Everyone’s waiting. Here’s why, and when we think it’s coming.
Klapp high chair was launched in 2019, and since then the demand for a tray and newborn seat has been increasing. Then in 2021, we were ready to start R&D and went on with developing a tray and newborn seat for the beloved Klapp high chair. When we started the project, it looked like we would be ready with the products within the same year.
As we went about, we realized we could do like everyone else in our industry and produce these products from virgin plastic (then we would get the products to market quickly cause the setup is pretty much ready). But as parents, we think it is weird to develop products for children without truly thinking about how we can take the best possible care of their future.
As we got more familiar with these new accessories and learned “what everyone else did”, it just felt so wrong to do the same. Plastic waste is, unfortunately, one of the world’s biggest environmental challenges. We simply cannot continue to supply the planet with more virgin resources. And through KAOS, we actually have the power to make a difference! And throughout the project, we made a promise to ourselves we would do anything we can to seal the faucet for virgin plastic and utilize recycled material, over and over again.
So we decided to ask AION by Aker BioMarine. AION works to recycle plastic from post-industrial waste and aims to scale a circular plastic economy. We found that we had common interests, and not least: a common set of values. Together we could change an entire industry.
And from that point, we decided to go a whole new way. Together with AION by Aker BioMarine, we have defined a completely new standard allowing our industry to use recycled marine waste in the production of baby gear. How awesome is that! We definitively think it’s been worth the wait.
To begin with, the products will be made from 50% recycled fishnet and 50% virgin plastic, no one ever used that much recycled post-industrial waste before. We keep pushing towards our goal to make 100% recycled children’s gear, and it will come, but good things take time. Regardless, the current material can be recycled up to 9 times. This will mean that the plastic we use for our tray and newborn seat will last for up to 100 years.
With the new material ready and certified according to all requirements, we were ready as ready could be. Now, making molds these size takes time. They are huge, they weigh tons, and cost a fortune to produce locally here in Europe. So we had to develop these special molds through a network of mold makers in Shenzhen, China.
Communication through various time zones is always a bit delaying, but no biggie. Then came Covid. with lockdowns and insanely huge delays. Overall, there have been huge challenges throughout the value chain throughout 2021, and this has of course affected the schedule for our molds too.
By January 2022, Covid finally got a lid on itself in Europe and 2022 started with good courage. We were finally ready to pick up our molds in China! And we had planned to transport everything by train from Shenzhen to our manufacturer in Sweden.
But then came the war, and trains through Russia were suddenly not an option anymore. We had to rebook from train to boat freight. But so did everyone else who had originally planned train shipping. Ack. You can just imagine how the queue for boat freight became longer and how the cost has been increasingly higher the past couple of weeks. It seems to be a never-ending story.
All set for pick up in March, at last. You know, at this point, we’re pretty much standing with our faces ready to get slapped again. And guess what! Shenzhen reports a 14-day lockdown due to new outbreaks of Covid! I’ll be damned. So we have to wait – again.
Writing this, it almost feels like a tragicomedy. There have been so many obstacles, omg! A lot of people would have quit this by now and just lay down, fully surrendered, to whatever evilness trying to confiscate. Lol. Luckily, we are not quitters. We’re more optimistic than ever because the Lockdown is over, the pick-up is scheduled and we have a brand new mix of material ready that will change our industry for the better.
Boat freight takes a longer time than train freight, and we have just been informed that the molds are expected to be arriving in Sweden June 6th. The production will take place in Sweden, not far from our warehouse, and the production is only a 14 days process. Once items are ready molded, we can start shipping!
Tray and the new rail will go straight into production, and can shortly after be sent to our customers. We open for pre-order as soon as we have a slightly more accurate date and more guarantee for when the molds arrive in Sweden. (If we have learned anything from this process, in addition to the fact that virgin plastic is a problem we must address, it is that we, unfortunately, live in very unpredictable times when it comes to time predictions). We’ll get back to you as soon as possible with more info.
Thanks for understanding, guys. We are doing everything we can and will update you shortly. Hang in there.
Gineline & Mette