The problem

Lacquer and paint made from petrochemicals are basically plastic, creating a lot of microplastics that pollute our environment and oceans. Lacquered wood is classified as toxic waste – the only safe way to get rid of it is to burn it, releasing all the captured CO2 and toxins into the atmosphere, and into our air and soil. Today, 90% of all ‘end of life’ wooden furniture in the EU and in the USA are incinerated or send to landfills.

According to scientific reports, paint consists on average of 37% plastics, and is globally responsible for 58% of the microplastic pollution in our oceans and waterways. 42 billion litres of industrial and domestic paint are applied globally each year.

The solution

By merging natural active ingredients to the wood new molecule bonds are created, manipulating the wood itself to change colour. The solution works consistently with various wood species such as oak, ash, beech, and pine - all of these used extensively by the interior industry.

Business models

The startup has the opportunity to produce and sell

1. industrial production facilities (production line machine)

2. materials for the colouring process

3. service of industrial facilities.

The startup can choose different business models for producing and selling the above products. Each model comes with its own unique set-ups, costs, involvement, partnerships, production guarantees, risks, and more. It could be interesting to discuss pros and cons for the different models.

Another key discussion would be around the need to establish a production base in Denmark as a key component of the market entry strategy.

This facility would have a dual purpose: firstly, to research, develop and test new colour variations while constantly improving resource/material circularity and similar to offer customers a more competitive 'unit price'. Secondly, it would be used to produce small batches for customers who are unable to invest in a large-scale industrial production facility.

In this context, a discussion point could also be if a go to market strategy should start with offering the colouring of products as a service to customers?

Customers

B2B manufacturing companies/design houses with own production sites/facilities. To start off with focus on companies in Europe.

The team

A – Co-founder and partner (cand.comm), experienced in innovative frontrunner businesses covering the rollout of Denmark's first fiber broadband and VOD services on Television. The brain behind the first European behavioral science-based anti-piracy strategy, known today as the ‘Danish Model’, aimed to protect the film, music, and content industry.

B – Co-founder and partner (bach.techn.soc), owned a film production company for 25 years, producing content for big broadcasters such as Discovery Channel. The producer of many award-winning documentaries for the international market, but also producing visual branding campaigns for national and international companies (Carlsberg, Audi, Red Bull etc.) & public institutions (UN, EEA, etc.)

Status

Autumn 2024, the Startup is ready to start building a prototype of the automated production line set-up, based on an executable 'Blue Print' designed together with an industrial technological know-how company, and the chemical research done by another technological company: to get further insights on materials functionality, durability and circularity.

Furthermore, over the next months the Startup will be working on a POC (Proof of Concept) development agreement with a German company that want the colouring method on site. Apart from that, the Startup continues their dialogues with industry-leading companies having showed interest in applying the colouring technology into their production.