has invested in to advance early stage innovation – and see how you can support these trailblazing companies breaking the mould right here in Aotearoa.

Booster Investment Management Limited is the issuer of the Booster Innovation Scheme, Booster Innovation Fund. Product Disclosure Statements are available at www.booster.co.nz.