- Cloud Paper — a tree-free paper product company that is on a mission to end deforestation from paper products — announced that it has raised $3 million in a seed funding round
Cloud Paper — a tree-free paper product company that is on a mission to end deforestation from paper products — announced that it has raised $3 million in a seed round of funding with a lead investment from Greycroft and a group of notable investors. And Cloud Paper’s first round of funding positions the brand as an industry innovator and forest defender in a time when wildfires are devastating forests across the West Coast.
Cloud Paper was co-founded by former Uber and Convoy executives Ryan Fritsch and Austin Watkins last year after realizing that Americans flush the equivalent of a Central Park-worth of trees down the toilet every day. Watkins and Fritsch later joined forces with another ex-Convoy colleague Tori Kiss.
The company brings customers a more sustainable alternative with its first product — which is an ultra-soft bamboo-based toilet paper, delivered to your door for the same price as traditional brands. And Cloud Paper’s new tree-free 3-ply toilet paper arrives via home subscription with zero-plastic packaging and carbon-neutral deliveries, making it even more sustainable.
The timely round of funding — amid growing climate concerns — will accelerate Cloud Paper’s expansion into more tree-free product categories. And in addition to Greycroft, investments also came from Ashton Kutcher, Guy Oseary, Marc Benioff, Mark Cuban, Gwyneth Paltrow, Robert Downey Jr.’s FootPrint Coalition, Code.org CEO Hadi Partovi, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, NFL Quarterback Russell Wilson, Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Ciara, serial-entrepreneur Grant Ries, Muse Capital, Ashley Merrill and Marc Merrill and others.
KEY QUOTES:
“Every person can save 100+ trees in their lifetime by making a switch to tree-free products, like Cloud Paper. We’re on a mission to make that happen. Cloud Paper can help save a billion trees in the years ahead, and it’s incredibly validating to have investors and advocates join us in that mission.”
— Austin Watkins
“We know that deforestation is a leading cause of climate change. We’re giving every person an opportunity to be a part of the solution by preserving forests every single day. We are resetting the status quo by moving away from tree-based paper and using ultra-sustainable, renewable resources like bamboo instead.”
— Ryan Fritsch
“Ryan and Austin are combining their tech backgrounds with their passion for impacting lasting change to bring consumers and businesses category-changing, eco-friendly products. We see tremendous opportunity for Cloud Paper to capture and expand market share by addressing the unmet demand for sustainable alternatives to everyday household and office products.”
— Dana Settle, co-founder of Greycroft
