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Ridwell’s father-son origin story is as compelling as it is adorable. Ryan Metzger and his then-six-year-old son, Owen, used a weekend project in 2018 to find a place to store used batteries and help over 75,000 customers pay about $15 a month for the service. Transformed into a growing business. ridwell Since then, we have recycled or reused over 11 million pounds of hard-to-recycle items. Their first effort was well-meaning, but it was Ryan Metzger’s discovery that the recycling industry was in turmoil that got the business started. Metzger and his co-founder met in that moment.
Ryan Metzger and son Owen made the Owen list in 2018. This is a service that collects items that are difficult to recycle.
ridwell
Certain startup stories lend themselves to narratives built around the question, “Why now?” Why hasn’t this solution been created yet? What makes it the perfect time to introduce this service? Every startup story should be logical. It has to make sense. A good “why now” is the foundation of story logic. Find out how the Ridwell story began, why it was the perfect time to start a business, and where we are now.
“How did it start?”
Ryan and his wife, Erin, grew up on the West Coast, where recycling is an important family value. When they had their own house, they tried to throw it away as little as possible. Mr. and Mrs. Metzger had a place in their basement where they collected batteries, plastic bags, old clothes, and Styrofoam. Because they hated sending them to the sea or to landfills. Either you didn’t know what to do with them, or you didn’t have time to remove them all.
One weekend in 2018, Ryan started looking for a place to recycle old batteries. Once they found their destination, Ryan and Owen decided to check their neighbors for their used batteries. Some neighbors were interested, so Owen went door-to-door collecting batteries (Ryan said the idea was inspired by the old-fashioned paper route, but the opposite). After a while, Ryan and Owen started collecting other items. Ryan created a website called “Owen’s List” to help arrange pickups, and soon he had 4,500 Seattle neighborhood residents visit the site.
Ryan realized this had the makings of a business. His eco-conscious Seattle neighbor needed to find an easy way to dispose of difficult-to-recycle items. The timing was right. China just announced No longer accept recycling of Western items. Based on this news, journalists and citizens alike began to wonder if the recycling they brought to the curb was actually recycled or ended up in landfills. There was no. It was important for Ryan and Owen to clearly explain where everything went. They list each partner and show pictures of the items that were dropped off.
Owen poses for a photo unloaded from Styrofoam. This photo was posted on social media … [+]
ridwell
Some of the best innovation stories happen because of timing. When startup storytellers figure out what people are interested in right now, they jump on it. Transparency is a top priority on the Ridwell site. Their customers want to know where and how things are recycled. That’s why Ridwell says, “We’ll show you.” Their overall value proposition is ‘Waste less, make it easier’. But one of the main benefits is “It makes you feel better about where your belongings go.”
“How it’s happening”
Owen is now 11 years old, but he’s not the only character in this story who’s grown up since 2018. Ridwell raised capital and expanded his operations to several cities including Portland, Denver, Minneapolis, Austin and the San Francisco Bay Area. His 200-person team of them is now looking for storage for new items, including multi-layer plastics, eyeglasses, corks, political yard signs, linens, and more. Ridwell gets paid for some items, donates others, and even needs to pay for some things to dispose of them properly.
Ryan Metzger, co-founder and CEO of Ridwell, outside his home in Seattle.
Dan Delong
When the Ridwells move to new communities, they give the residents a say in what they pick up. Many people are most aware of the “plastic in the sea” problem and choose plastic film. After his one-time offer to receive it for free, Ridwell tells that story front and center with transparency. Once the story resonates with customers, Ridwell offers several pricing plans to try out the service. There are other ways to dispose of these hard-to-recycle items, but Ridwell insists that no one is bringing them out any better.
The business is now growing at a rate of over 50% annually. With high retention rates, you can invest significant sums in advertising, social media content curation, and referral programs to attract new customers. As Ridwell grows, new organizations advance in search of items for Ridwell to collect. Food banks reach out when supplies run low, and Ridwell rounds up canned goods. In Denver, a refugee aid group was looking for an old coat. Wildlife centers welcomed old blankets and pillows for the animals to cuddle with.
The best thing for Ryan is hearing from customers. One customer told Ryan, “I can’t bear to throw this away.” With Ridwell, you don’t have to hate doing it anymore. Most items that are hard to dispose of find new homes off the ground. And with his 2018 lesson, Ridwell tells us where that house is.