Meet the British start-up with a green conscience

Last year Britain became a cleaner nation with reports of cleaning products sales skyrocketing as just under half of the nation agree that surface level cleaning is now no longer enough. However this comes at a cost to the planet as the single use plastic these products come wrapped in skyrockets too.

Kantar has reported that shoppers spent an extra £595m on household cleaning products, toilet paper and laundry detergents this past year, with Nielsen stating a staggering 7.1 billion of these types of units were sold last year – most of them packed in single-use plastic.

One such start-up benefitting from Britain’s cleaning boom is Lupe Technology, a vacuum cleaner brand that promises a game changing product that is kinder to the planet with long service life; the Pure Cordless was designed with sustainability at its very core.

Over the past six years, the Lupe team, led by co-founder Pablo Montero, have tested and designed the Pure Cordless to be everything the cordless vacuum should be: lightweight, manoeuvrable, long-lasting and powerful. Featuring nearly double the useful suction of the leading competitor their patented suction intensifier technology results in outstanding performance of one hour run time and 100% deep down dirt removal. Utilising a premium washable HEPA filter, the Pure Cordless captures 99.99% of all fine dust and allergens.

In addition to excellent performance, the Lupe Pure Cordless is also kind to the environment. At a time where global warming is reaching crisis point, Lupe is mindful that by creating new things, their products produce a carbon footprint. To try and counteract this, Lupe will offset carbon for the lifecycle of each Lupe Pure Cordless sold, with the aim of becoming carbon negative during 2023.

How has Lupe Technology fared as an FMCG post-Brexit?

Having left the EU over a year ago and a trade agreement with the bloc now agreed, home-grown tech innovators are finding their feet in the new business landscape. With the need to adhere to EU regulations now unnecessary, what does the future look like for British home appliance start-ups?

Predictions so far have been two-fold. On one hand, due to a lack of tariffs it would seem that the market could remain unchanged as consumer goods are allowed to move without facing charges. However, there is now new paperwork and a new set of rules to adhere to which can create disruption, especially to fast moving sectors such as household appliances.

Now, it’s possible home-grown tech start-up brands are now being given a unique opportunity to take advantage of the delays big brands are facing and taking back a little control of the market.

Lupe Technology’s biggest competitors import many of their parts from the EU which saw a lot of congestion and delays recently, suggesting shortages in big name household appliances could soon become a reality. Home-grown tech can step in here and fill the shortages to meet consumer demand. At the end of the last quarter of last year, Lupe Technology hit over 250k profits and achieved month-to-month profitability, despite only beginning trading in July. Due to the size of the market, Lupe only sold 1/30th of what its main competitors would have sold in a month, showing the latent potential for exponential growth, thus proving how challenger brands are now more than ever a force to be reckoned with. In addition to this, 50% of Lupe Technology’s exports are now to the US, having grown exponentially since launch last year. If more investment was directed towards British start-ups, there is a potential for a global boom in British products.