Is this innovation?

The State and Innovation Promotion

The German government is of course happy when people start companies, because that creates jobs and economic growth. And that is precisely why company start-ups are encouraged. Roughly speaking, it looks something like this:

• If you start a business in Germany, you get 1,000€ .
• If you need to buy another machine for what you want to do, you get 10,000€ .
• If you have to develop and build the machine yourself, you get 100,000€ .

The underlying understanding is that economic development wants to promote innovation . And innovation means doing something new. The more complex and advanced, the better.

Are soulbottles innovative?

In many ways, soulbottles drinking bottles are incredibly old-fashioned: the Egyptians already used glass, the cap is over 100 years old, and we have been drinking water since we were humans. So are we not innovative? That is a matter of opinion.

Looking back instead of progress?

Innovation funding often seems to cling to the idea that through long research and high investment we will eventually find the “complete truth”. But might it not be just as valuable to look at past mistakes?

One example: bottling water in plastic bottles. It has long been scientifically proven that this is not the best way to provide people with drinking water. There are over half a billion people without access to clean water, and the environmental damage caused by plastic waste is immense.

Sustainable Production: A Challenge

Glass

Our glass production was the easiest part. Many manufacturers in Europe supply primarily to the bottling industry and work under high pressure in terms of quantity, speed and price. Finally, we found a producer in Italy who produces smaller quantities.

plastic-free closure

At a trade fair, a supplier promised us that he could produce any closure - except one without plastic. There are only a handful of manufacturers of swing tops left in Europe, and most of them have long since switched to plastic. We found a manufacturer who still uses ceramic and gained a valuable partner.

natural rubber seal

The biggest challenge was the rubber seal . Synthetic rubber is cheaper, but not necessarily better. We developed our natural rubber mixture together with a specialist manufacturer - free of plasticizers and petroleum.

Conclusion: Innovation or not?

Many people see soulbottles as a "new product on the market". But the technology and manufacturers behind them have existed for centuries. In fact, we offer a product that our grandparents naturally used - just a little more stylish.

Is that innovation? Maybe not in the classic sense. But by selling soulbottles we saved 90 tons of plastic and over 1,000 tons of CO2 . In addition, our donations supported over 8,000 households in Nepal. We don't need an innovation award for that.