Innovative biotech company Shellworks has raised $6.2 million in seed funding led by LocalGlobe. Founder Collective, True Global, BoxGroup, Divergent Capital and angels including Deepali Nangia (Alma Angels founder), Julien Callede (Made co-founder), Bryan Meehan (former Blue Bottle Coffee CEO) and Grant Aarons (FabricNano co-founder and CEO) also participated in the round.
Founded in 2019 by Insiya Jafferjee and Amir Afshar, Shellworks combines Insiya’s years of manufacturing experience at brands including Apple, Bose and Ford with Amir’s design experience focusing on natural materials to create a bio-based and compostable plastic.
Although originally producing polymers derived from shellfish waste, in 2020 they switched to using vegan microbially-derived material to create sustainable petroleum-free packaging, with no compromise on performance, aesthetics or cost. As consumers are increasingly demanding sustainable alternatives, brands are seeking partners that can provide this for them. Shellworks is providing them with scalable, functional and compostable packaging that performs like plastic until it’s disposed of.
Vivomer, its new material, is made using bacterially-derived components that are grown via a fermentation process. An in-house pilot line then allows them to formulate, compound and engineer bends based on application. The result is both material and tooling ready to produce parts at scale, which Shellworks then works with external partners across the UK to create. The team oversees that no unsustainable dyes or resins are added to the products. Once the product in the Vivomer packaging is finished, the packaging can either be reused or composted. The packaging takes around a year for a product to break down.
Although currently focusing on the beauty industry, the company is exploring how its packaging can suit different applications. Conscious and luxury brands BYBI, Liha and Sana Jardin and others have turned to Shellworks’ packaging solution.
Shellworks will use the funding to scale its operations by doubling its team, including hiring for its operational, science and product teams, as well as investing in tech innovation and expanding its platform of materials.
“Our vision is to break the reliance on the petroleum industry by building a new standard of packaging that is performant, cost-competitive and truly sustainable. We work at the intersection of two ecosystems, the natural and the commercial, and we’re constantly trying to play a meaningful, connected and consistent role in both,” commented Insiya Jafferjee.
Amir Afshar added, “We’ve spent the last two years really refining our processes and material formulations to ensure that our products are not only sustainable but scalable. By working collaboratively with nature we want to show how promising the future of materials can be and are looking forward to launching our new range of products that both look and feel great later this year.”
