BUSINESS BIO

Where is the enterprise based? London

Key business markets: environment, overseas aid, consumer goods

Annual turnover: £2.5 million

% of turnover which is trading income (as opposed to grants): 100%

Number of employees: 7

www.belu.org

ambassadors

Reed Paget

Reed Paget
  • Belu

  • 43

  • Founder and Managing Director

  • London

It’s been a challenge, but Belu has established itself as an eco-friendly alternative to the traditional bottled water industry.

In his youth, Social Enterprise Ambassador Reed Paget used various outlets to express his growing awareness of social and environmental issues. He tried everything from political graffiti to documentary film making, before deciding that consumer goods were the best way to get through to the public.

In 2004, Reed and a friend launched Belu as the UK’s first bottled water company to commit all its net profits to clean water projects. Since then they have delivered clean water to over 40,000 people, made Belu the first ‘carbon-neutral’ bottled water, promoted PVC-free packaging and launched the UK’s first compostable bottles made from corn.

“It has not been easy,” admits Reed when asked how a small, independent, ethical water brand has found its way into a crowded market, dominated by multinational companies.

“As a start up, our product was not the least expensive. But our environmental mission has appealed to enough people to win sufficient market share to get the company off the ground. With scale, we have been able to reduce our price and thereby win further sales,” he says.

In the last year, Belu has picked up momentum and is now distributed by the largest wholesalers in the UK and is available in some of the UK’s largest restaurant groups including Tragus and D&D London. You’ll also find it at numerous festivals, trend-setting restaurants and many board rooms.

We can greatly use the support of all consumers that wish to send a message to the big consumer goods companies, that they need to make the planet a priority if they wish to stay in business

The commercial success of Belu has been matched with a wide range of accolades for the company including The Independent newspaper's 2008 Social Entrepreneur of the Year award in partnership with the Schwab Foundation.

Reed is driven by a strong belief that the planet cannot sustain another generation of “business as usual, in which the environment is sacrificed on the altar of greater profits”.

He adds: “We can greatly use the support of all consumers that wish to send a message to the big consumer goods companies, that they need to make the planet a priority if they wish to stay in business.”

Reed feels that the product has had an impact on the ethics of the bottled water market as a whole. “Since we launched, other brands have begun funding water projects, have gone carbon neutral and stopped using PVC-lined bottle caps,” he says.

Chris Hunter, investment manager at Ecobrands Capital Partners, a London-based venture capital firm focusing on ecological and ethical brands, says the company is at a critical growth stage. Hunter believes that the key reason that environmentally-conscious investors support Belu is that it is pioneering.

“There are now others that have some social or charitable values, but Belu puts lots of values together,” Hunter says. “It’s locally-sourced water, all net profits are given to charity and it’s carbon-neutral. Most of Belu’s funders are there for as long as they’re needed, they believe in the vision,” he explains.

Quick Facts

  • Belu has invested more than £800,000 in a range of environmental projects.
  • Belu has provided access to clean water to over 40,000 people through projects in Mali, India, Bangladesh and Madagascar.
  • Prior to 2007, Belu spent £450,000 in developing compostable biobottles.

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