The beauty and personal care industry is, ironically, not very pretty when it comes to the global plastic waste problem. As one of the biggest contributors, the sector produces more than 120 billion units of packing every year. Fortunately, there are several companies trying to change it – including Wild, the world’s first zero-plastic refill deodorant. They provide a subscription-based service and use socially conscious ingredients to make self-care simple and responsible.
Let’s take a look at who Wild are, its rapid growth, and its socially responsible way of doing business…
Who are Wild?
Wild was founded in 2019 by childhood friends Freddy Ward and Charlie Bowes-Lyon. Previously, Freddie was Director of Marketing at meal-kit company HelloFresh, while Charlie founded Climate Cups, a sustainable coffee cup company. Together, they set out to change the face of personal care for good – creating a product that’s as natural as it’s climate-conscious and offers as much in quality as it does convenience. Aside from its refillable packaging, Wild is 100% biodegradable. Made from premium natural ingredients, it’s also cruelty-free and kind to your skin. Plus, because the Wild team knows it’s all about the aesthetic, the design is sleek and stylish – and you can choose your colour preference, with limited edition cases cropping up. What’s more, refills are 100% plastic-free and slim enough to slip through your letterbox – so you’ll never miss a delivery. And that’s not all. To further cement its status as an eco trailblazer, Wild has planted over 40,000 trees as part of its carbon offset program with On A Mission.
Wild’s sustainable success
Wild started working with Capsule in 2021. Back then, they were still a fairly new startup. They’ve now been a Capsule client for two years, and in that time, they’ve experienced incredible growth. Led by JamJar Investments (the Innocent Drinks founders’ venture capital fund), the company’s most recent funding round generated £5 million towards their sustainable hygiene revolution – putting their overall valuation at a staggering £47.5 million!
For a long time, people were sceptical about natural beauty products – antiperspirants especially. But consumers are becoming more discerning about their purchases, and Wild has been proven to provide all-day protection. So it’s no surprise that the three-year-old startup is now the UK’s number one natural deodorant brand.
As the saying goes, with great success comes great responsibility. To paraphrase in insurance terms – the more you grow, the more you become vulnerable to different risks. That’s why it’s crucial for high-growth companies to regularly review their policy to guarantee protection. Wild needed to make sure they were covered for Product Liability, Directors’ and Officers’ Liability, and Goods in Transit. A special concern for Wild was their products themselves, in terms of the refillable cases and transportation. So, the Capsule team got to work!
“Wild was built on eco-conscious and sustainable values, and by partnering with Capsule, we were able to leverage our ESG credentials to lower our premiums. Capsule’s continuous support throughout our renewal process has proven invaluable, and we’re excited to see what we can achieve next.”
Arthur Edson, Finance Director at Wild
Eco-friendly entrepreneurship
Capsule has a unique approach to brokering – helping fast-growth clients secure an insurance policy that grows at pace with them. Another thing that sets us apart is our commitment to strong ESG values – which is why we were so delighted to partner with Wild, a fellow values-led business, on their insurance journey. In addition to being a certified B-Corporation, we’ve developed an index to evaluate the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) rating of a business and offer insurers a more complete picture of how a business operates. Since businesses with good ESG credentials are widely considered lower risk, not only are they more likely to draw more funding, they’re also considered more attractive to increasingly selective insurers. As a brand built on sustainability, Wild had an excellent ESG profile, so it made sense for them to work towards their B-Corp certification too. With the support of the Capsule team, by January 2023, they had the eco-credential under their belt.
Experience the Capsule difference
Backed by Wild’s stellar ESG profile and their new B-Corp status, we were able to overturn insurers that had previously declined to provide a quotation – as well as bring new insurers to the table. As a result, when the time came for Wild to renew their policy, we managed to save them a spectacular 35%.
How did we do it? It’s all down to our exclusive ESG index we mentioned earlier. Climate, natural disasters, extreme weather, and fire are all major causes of insurance claims for many businesses. Along with reducing their exposure to these events, companies striving towards a low-carbon economy will benefit from enhanced performance – discovering new ways to improve processes, reduce raw material inputs, and lower energy consumption.
With all of the above in mind, it’s clear that sustainable business practices go hand-in-hand with success – a theory we demonstrated in a joint study with Aviva. It’s why we choose to partner with ethical insurers who are committed to accounting for a company’s ESG factors when calculating risk. By rewarding businesses for greener practices, we hope to help create a more sustainable future.
If you’re interested in learning more about what we’re building at Capsule or how your company can benefit, reach out to the team at hello@capsule.com. We’d love to hear from you!