Cedric D’Souza, CTO of AeroFlexx talks disruption, misconceptions, and his view on the limitations of LCAs.
Your elevator pitch: introduce and sell us your company in no more than 280 characters.
AeroFlexx is a disruptive packaging innovation that consumers love, customers prefer and the environment appreciates. It uses at least 50% less plastic than bottles, requires no prep for e-commerce and, with a smart self-closing feature, offers consumers the ultimate user experience.
Where are your company’s locations? Are there any specific challenges or advantages relating to your geographical location that you could tell us about?
We are a part of Innventure, a US-based company that partners with Fortune 100 companies to commercialize disruptive technologies and transform global markets. Our staff locations in Chicago, Orlando, and Cincinnati facilitate close proximity and engagement with business partners.
Tell us a surprising fact about the market you work in.
People grow accustomed to minor inconveniences. Wastefully packaged bottles, caps to open/close, poor dispensing control, mess when the bottle falls. If this changes all at once, the aggregated problem becomes strikingly apparent and the solution grows from novel to indispensable.
At Packaging Europe we like to watch trends and areas of innovation as they evolve. Can you tell us something we might not be aware of that is driving technology in your sphere?
Big innovations often come from surprisingly obvious ideas. The industry had matured into two broad categories – rigid bottles and flexibles pouches. AeroFlexx ‘blends the best’ between these conventional forms creating a better package for the customer, consumer, and environment.
What would you say is the biggest common misconception that you encounter in your business?
A life cycle analysis is often considered the preferred tool to make a packaging business case. In reality, it’s only the first step. To win the hearts and mind of consumers, packaging should most importantly be constructed to achieve another life.
If the wider packaging industry could be transformed in some way, what kind of change would you like to see?
We would like to see an industry that enables technology for plastic, people and the planet to coexist in a mutually dependent circular ecosystem. This calls for a step-change in the way packaging is designed, distributed and given another life.
…and how do you envisage your company changing the industry in the coming years?
We aspire to be the largest liquids packaging disruption of the decade. One that enhances customer profitability via increased sales and reduced losses while raising the bar on consumer delight. We commit to doing this in an environmentally respectful and responsible manner.
