A father-of-four who founded a multi-million-pound business came up with the idea while weaning his young children.
Having spotted a gap in the market, in 2016, Joel Parkes set about sourcing investment in a unique way – by selling unused products and clothes he found in his house.
The entrepreneur, now 42, raised £2,000 and invested it into his business, bamboo bamboo.
“It was a solution to a problem I was having,” he exclusively told GB News. “As a father of four, I’ve experienced my fair share of mess that my children would make while eating and the subsequent cleaning up of messy floors after mealtime.”
Joel Parkes started by investing just £2,000 by selling products and clothes that he wasn't using for six months
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Joel said he struggled to find good quality and eco-friendly bowls and decided to create a solution that would keep his “floor clean while being kind to the planet”.
He was determined to create a plastic-free product, so decided to use bamboo fibre and melamine for the plates and bowls, and launched the business on his own website as well as on Amazon.
The entrepreneur explained: “Everyone is familiar with Amazon so I knew it was the place to be to reach a wide audience.”
The venture began as a side hustle, with Joel spending just an hour a day testing his theory about brand-building.
Then, in 2018, the business “really took off”, demanding much more of his time and attention.
It was in that year that bamboo bamboo first became a £1million business.
Customers started requesting other products in the range, such as spoons, cups and accessories.
“Our current range today has been built off of what our customers have asked for, and I would love to expand into an even wider range of products,” Joel said.
Fast forward to 2021, and bamboo bamboo became a £4million business. The firm has partnered with brands including Peppa Pig, Hipp Organic and HSBC.
Joel credits Amazon for playing a “huge role” in the business's success, explaining 65 to 70 per cent of sales come from the marketplace.
“It’s given us the ability to expand into new markets easily across the world. I started off using my two-bed flat in Peckham as a warehouse but switching to Fulfillment by Amazon made life so much easier. It took care of all the storing, packaging, shipping, and returns.”
The impact of word of mouth also can’t be underestimated, he said. “A lot of our success came from our customers spreading the word around.”
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Joel credits Amazon for playing a “huge role” in the business's success
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Joel’s advice to other would-be entrepreneurs is to look for ways they can increase product exposure, and to create a brand people can trust – “whether that’s through selling on established marketplaces like Amazon or growing an engaged audience on social media”.
The reaction from customers has been “amazing”, Joel said, adding: “Since we expanded globally, we’ve had parents from all over the world praise our products.
“Parents have come up to me to tell me that their kids won’t even eat from other plates and that they appreciate how organic and natural all of our products are.
“When I set out on this journey, I wanted to make the lives of parents much easier, but I also focused a lot on the future of our children. That’s why it was so important to me that the products are all sustainable and all-natural, so hopefully when our children grow up they will have a cleaner future. We’re putting the work in now so they don’t have to.”
The success of the award-winning business has been a “blessing” to Joel and his family. He told GB News: “The overall journey has been enriching and rewarding for our family.
“More than anything, it's the values, lessons, and bonds we've strengthened along the way that truly resonates with us.”