When thinking about the Bio Bag business, I took inspiration from a number of existing businesses. Some of them operate in the green space. Others don't. I think what ties them together is that they are decidedly non-corporate, have created a distinct, positive identity for themselves and are trying to contribute something to the world.
So in no particular order, her they are:
Innocent. www.innocentdrinks.co.uk. Fruit smoothies with a positive attitude. They continue to go from strenght to strength and their quirkiness still worksI hope they can keep it up as they grow ever bigger.
Dorset Cereals www.dorsetcereals.co.uk. They are very brave taking on the big boys in the cereals business, but they seem to succeed, again with a message of quality and goodness.
Barefoot Books www.barefoot-books.com. Beautiful and uplifting children's books. We have a few at our house and the kids love'em. The business is run by a few people who broke out of the corporate mould to create something new. I like'em a lot.
Enfin la Voila http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5226179&order=&section_id=&page=2. This is the webshop of a good friend of mine who also did the initial design of the Bio Bag logo. She runs a little web-shop selling these really nicely designed, slightly off-the-wall greeting cards and stationary. She sells them via Etsy.com, which is like an ebay for creative people and minor and major artists. It's a great site. My friend actually succeeds in making a half-decent leving off her stationary business and shes sells her stuff worldwide. I guess it is a living example of a "long tail business"

I realised that I have created a link from my business website to my blog, but not the inverse. So here it is: www.biobags.uk.com.

Met up yesterday evening with a fellow green entrepreneur who runs an electric vehicle busines: www.drivelectric.com at a nice little Italian restaurant in Hampstead.

We had a chat about the challenges of running a green business... He seems like a nice guy and I have a feeling that our conversations could evolve into a more formal business relationship. Let's see

So here it is. I am now officially an entrepreneur. I have a company. I have a product. I have a plan and even have some money. And to top it all off, it will make this world a better place.Now I have to make it happen.
I came up with the idea for the Bio Bag about a year ago when watching a BBC news item about waste separation and recycling. It followed a typical British suburban family which was, for the purpose of the programme, seperating all its waste for a whole month. They seemed to be happy doing it. But the thing that caused the most difficulty was the kitchen and organic waste which was kept in a big slop-bucket in the kitchen. It very rapidly became a bucket full of unspeakable mess...Not something you want in your house, especially if you are living a busy (sub-)urban life of too much hassle and too little time.
I think that most of us live this kind of life: very busy with work, family and general housekeeping and meanwhile trying to do something good for the world beyond our front door. No eco-warriers, more eco-worriers. Our good intentions strand in the practicalities of daily life and we rarely get much further than using the reusable supermarket bags, turning the telly fully off at night and keeping our metal and glass waste seperate from the rest...
So the Bio Bag is for us, my friends. A way of collecting and disposing our organic and kitchen waste with a minimum of hassle. We can keep our kitchen clean and still do our thing to limit landfill and reduce global warming. Every little helps....
That, at least, is the sales pitch. Most people I bounce it off to, react enthusiastically. Now I have to turn it into a real business...Keep watching this space!