Meet Reel Paper, the Disruptive Startup Creating Tree-Free Toilet Paper

Reel Paper is a company that is on a mission to change the paper industry. They are committed to creating sustainable paper products that are better for the planet and still deliver the premium quality and convenience you expect.

Every single day, a staggering 27,000 trees are cut down to produce conventional toilet paper, leading to significant deforestation and environmental harm!

Reel Paper uses 100% tree-free fibers, making it the most sustainable paper on the market. Their products are also packaged and shipped in eco-friendly materials and come wrapped in 100% recyclable paper.

In addition to using sustainable materials, Reel Paper is also committed to offsetting their carbon emissions and planting trees.

If you are looking for a sustainable and eco-friendly paper product, Reel Paper is a great option. Their products are made with high-quality materials and they are committed to making a difference for the planet.

In episode 196 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with David VanHimbergen, CEO of Reel Paper, on scaling a startup with a mission to change the paper industry.

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Problem with Conventional Paper-Making Practices

Before we explore the solutions, let’s understand the problems associated with conventional paper-making practices.

Conventional paper-making practices have been a staple of human civilization for centuries, providing us with essential tools for communication, education, and everyday convenience.

However, these practices come with significant environmental and social challenges that cannot be ignored.

Here are some of the key problems associated with conventional paper-making:

1. Deforestation: Thousands of trees are cut down daily, contributing to the depletion of vital forest ecosystems and biodiversity loss.
2. Global Warming: Trees play a crucial role in mitigating climate change by absorbing carbon dioxide. Their removal disrupts this natural process.
3. Smart Sourcing: Trees are a renewable resource, but the rate at which they are being harvested far exceeds their natural replenishment, leading to resource depletion.
4. Single-use Paper: Products like toilet paper and paper towels are often single-use, resulting in wasteful consumption of trees.
5. Sea of Plastic: Many paper products are wrapped in plastic packaging, adding to the global plastic pollution problem when not properly disposed of.

The Reel Paper Solutions

Reel Paper offers innovative and eco-friendly solutions to address these pressing issues, making it a game-changer in the paper industry.

Here’s how they do it:

• Bamboo Is Better: Instead of relying on traditional tree-based paper, Reel Paper utilizes bamboo, one of the fastest-growing plants on Earth. Bamboo’s rapid growth allows for a more sustainable source of raw material, as it regenerates within 3-5 years after harvesting. Moreover, bamboo has excellent carbon-sequestering properties and produces soft and durable paper goods.
• No Plastic, Fantastic: Reel Paper not only focuses on sustainable materials for its products but also ensures that its packaging aligns with eco-friendly practices. All shipping materials are biodegradable, and the paper goods are wrapped in 100% recyclable paper, eliminating the need for plastic packaging.
• Recycled Paper – What’s Old Is New: Besides bamboo, Reel Paper also explores other alternatives like recycled fiber to create sustainable paper goods. By using premium recycled material sourced from offices and schools, they give discarded paper a new life while reducing the demand for fresh tree-based resources.
• Offsetting Carbon Emissions: Reel Paper acknowledges the carbon footprint associated with overseas shipping, especially when using bamboo. To mitigate this impact, they offset 100% of their carbon emissions from transportation through partnerships with organizations like Flexport and the Carbonfund.org Foundation.
• Reforestation Efforts: Reel Paper takes its commitment to the environment a step further by partnering with One Tree Planted. Through this collaboration, every purchase of Reel Paper products contributes to reforestation efforts, helping to restore critical ecosystems, protect wildlife habitats, and combat climate change.

Reel Bamboo Toilet Paper

Reel Bamboo Toilet Paper is a revolutionary and eco-friendly alternative to conventional tree-based toilet paper. Embracing the incredible sustainability of bamboo, Reel Paper has reimagined the way we produce and consume one of our most essential household items.

Unlike traditional toilet paper, Reel Bamboo is made from 100% tree-free bamboo fibers, which are sourced responsibly and harvested without harming the plant or its surrounding ecosystem.

This rapid-growth plant regenerates within 3-5 years, making it an incredibly renewable resource that reduces the demand for deforestation. With its soft and strong texture, Reel Bamboo Toilet Paper offers the same comfort and convenience we expect from premium toilet paper while leaving a smaller environmental footprint.

• Plastic-free
• No inks, dyes, or BPA
• 100% bamboo
• 3-ply softness

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Reel Recycled Paper Towels

Reel Recycled Paper Towels are a shining example of sustainable innovation in the paper industry. Made from tree-free, FSC-certified recycled paper, these towels embody Reel’s commitment to preserving our forests and reducing deforestation.

With 100% plastic-free and recyclable packaging, Reel ensures that their environmental responsibility extends beyond the product itself. The use of Grade A recycled fibers, sourced from North America, guarantees a high-quality and eco-friendly product that doesn’t compromise on performance.

These soft and absorbent towels are up to the task of handling any spill or mess, making them a practical choice for daily household use.

By choosing Reel Recycled Paper Towels, consumers actively contribute to a circular economy and support a company that is dedicated to making a positive impact on the environment, one sheet at a time.

• 2-Ply tissue paper
• No inks, dyes, or BPA
• Plastic-free
• 100% bamboo

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Reel Recycled Tissues

Made entirely from 100% recycled fibers, these eco-friendly tissues offer a gentle touch to your face while boasting impressive durability to handle even the most robust sneezes.

Crafted from Grade A recycled fibers sourced from North America, these facial tissues strike the perfect balance between strength and absorbency, providing comfort to your skin and ensuring your hands and sleeves stay pristine.

• 2-Ply tissue paper
• FSC-Certified
• Plastic-free packaging

Shop Reel

Reel Paper is a shining example of how businesses can make a positive impact on the environment and society.

By introducing tree-free, sustainable paper products, promoting conscious consumerism, and supporting reforestation initiatives, Reel Paper is redefining the paper industry’s future.

As consumers, we hold the power to influence change through our purchasing decisions.

By choosing companies like Reel Paper, we can collectively drive the shift towards a more sustainable and compassionate world, one roll of paper at a time.

Interview Transcript

Grant

Well, thank you so much, David, for joining me today. Very excited to finally get to chat, talk a little bit about your journey and some things that I’m passionate about. I’ve been uncovering impact and sustainable brands for close to 10 years now. So I’ve seen the environment change quite a bit.

I’ve seen brands come and go, and it’s a really interesting time for brands in this space. Before we get into real paper, I wanted to kind of talk about your journey because you have a really interesting one.

You come from a lot of different backgrounds, and where you’re positioned now as CEO of Real Paper, you’ve kind of done all the things necessary to be in this spot and help it grow. But talk about that journey, your career path before Real Paper.

David

Yeah, for sure. And thanks for having me. So, yeah, I started my career at Procter & Gamble, so I grew up in kind of large CPG brand management. I spent 18 years at P&G—18 great years. It’s a great training ground where you get a lot of exposure to leadership opportunities and just understand what it takes to be a good, solid, well-rounded operator in CPG.

During my time there, I never actually worked on our paper business. I spent most of my time on Crest, Tide, and Olay, but my last role with the company, I think, was the one that was really transformational for me.

That was leading global innovation for Tide. Our organization was presented with a challenge to think differently beyond just the typical incremental innovation that we’ve done historically.

So I capitalized on that opportunity and eventually went to the President and said, “Hey, give me a little bit of money to go start this new venture.”

I believed we needed to be playing in another part of the market that we weren’t touching today—what’s called out-of-home or away-from-home laundry. It’s equally as large as the in-home business.

Plus, you have some dynamics going on in terms of density of population growth, consumers living in large urban metropolitan markets who may not have access to a washer and dryer, and time is a really constrained resource.

So let’s provide them a service where they can get the experts of Tide to do the laundry for them. We created an app service that would allow users to order laundry delivery or laundry dry cleaning delivery, pickup, and delivery.

I got the blessing, got a little bit of money to run it for six to seven months, and they sent me up here to Chicago. I just kind of figured out how to build this, which was an amazing experience and opportunity.

I hired three other people to help get it off the ground, and we were working out of incubators. It was truly disconnected from the corporate engine.

The thrill and chaos of trying to build something in that early stage was fueling. I loved it. So, I did that for two years, and then we found a path to scaling it and accelerated that plan through an acquisition of another company. It was a nice little ribbon to put on the end of that project. It was a career highlight for me. At that time, I really wanted to stay in the early-stage work.

I loved building brands and teams and understanding new business models to tap into changing consumer habits and motivations. I went to Kraft Heinz for a period of time to run a division called Springboard Brands.

The aim of that organization was really to identify emerging brands that could help set up the portfolio of legacy brands that may not be positioned to win with evolving needs.

Find those new transformational brands that play better on health, organics, and those emerging trends in food and beverage, and figure out a way to partner with them from a 12-week accelerator program all the way up through acquisition.

I enjoyed my time there. Unfortunately, the company was going through its own transformation and had a few challenges, which basically ended up sunsetting that organization.

In that role, I met Livio Bisterzo, who’s the founder of Real Paper. He had also founded a snacks brand called Hippeas, which is a chickpea-based natural organic snack food that was growing like crazy—one of the fastest-growing natural snack brands. We got to talking a little bit, and he shared more about his vision of building a portfolio of brands that could address opportunity areas in large categories where there wasn’t a brand proposition that resonated well with millennials and Gen Z.

Brands that could certainly improve overall category benefits of being better for you, better for the world, and better for the environment. I just loved that vision and mission he had set forth.

At that time, he had a concept for this brand called Real that he was looking to launch soon. This would have been early 2019. I was just blown away by the visual identity of the brand, the logo, how it came to life. It felt very modern, with a strong purpose behind it.

We stayed connected, and a year later, I ended up coming over and joining him at Green Park Brands. Within about six or seven months, I stepped over to run the business full-time.

Grant

That’s awesome.

David

I love that journey of a path because they’re all such stepping stones. It’s really cool to see people thinking about how to create these modern, sustainable brands for this category of consumers. CPG is such an interesting place to be because it’s kind of where we go almost every day.

Whether it’s online or in real life, we see so many brands. I can’t imagine how many brands are just in a grocery store in general.

Grant

It’s quite astonishing, it really is. I wanted to touch on your time at Green Park and maybe what were some learnings there. You know, Procter & Gamble, you see it from corporate land, looking at scale. Working with Kraft, you’re looking at big SKUs, big sales, big revenue.

When you came to Green Park, you looked at smaller brands and starting out, getting your first sale, then 10, then 1,000 sales. What did you learn from that experience, and what insights could you give to other CPG brands thinking about starting something, not necessarily in the real paper niche, but in another niche they’re passionate about?

David

There are probably a few things that come to mind. Let me start with three. First, have a really compelling brand proposition that’s going after a sizable opportunity that’s market-ready. Identify the category, what are the gaps and issues within that category you’re looking to address?

Then come up with that brand proposition—how it comes to life, the tone of voice, the benefits you’re going to provide, and the problem areas in the category you’ll address. Get very hyper-focused on that. When you’re stepping into a large category, there’s a lot of noise.

People walking into a grocery store are met with all these distractions. You have to be able to stand out, to trigger some muscle or memory reaction that says, “Oh, I saw that here, that’s making a connection, I like that.” Then, they can engage and understand if the proposition is right for them.

All of that needs to occur within this mental framework where we’re more distracted than ever. So, being very single-mindedly focused on a consistent visual design and a single-minded benefit statement is key. Getting that brand proposition right is absolutely number one.

The second piece is the product itself. The branding can make that initial connection and drive enough appeal and desire to get someone to try it. But where a lot of brands tend to fail is delivering on the usage experience. If you don’t, they’re not going to buy it again, and you’re just there one time.

You’re spending all this money acquiring users, and you’ll never build a business of scale. You’re just wasting your time. This is where it’s harder for folks who haven’t been fortunate enough to spend time in an organization that’s heavily resourced like P&G or Unilever.

They do product testing and concept work to understand: when people buy this product, use it, what’s their reaction? Does it drive delight? Does it create intrigue or desire to do more? Are there significant gaps that need addressing before you start scaling? Otherwise, you’re going to be dead in the water.

The third piece, which is foundational, is the financial business plan of what you’re trying to do. I spend a fair amount of time understanding the economics—what are we going to charge for our product?

What’s the end pricing? How does that compare to competitors in the market? Can we command a premium? If so, how much?

What’s the cost structure like? It won’t be pretty early on, but what’s the roadmap to eventually get to something sustainable? If you can’t get there, you’re pushing water uphill and can’t create a viable long-term business. It requires a lot of investment.

Large companies don’t do the best job at creating new brands because they lack the patience to build something. You’ll have initial investments upfront. You need a clear plan: if we get here to this milestone, we can check off that we’ve reached the repeat rate we need.

We’ll continue to invest in acquiring customers because we anticipate our lifetime value will justify it. This allows you to raise money from investors and take sequential steps to reach your end destination.

Grant

Let’s talk about Real Paper now. When somebody asks you what Real Paper is, how do you explain it to them? And second, what was it about the brand or the pitch that made you come over and be CEO full-time and help grow it?

David

Real Paper is the sustainable household paper brand. We aim to save trees and protect forests from being cut down for single-use household paper products. We also eliminate single-use household plastics in our packaging.

For me, what resonated with this proposition is you’ve got a really large category—$18 billion, roughly, across toilet paper and paper towels. It’s a category nearly every household uses every day.

The US is one of the highest consumers of single-use paper products per capita. Most of the products we create today use trees taken from forests.

When you cut down a tree that took 40 to 50 years to grow, create a single-use product, and flush it into the waste system, it can never be repurposed. You run the numbers: 40 to 50 years to grow, increasing rate of usage of paper products, cutting those down.

We’re removing trees and forests from our ecosystem, which play a vital role in absorbing man-made carbon. It’s a matter of time before we’re significantly impacting our environment. There has to be a better solution.

That’s where we looked at other regions and fibers. Bamboo, in particular, is great for tissue making because it tends to be longer.

Bamboo is a grass, not a tree, and one of the fastest-growing plants in the world. It can grow up to three feet a week. When you cut it down, it regenerates from the same root, not disrupting the soil systems. Clear-cutting a forest disrupts the soil, releasing carbon sinks and degrading the soil.

It can’t easily regenerate. Sometimes it takes 100 years for an area to regenerate after being clear-cut. You have a big category where small changes compounded over many people multiply to a significant impact.

That was the category opportunity and the brand’s mission. The simplicity and elegance of the logo and visual identity stood out to me. The unrolling of a roll to create the “R” in the logo is iconic. It could work across many touchpoints, creating a memory trigger for the sustainable brand.

Grant

You said the key word there—sustainable brands. There’s a lot in this space. Powerful brands do really good things. Some brands label themselves as sustainable but aren’t really.

There are different levels of brands in this space. It can be difficult for consumers to understand what’s truly sustainable or regenerative. There are so many labels and words that it becomes overwhelming.

Consumers might get so overwhelmed that they’ll just go back to what they’ve done before, defaulting to it because it’s simple and anxiety-free. You’ve overseen traditional brands and seen sustainable brands grow.

What’s your pulse on the industry as it matures? What are some good and bad things that have happened along the way?

David

You bring up good points. The challenge is there’s so much information—some good, some bad, some misinformation—and many products that it’s overwhelming and confusing. Human nature defaults to doubt when confused, leading to continuing the same behavior. It’s a big risk and challenge.

You see it across food and beverage with plant-based meats and alternative meats. Is it better? Is it good? The important thing is that these are incremental steps we’re taking. We’re not perfect today, but if we can get better and start to impact the category using more sustainable, regenerative fibers in single-use household paper, we’re making progress.

Part of the challenge is within the manufacturing process. Tissue-making equipment is expensive, and the only way to make it economically viable is to run a lot of the same thing all the time.

There’s not the appropriate incentive for production-side changes for the better because it’s too expensive. The economic structure isn’t set up for it. You need disruptors to come in early to establish a market and demand.

Once it’s de-risked, other manufacturers can transition without being so dilutive to their performance. Let’s make incremental steps. Over time, we’ll hit inflection points where the rate of change will accelerate.

Every subsequent generation has a mindset of caring about the world, facing climate change and other issues. They’re more independent.

I’m hopeful and optimistic that we’ll see more collaboration and people doing better for the world. It will become the norm, but it doesn’t happen in five years. It happens in 20 to 40 years. We’re planting seeds now that will hopefully bear significant fruit in the future.

Grant

I want to talk about what has worked well from a direct-to-consumer point of view versus in-store, Facebook, or Pinterest ads. Give us an overview of what has worked really well for Real Paper and some things that you thought would work well but didn’t. What hurdles have you faced so far during the growth stage?

David

We were fortunate to launch in 2019. In March 2020, we had the pandemic, and people were home. There was a panic around toilet paper, and shelves were empty. People went online to look for toilet paper, and we were well-positioned to capitalize on that.

We sold a month and a half worth of inventory in 12 hours on March 17. You can only do so much with contract production, and the lead time for new inventory is 45 days. So we were out of stock, but we were fortunate to have that opportunity. We had a clean, simple site, strong ads leveraging Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms, and Google. That drove the direct-to-consumer business trial.

As I said earlier, all of that is a waste of time if the product doesn’t deliver. We were working with our manufacturer on several iterations to improve the product, ensuring it delivered a premium experience while being sustainable.

We saw 80+% of our subscribers buying a second box, which is phenomenal. With that, you have a business that grows quickly.

Your second question was about the retail side. Taking that success and bringing it to retail is crucial because 90% of the category is purchased at physical stores. We were fortunate to get an opportunity with Target, a leading retailer that has brought digitally native brands to market, especially brands that stand for sustainability and elegant design like Method.

We had a 200-store test starting in June 2021. We crafted a robust launch plan to drive significant trial within the first two to three months. We were doing about 2-3x the expected store velocity within that time, leading to nationwide expansion in April 2022.

It’s about leveraging success, demonstrating growth potential, and building joint incentives with partners like Target.

Grant

It’s a huge win to get that retail space. I’ve talked to many brands, and that’s one of the hardest things to do as a young startup. It goes back to branding and simplicity in decision-making.

What was that process like for you, having that conversation? What advice would you give to future brands and entrepreneurs trying to get into the retail space?

David

It’s tough to get that initial conversation. Buyers are dealing with many situations, different priorities, and new items.

You need to break through the clutter. We had experience working with Target, so we knew what was important to them and how to position ourselves as beneficial to them. It’s about breaking through the noise, getting that initial conversation, and then nailing it by speaking their language.

Show how you can help them grow their business. We showed that 50% of our buyers hadn’t purchased in the Bath Tissue category in the prior 12 months, which indicated we were helping Target grow their category.

It’s important to create a plan to support the launch. We were intentional about channel prioritization. For us, making retail successful was crucial because 90% of the category is purchased in brick-and-mortar stores. We had to ensure success in retail to unlock other opportunities and make a big impact.

We were clear about prioritizing retail. We promoted our presence in Target on our homepage and drove people to find us there. This helped drive success and showed Target that we were winning with millennial, digitally savvy consumers.

Grant

Let’s talk about the future. What do the next three to five years look like? What are some goals and successes you and the team would like to see in that timespan?

David

The primary goal is continuing to grow in a way where the engine becomes more efficient and self-sustaining. Retail development continues to be a big focus. We just launched in Harris Teeter in North Carolina, and more natural and conventional grocers are coming online.

We’re focusing on product innovation, continually improving the product, and introducing new items. We’re expanding our supply chain closer to the market we’re serving. Our model aims to save 8 million trees by 2030. We donate 50 cents for every box sold to One Tree Planted.

We’re reducing the number of tree-based single-use paper products consumers use and giving them a better alternative. If we do that well and execute discipline, we’ll build something meaningful and sizable.

We’re aiming for a 5% to 10% share in the category, which is huge in an $18 billion category. It’s the right time because millennials and Gen Z are more conscious about making small changes that compound into a big impact.

Grant

Thank you so much, David, for taking the time. I know you’re busy. Love the brand, love the organization. It’s amazing to see the startup story, idea, design, execution, and now the growth stage. Best of luck to you and the team for the next decade. Thanks so much for being here.