capacura, Gateway Ventures, CK Venture Capital GmbH, superangels, Brangs + Heinrich GmbH, Jobest (Josef und Stephan Ertl) and other business angels, for example from the BayStartUP investor network, are participating in the seed financing round. The startup has been on the market since May 2022 and already has more than 40 customers, including Trigema, Austrian Post and DRYKORN. BayStartUP spoke to Doris Diebold, founder and CEO of hey circle.
BayStartUP: Who is behind hey circle?
Doris Diebold: The founding team consists of myself, Morris Kurz (CTO) and Rebecca Steinke (COO). I studied international business administration and have worked in various management roles, but I wanted to realise my entrepreneurial potential and achieve a sustainable impact. I've always ordered a lot online, so I was all too familiar with the "walk of shame" of the full paper bin with the used shipping boxes. There was no alternative to disposable cardboard boxes. This gave rise to the idea of "simply" bringing reusable packaging onto the market myself.
What problem does hey circle solve and how?
We replace disposable cardboard boxes with reusable shipping packaging, which we rent and sell to online retailers and companies. Our range currently includes packaging in eight different sizes that is durable, lightweight, foldable and optimised for logistics. They are complemented by an IT platform and a strong deposit system. The shipping boxes and bags can be reused up to 50 times. Our externally compiled life cycle assessment shows their effectiveness: around three quarters of CO₂ emissions and up to 94% of waste can be reduced.
In Germany alone, the potential is huge: over 4.5 billion items are sent every year, almost exclusively in disposable cardboard boxes, and e-commerce continues to grow. More and more customers expect sustainable offers from their online retailers. In addition, there are changing framework conditions that make disposable packaging unpopular, such as the LUCID disposal fees - which do not apply to reusable packaging -, mandatory ESG reporting, rising carton prices and so on.
What challenges do you face in your market/industry environment?
Our biggest challenges are to combine sustainability with maximally attractive costs and to establish a new logistics and IT process with maximum convenience and without additional effort for online retailers - but "challenge accepted"! We are aligning our packaging and IT development with this.
You raised 1.5 million euros in your seed round at the end of 2023 and have now increased this to 2 million euros in the second closing. Who are the investors and what are you doing with the fresh capital?
capacura has joined hey circle as lead investor. As an impact investor for sustainable startups, they value sustainable growth, good advice for their startups and a stable relationship of trust - we are on the same wavelength. Gateway Ventures, CK Venture, superangels, Brangs + Heinrich and other business angels, for example from the BayStartUp network, are also involved. The funds will flow directly into strengthening our sales and IT team, expanding our production capacities and extending our portfolio.
Photos: hey circle
How did you prepare for the financing round?
A good founding team, a coherent and scalable business model, a reliable financial plan, a clear unique selling proposition and - the further the startup progresses - sales that prove its marketability are important.
We took a very focussed approach to the financing round: We set up a data room with all the relevant information and, approached investors with a strategically appropriate focus, attended investor events, utilised opportunities for further networking and word of mouth. The events and direct intros from BayStartUP were also very valuable here.