Dhe vast majority of consumers buy detergents “offline”. So in business. Tom Mayr knows that too. But a growing group of people are also purchasing such products online. And Tom Mayr knows that just as well. Because all he has to do is look at the incoming orders for his start-up based in Butzbach. While his Kuno Waschmittel GmbH had 24,000 customers in mid-June, there are now a good thousand more. Together with his business partner Etienne Schmalfuss, the young Wetterauer sells a tear-off detergent. That can be taken literally. Because the product called Kuno resembles a slightly thicker sheet with a perforation in the middle. powder or liquid? none.
The start-up has been selling its product since May 10 of last year. Although “his product” is not quite right. Rather, the business idea comes from Canada. “We discovered it online by accident,” reports Mayr. He and Schmalfuss then ordered a sample from the Canadians. “We tried it out and asked ourselves: Why isn’t there something like that in Germany?” says Mayr.
Accordingly, the two clamped a number of friends and relatives as product testers and got positive feedback. They then ordered 100,000 strips in Canada – “and they were sold after six weeks,” says the young entrepreneur. The beginning was made. However, the question arises: How does someone accidentally find something online that he or she doesn’t even know exists?
120 grams for 60 washes
The answer: Before starting the search, the future founders set themselves a goal: It should be something that you can touch and handle with advantages for the environment. “We then looked for terms in English on the Internet and ended up with detergent strips,” explains Mayr, who studied business administration at the Goethe University in Frankfurt and then programmed a few apps with the prospective civil engineer Schmalfuss and oversaw other online projects.
The two founders, who now have five fellow campaigners, including in Berlin, Konstanz and Münster, advertise their product as sustainable. They cite a number of reasons for this. On the one hand there is the low weight. The tear-off detergent does not contain any fillers. It consists of 85 percent detergent substances called surfactants. The rest is accounted for by binding agents, softeners and a fragrance. Second, the sheet-like part dissolves completely in the machine, leaving no carrier.
Clean: Kuno co-founder Tom Mayr and his product
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Image: Michael Braunschädel
A 120 gram pack is enough for 60 washes in the machine. Measured in terms of washing performance, the amount of Kuno packed into a VW Polo corresponds roughly to a truckload of washing powder. “Our product is 90 percent lighter” – the CO2 balance is correspondingly better. That is the third argument. Fourth, the ingredients are vegan. Plants were used as starting materials for the surfactants.
Vegan is undoubtedly trendy. And ease of use may facilitate sales success. But both alone do not explain him. After all, customers don’t come to Kuno’s website on their own. Knowing this, Mayr and Schmalfuss have won some influencers active on Instagram for their product. Advertising in social networks is also proving profitable. In this way, the start-up expands its customer base.
Although not all feedback is characterized by jubilation, as Mayr frankly reports. Some consumers missed a strong scent, as is usual with fabric softeners. Clothing washed with Kuno smells neutral to light at best. Even the smell test on the product suggests this conclusion: Nothing stings your nose.
Not intended for red wine stains
Mayr does not say whether some customers complain about the price. However, he admits that he is “in the higher-priced segment” with Kuno. 60 loads of laundry cost 20 euros. There is twice the amount for just under 33 euros, which reads better. However, the founder defends the demanding price with reference to the planned own production in Germany.
To date, Kuno Waschmittel GmbH has sourced its product from Asia, albeit from a small manufacturer. From early autumn, however, a partner company in North Rhine-Westphalia is to deliver the product. This shortens transport routes and presumably further improves the CO2 balance. The young company simply needs the money from the sale to set up production.
But how did the entrepreneurs come up with Kuno as a product name? “We wanted to give the detergent a personal touch,” says Mayr. And in the early days, Kuno was a name that was on the rise again. He sounds nice and friendly. The product is bought primarily by women, it is said. But there are also men among them. Especially students and older single people.
Regardless of gender and age, consumers have to consider two things. Kuno is intended for everyday washing, not for red wine stains and other stubborn residues. Remnants of pomegranate juice stains were still visible on a shirt after a test wash. Because Kuno does not contain bleach. In addition, it is not suitable for every fabric. “Everything but wool and silk” is the recommendation.