Co-Founder & Head of Brand Georgina Carberry and Co-Founder & Head of Innovation Damien West have always believed in the transformative power of really good design.
Two designers, a lot of plastic
Georgina built her career in UX design. Damien is a product designer. Between them, plastic waste was a theme they kept running into. Again and again, they were shocked at how much waste big business created just to make everyday products.
Then they had kids, and their eyes opened even wider. Raising a family comes with a mountain of stuff, and most of it, they realised, was plastic: bought for convenience, outgrown quickly, and destined for landfill.
So they threw themselves into the research. Months of R&D later, ZERO was born, to take on the problem they believed mattered most to parents: the waste that comes with nappies and wipes.
A problem worth solving
“Every parent we spoke to felt some level of guilt about the sheer volume of waste created by disposable nappies and wipes, and knowing they're made with plastic.
“We knew from our research, and our background in product design and manufacturing, that the problem was solvable. Some brands do a little good, but to make a real shift, better products need to be in the hands of mainstream customers. Eco needs to move out of the niche and into every shopping trolley.
“Customer demand is stronger than what's on the supermarket shelf. We can't recycle our way out of plastic waste. We need to make the products modern life needs, without the plastic. That's why we're here.”
How the vision came to life
ZERO's first product was a dry wipe, for babies, cleaning and skincare. “It felt amazing to see it in people's homes and on shelves in stores.
“Our dry wipe is an alternative to the wet wipe, and people don't always realise how much plastic is in the wipes aisle. Many wet wipes contain synthetic fibres, and they almost all come wrapped in plastic packaging.
“On an emotional level, it's the stories from our customers that make all the hard work worthwhile. When parents tell us they won't use anything else now, we know we're onto something.”
Today those first wipes have become a family: Baby Wipes, Makeup Wipes and Cleaning Wipes, all dry wipes made from timber viscose and OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100 Class 1 certified. Just add water.
Where ZERO is today
Once the wipes were out in the world, the same question kept coming up: what else in the house could be better? The answer turned into a whole range of everyday swaps:
- Cling Wrap made from bioplastic and certified home compostable
- Resealable Food Storage Bags and Compostable Produce Bags, certified home compostable
- Nappy Waste Bags and Puppy Waste Bags, certified home compostable
- Reusable Cleaning Cloths, plus a Commercial Cleaning Cloth designed with chefs
What's next
The nappy is where this whole story started. It's the problem that first got two designers asking how everyday products could be made better, and that question still shapes everything we make.
Alongside that, our goal is to move completely away from petroleum-based polymers by developing our own materials through R&D. Every product you buy helps fund that work.
Everything you need. And nothing you don't.
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Our commitment to people and planet
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