By Thomas Weidling | Posted: Wednesday July 5, 2017
Ryan Everton won the Audacious 2012 Challenge with his good idea, but since then his reuse and recycle business has taken off here and overseas.
PROFILE: Ryan Everton
Now based in Sydney, Ryan’s concept was to tackle society’s throwaway philosophy and reduce waste in New Zealand and the rest of the world, all while making a living.
His business Globelet produces, sells, washes and reuses high quality, long lasting recyclable plastic cups with distinctive unique designs that are used at events and in cafes. The cups are produced in a zero-waste environment, and are washable, so can be reused many times before being recycled back into cups or crates.
Globelet don’t just sell cool cups; they also have systems for events that dramatically reduces their waste – with event goers purchasing cups, using them at the event, then either getting a refund at the end, or retaining as a souvenir. Their system also incorporates cup washing on site.
His sustainability message is a positive and exciting way of doing business; Globelet started with a commission at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin in 2012, and now sells up to 50,000 cups at a time, employing 10 to 20 people during festivals.
Selling the idea to event organisers and developing systems for reusing the cups that work has been hard graft, but the message is getting through.
“The dream was to provide solutions for our unneeded single use waste, protecting not harming the environment. Nearly half of the waste at festivals has been disposable plastic cups and non-recyclable waste, but with Globelet cups now used at every major music festival in New Zealand and Australia, the tide is turning.
He has equally big long-term goals, including helping to create New Zealand’s first reusable city, extending into Asia and the USA, and to take the sustainable and reuse concept higher up the chain to plates and bottles.
Relationships and connecting with people has been essential to establishing the business, and the former University of Otago law student has also learnt the importance of sales and cash flow on the development journey.
His advice for would-be entrepreneurs is to find a mentor who is already up to scale in business.
“I love that the job means I can do what I want, I get to go to music festivals, and I’m helping to spread the message of sustainability at the same time.”