Cohort 2023: Sparxell

The Problem 

Sparxell addresses the pollution and toxicity posed by the sourcing, transformation and end-of-life of conventional colourants in its various formats (plastics, dyes, minerals and metals) by offering the world’s first plant-based colourants inspired by nature – a fully biodegradable, non-toxic and low-carbon performant alternative.

The Solution 

Sparxell’s platform technology tackles the limitations of traditional colourants by introducing fully biodegradable, non-toxic and dye-free bio-inspired products prepared from plant-based cellulose. These cutting-edge colourants mimic nature’s vivid colours and effects. Being plant-based and extractable from waste, Sparxell’s products not only significantly come with a much lower carbon footprint but also curb dependency on finite resources. Its various product forms serve multiple industries from cosmetics, fashion, packaging, and paints, as well as food and beverage. With an unlimited colour palette, Sparxell unites colour vividness and sustainable performance for the first time at scale. 

The Sparxell’s Impact

“Sparxell’s groundbreaking colourants are sourced from plant-based cellulose, extractable from waste, enabling transformational changes across multiple supply chains. Sparxell’s products tackle microplastic and water pollution, toxicity issues, land depletion, GHG emissions and hard-to-abate materials often extracted with exploitative labour practices. Our innovation is a catalyst for sustainability and circularity, and contributes to environmental and biodiversity conservation, thereby shaping a greener, ethical, and responsible future across a wide spectrum of industrial sectors and society.”

 – Benjamin Droguet, CEO

Why we invested

The fashion industry is increasingly looking for ways to reduce their negative externalities, but options in the market are still limited to meet consumers’ demands. Sparxell saw an opportunity in the space to leverage bio-inspired photonics technology to produce pigments, glitters, sequins, and other products with intense colour and shimmering effects that can, currently, only be found in metals or and petroleum-based materials. 

This is undoubtedly an exciting opportunity to reduce reliance on oil extraction, reduce the carbon footprint of fashion products and reduce microplastics pollution. 

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