Hey Circle receives funding of an undisclosed amount from Butterfly & Elephant, the investment company of GS1 Germany. The startup develops reusable shipping packaging and software to track its usage. The goal is to reduce waste and CO2 emissions in online retail and promote the circular economy in the shipping process.
Standards create transparency
Hey Circle combines robust reusable packaging with a digital solution that documents cycles and savings. Each package carries a unique GRAI code (Global Returnable Asset Identifier). This allows movements and sustainability metrics to be recorded precisely. Through the GTIN, the startup also identifies different packaging types and manages inventory across locations. Doris Diebold, founder and CEO of Hey Circle, explains:
“The use of GS1 standards such as GTIN and GRAI enables us to uniquely identify packaging and transparently record sustainability data. This makes the circular economy measurable and applicable for companies.”
According to the company, the reusable packaging reduces waste by around 94 percent, CO2 emissions by 76 percent, and packaging costs by 53 percent. Accompanying software automatically provides these values for ESG reporting. Companies can integrate the data into their sustainability reports.
The Munich-based startup already works with over 90 customers and has several tens of thousands of packages in circulation. Partnerships with parcel service providers promote the integration of reusable models into existing logistics systems.
“Hey Circle makes sustainability scalable. The team combines ecological responsibility with economic strength. Our investment supports a model that uses GS1 standards to bring sustainable innovation into existing value chains”,
says Benjamin Birker, Managing Director at Butterfly & Elephant.
With the investment, Hey Circle aims to expand its market position and further establish standardization as the foundation for sustainable logistics processes.
