Rich Grousset and Raphael Meyer enjoyed eating out while going to college at the University of Michigan. However, the recent grads didn’t feel right about the disposable take-home containers that their food came in. That's what turned on the CFL above their heads.
"We both really liked going out to restaurants but we both really disliked the waste," Grousset says.
The partners started BizeeBox last summer with the idea of supplying reusable plastic container to local restaurants for take-out meals. The idea is the eateries would supply it to their customers who would then send it back, for a small fee, and eliminate more landfill waste. The customers can drop off the empty containers at a central location for cleaning within a certain time period.
"As long as you get it back to us within 30 days we won’t charge you," Grousset says.
The business started as Go Blue Box at the tail end of their college careers and has taken off as they begin their professional careers as entrepreneurs.
"After graduating we decided we wanted to do this after school," says Rich Grousset, co-founder of
BizeeBox.
The partners are now ironing out the wrinkles in their business plan, such specifically what reusable container to use or how to set up a rewards program to coincide with restaurant patronage. The company plans to running a
crowd-funding campaign to launch a small pilot program in Ann Arbor early next year.
Source: Rich Grousset, co-founder of BizeeBox
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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