Amsterdam-based Smyle, a company that offers toothpaste tabs, among other things, without using plastic tubes, microplastics and other chemicals, announced on Tuesday, November 1, that it has raised more than €1M in sharefunding.
Smyle has developed a loyal community that actively offers comments, participates in product development, and offers fresh ideas. Additionally, the startup successfully executed a sharefund campaign using that community on the Broccoli sharefund platform, during which a record-breaking 1441 individuals purchased Smyle shares. The company thus raised €1,156,660, money with which it can now continue to grow.
In a statement translated from Dutch, Smyle co-founder Dennis Kamst says, “We are extremely grateful that our community is supporting us and going on a journey with us! Together we will change oral care sustainably!”
Thoughtfully sustainable and effective
Every year, 1.5 billion plastic toothpaste tubes end up in our landfills and oceans. These tubes do not dissolve and cannot be recycled. Additionally, we brush our teeth twice a day with microplastics, foaming agents like SLS, preservatives, dyes, and many other harsh chemical additives. This is what Smyle is aiming to change.
Smyle was founded in 2020 by Almar Fernhout, Dennis Kamst, and Roger Nefkens. The founders were astounded to learn that toothpaste contains microplastics and that every year, billions of plastic tubes wind up in the seas and landfills.
The company has developed toothpaste in tablet form, completely plastic-free, using only natural, vegan ingredients, and without gluten. Customers also get a travel kit and a glass bottle to store the mints for free and can reorder them in compostable reusable paper packages.
Nefkens, in a statement translated from Dutch, says, “The tabs are made from natural ingredients and packed in paper bags that you can use to refill a glass bottle. The tabs fit through the letterbox and are delivered CO2-neutral by the postman. So not by a courier in his van. The tabs are 100 per cent vegan and cruelty-free.”
Tests by, among others, the Academic Center for Dentistry Amsterdam (ACTA) show that the amount of fluoride (F-release) released is fine, just like with other well-known brands of toothpaste. Many hundreds of dentists recommend Smyle, claims the company.
Smyle is also for sale at stores such as Albert Heijn, Jumbo, ETOS, Holland & Barret, Picnic, and Ekoplaza.
