52. Brad Liski on Saving the Planet One Load of Laundry at a Time

Purpose and Profit with Kathy Varol

Brad Liski is a social entrepreneur and the CEO of British Columbia-based Tru Earth, a global household cleaning product company focused on biodegradability and the elimination of single-use plastic waste. In 2022, Tru Earth partnered with Ocean Wise to launch the American Shoreline Clean-up Program.

Brad was recently named a Sustainability Leader by Canada’s Clean50 for 2022. Other awards Brad and Tru Earth have received include B.C.’s CEO of the year, B.C.’s Top Exporter of the Year, and Best Eco-Friendly Household Product Company 2022.

To learn more about the TruEarthMovement, go to tru.earth.

In this episode we discuss:

● The most sustainable innovation in laundry detergent (ever)

● Why Tru Earth manufacturers in North America

● Tru Earth’s secret for attracting top talent

● The recipe behind Tru Earth’s record 4-year growth

Key Takeaways:

1. When you create a product that aligns with consumer values, makes life easier, and fixes a market need for both consumers and retailers, magic happens. The market rewards smart solutions, and we need more smart solutions like Tru Earth’s eco-strips across industries.
2. What we measure shows what we value. Brad talked about the two main metrics that Tru Earth uses to measure success: 1) how many plastic bottles Tru Earth has eliminated from shelves, homes, and ultimately landfills; and 2) how many loads of laundry they’ve donated. These metrics have incredible power because they are meaningful. These metrics are a reason to get out of bed in the morning, a reason to innovate new solutions, and a reason for employees to engage deeply with work. What are you measuring at work? We sell our potential short when we set our sights too low. Focusing only on extrinsic metrics, like revenue and market share, is setting your sights too low. But when you tap into someone’s intrinsic desire to make a difference, when your metrics show a deep meaning for why your company exists in the world, you unleash a force more powerful than anything found in a traditional business model.
3. Recycling plastic is not going to solve our plastic waste problem. Only 5% of plastic is recycled, which means 95% of plastic—year after year—ends up in landfills, polluting our waters, or being incinerated (which hurts our air). This is a call to action for changemakers across industries to innovate solutions that eliminate plastic, especially single-use plastic. This type of innovation is not only important and meaningful, but it can also be incredibly profitable.

References:

● Tru Earth

● You can learn more about polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and its use in dishwashing detergent pods here.

● The Greenpeace report on plastic recycling can be read here.

● Ocean Wise

○ Shoreline Cleanup conservation program

● entrepreneurship@UBC

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