Reath closes pre-seed funding round

On a mission to build a future where nothing gets thrown away, Reath, the UK startup creating a digital infrastructure for reusable packaging, has secured a £313,000 pre-seed investment led by early stage VC firm Techstart and CVC Philanthropy, the impact investment arm of CVC Private Equity.

A digital passport for packaging

Responding to the escalating climate change and plastic pollution crises, Reath, which is currently part of the Founders Factory accelerator program, is designing the pioneering Open Data Standard (reuse.id) for companies to transform to a circular economy. Helping to achieve sustainable models and zero-waste, Reath uses data provided by unique "digital passports" assigned to individual products.

Using reuse.id as the product's "digital passport" is set to revolutionise how companies monitor and store data needed for adopting safe, compliant, scalable reusable packaging systems. These digital passports collect and track location data of each piece of packaging as it makes its way through the distribution chain, enabling organisations to create a circular economy where they can proactively manage how this packaging can be reused.

Edinburgh-based Reath, which is working with national retailers and refill and reuse start-ups, will use the pre-seed funding to further develop the reuse.id product and its features, and grow its team of talented developers and data scientists in order to accelerate its market-leading position.

Why this matters now

Determined to tackle pollution created by everyday single-use items, Reath helps organisations switch from a linear economy to a circular one. The investment comes at a time when the latest figures from UK statistics on waste show that in 2020 the UK accumulated 12.6 million tonnes of packaging waste alone. Reath is backed by Innovate UK, Tech Nation and other leading startup funds.

What our co-founders said

Claire Rampen, Co-founder of Reath, said:

"No single company is going to achieve circularity on their own; it relies on an ecosystem of partners working together. Sharing information within the ecosystem is a critical barrier to overcome, and that is what Reath offers to clients.

We are so pleased to be partnering with Techstart and CVC Philanthropy on our pre-seed round. Our ambition was to find world-leading partners with expertise in early-stage companies, and connections to retailers globally. Together, Techstart and CVC cover both of those bases. We look forward to their support propelling us towards our goal of reducing waste and increasing the lifespan of items."

Emily Rogers, Co-founder of Reath, said:

"Reath was founded in response to the urgent need for waste reduction at an international, national and local level. The power of individual choice is immense, but as a consumer, there is only so much you can do when your choice is between something bad or something worse. Raising this current round of funding means Reath can continue to power the businesses who are giving consumers a better choice: to reuse instead of throwing away. Techstart and CVC understand this urgency and the need for innovation, so we are thrilled to have them as partners as we continue to develop our market leading product."