EQUO, a Vietnam-based firm that creates environmentally sustainable alternatives to consumer items, said today that it has secured US $1.3 million in seed investment from NextGen Ventures, Techstars, East Ventures, and professional golfer Michelle Wie-West.
The fundraising round included angel investors Luke Vigeant of Shed Capital, Jeff Hohner of Tecumseh Capital, Jack Tai, CEO and Co-Founder of OneClass, Mark Groves, Founder of Create The Love and Co-Founder of Mine’d, and Dimple Mukherjee.
EQUO wants to utilise the funds to extend its product range, improve technological skills to swiftly grow the business, and raise brand recognition and exposure in the United States, Canada, Vietnam, and Singapore, as well as expand into new markets such as Europe, Japan, and Australia.
Marina Tran-Vu founded the firm in 2020 with the goal of eliminating plastic waste by providing biodegradable alternatives for common items like cutlery and straws. To replace single-use plastics, it uses materials like coffee, coconut, and sugarcane in its goods.
It hopes to set itself apart by focusing on “bright, vibrant, and distinct branding that attracts the consumer’s attention in typically disregarded sectors; and focusing on the teaching of new sustainable materials.”
It began with drinking straws and has now extended to include cutlery and tote bags. Utensils made of coffee and wood, sugarcane food containers and cups, and biodegradable bags for supermarket, retail, and home usage are among the company’s forthcoming product lines.
“Our vision is to replace all single-use plastic on the planet – plastic was never intended to be used for anything and everything, and using it for an average of 20 minutes or less, but taking hundreds of years to decompose – it just doesn’t make any sense. This isn’t just about the visible plastic we see in our environment, but also about the downstream effects of microplastics – which are now being found in unborn foetuses, in human blood and deep in our lungs,” said Tran-Vu.
“We are excited about the new products we are going to be delivering this year to show the world all the things we can do WITHOUT single-use plastic and (in some cases) paper.”
EQUO was selected a Top 18 Finalist in the UNDP’s EPPIC (Ending Plastic Pollution Innovation Challenge) and one of nine winners of the UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services) S3i Innovation Center Sweden Global Challenge for entrepreneurs (United Nations Development Programme).
Its goods may be found on Amazon in the United States, Canada, and Australia, as well as on the company’s website, wholesaler Faire, and certain F&B venues and retailers in Vietnam, Singapore, and Europe.
Tran-Vu has more than 13 years of brand management expertise in major FMCG firms such as Unilever, Bacardi, LG Electronics, and Spin Master before to founding EQUO.
The company has also been in reality TV series such as Shark Tank Vietnam and PlayersTV’s Front Office. It was the first Vietnamese firm to be accepted into the Techstars accelerator programme.
