Berlin-based Vyld has raised its first round of pre-seed funding from The Case for Her, Purpose Ventures, as well as several business angels to take its seaweed based tampons into mass production by the end of the year. The company was founded by Ines Schiller, a certified marine guide, social entrepreneur, screenwriter/film producer, philosopher and neuroscientist. The company’s mission? To revolutionize the existing market of period products with a truly sustainable and healthy solution.
Every day, around 300 million people menstruate worldwide, 90% of the period products used are single use products, polluting the oceans with two million tons of “period waste” – every year. And unfortunately, that’s where they stay, because almost all menstrual products used to date contain plastic. Furthermore, the products are made of viscose and cotton, with their respective negative effects on environment and health. Vyld is changing that: seaweed, which is biodegradable on land and in water, will be used instead from the tampon core to the packaging. It requires neither fertilizers, pesticides nor drinking water and also grows ten times faster than land plants. In the process, algae are able to sequester large amounts of CO2 and nitrogen, thereby restoring marine ecosystems and realizing their enormous potential as a natural climate crisis solution.
Vyld Founder Ines Schiller explains: “Algae are already used in over 70% of all processed foods due to their many beneficial features. We want to use these amazing unique advantages for period products where they will really make a difference. This way we can offer the menstruators a unique solution that combines product performance and true sustainability.”
The Case for Her Co-founder Cristina Ljungberg adds: “”With the ‘Kelpon’, Vyld reinvents tampons and offers a healthy solution for all – the menstruators, the oceans and the environment. This unique combination of climate protection and menstruation, which contributes to so many of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, convinced us.”
In addition to the products, Vyld’s business model focuses on sustainability and a regenerative approach; as a profit-for-purpose company, profits will be used to implement marine and menstrual health projects. Achim Hensen, Co-Founder of Purpose Ventures, explains: “Vyld not only aims to bring an innovative and sustainable product to market, but also to grow and thrive in the same sustainable way as their seaweed. In order to embed these values in Vyld’s DNA, Ines Schiller has chosen the form of steward-ownership for the company. Her holistic, regenerative approach is pioneering a new, healthy way of doing business that is in harmony with the available resources.”
