‘Game-Changing’ Eco-Friendly Wipes Disrupt the Market
FreshWipes launched in 2020, with biodegradable, antibacterial wipes for everyday use, pivoted their customer base in order to make a difference, and have never looked back
In 2019, before creating FreshWipes, Founder Liz Barnes worked as a Medical Rep in hospitals, selling Antiseptic solutions for pre-operative skin cleansing. The key ingredient of these solutions, Chlorhexidine, was prioritised over Iodine by NICE in April 2019 as the 1st choice in skin prep for hospital use. She saw this as an opportunity to provide the public with a gentler antibacterial skin wipe, for use at home, that could remove everyday bacteria - the major cause of body odour. Barnes found, in her initial research, an optimal level of Chlorhexidine to incorporate into her own brand of wipes to kill the bacteria, that would still act in a gentle way on skin.
In a year where the environment and disposal of waste has been brought to the forefront of consumers’ minds, FreshWipes exist within a market that is ‘causing untold damage to our water systems and marine environments.’ - Fleur Anderson, MP. These wipes are made from a biodegradable Viscose [a natural material derived from wood pulp, which is treated and spun into yarns to make an entirely biodegradable fabric.] FreshWipes aren’t stopping there! They are currently going through an external process to validate their own biodegradable claims, and will have the results of this shortly.
The initial intention for the brand was that the wipes would be used by busy sports people, who couldn’t shower for whatever reason (e.g. people who cycle/run to work or do lunchtime yoga). Then, the first lockdown [in March 2020], coincided with FreshWipes’ first stock delivery, and all of a sudden people were stuck at home with full access to a shower, all the time.
However, due to consumers panic-buying Antibacterial products, FreshWipes’ Amazon stock, forecast to sell over a period of 2 years, sold out in only 6 weeks. Some of these customers were disabled people who started using the wipes for everyday personal care, and quite a few of these shoppers contacted the brand’s offices to say they were “a game changer” and “ a God-send”. International Wheelchair Tennis Player, Tabitha Fung (Pictured below in her wheelchair), says: ‘FreshWipes have been an absolute game changer for me. The memories of what I did before these were in my life are fading fast!’
At this point, Barnes decided to pivot and sell to people who needed the wipes. She began to focus on the elderly and disabled market. Feedback from customers clearly stated: ‘There is nothing like these available in the stores’. There were plenty of bed bath wipes etc. but these were thin, dry and had an unattractive scent. FreshWipes’ wipes, in comparison, are much larger, durable, wet and have different scent options depending on preference.
FreshWipes quickly developed 4 key customers:
Disabled people who have limited mobility, and can’t shower or bath unaided
Elderly people living alone who are scared of slipping or falling in the shower
People providing personal care to others/caring for family members or loved ones and struggling to mobilise them to shower or bath
HGV drivers!
In particular Tabitha Fung (Pictured below) is an advocate of the brand, saying: ‘I am rarely now not more than a short distance away from a packet as I keep them in my desk drawer at work [Fung works in a hospital], in my car, backpack and tennis and gym bags. I tell absolutely everyone about them. I feel so fortunate that I have found this product, and it has the added bonus that it does not have the negative impact on nature that other wipes have.’
Bumps In The Road
Since COVID hit in March 2020, supply chain issues for FreshWipes have been extensive. The wipes are made in China, and shipping container prices have more than quadrupled, as well as shipping timings rising by more than half due to port congestion. Barnes is sympathetic to customers who have less disposable income, so has opted to absorb much of this cost internally, rather than passing this on as a significant rise in retail price per unit. Ironically, the lack of HGV drivers has also impacted her supply chain - Barnes jokes: ‘you name the issue, we’ve had it!’
Giving Something Back
As a truly philanthropic company, they have donated over £1,400 worth of products to various charities including Warming up the Homeless, Calzy-Vision, their local NHS hospital [for staff use], SECAMB (South East Coast Ambulance Service) and a local charity, The Bevern Trust. FreshWipes have also donated to Tabitha Fung’s GoFundMe page, as she is raising money for a power attachment and lighter wheelchair, to allow her to work happily and without issue in her new role as a Research and Development Officer in Non-Cancer Haematology.
Sales and Growth
In August 2021, after a period of steady month-on-month growth, FreshWipes saw sales reach an all-time high, as many holidaymakers opted for staycations. With camping holidays at a record high, and COVID-related worries about sharing shower blocks in the back of many peoples’ minds, campers chose to take their hygiene and cleanliness into their own hands with a pack of FreshWipes!
Future plans for SwetWipes Ltd. include launching an Unscented wipe, planned for January 2022, and developing a ‘Shampoo Cap’ that cleanses hair without the need for water.