Ridwell

Ridwell was started with the objective to encourage people to dump more waste, albeit in a highly organized fashion. The company specialize in waste collection which usually poses immense trouble for traditional recycling post dumping.

The startup was founded by a father son duo in Seattle. The idea was born when they found it challenging to safely dispose batteries. Currently, a major chunk of all household waste generated ends up in landfills, a lot of which is because of human behavior. Ridwell's solution offers cotton bags to their subscribers which are labelled as per the type of waste they are designed to handle. Each bag is personally collected by a company personnel. This allows the subscriber to progressively declutter their home. Trusted recycling partners are chosen to process all the collections.

The core categories they recycle are batteries, light bulbs, plastic film, and threads. But they also collect: Electronics, small devices, small appliances, cords and cable, lamps and lighting, unwanted Halloween candy, books, take-out utensils, eyeglasses, cork, oral hygiene products, etc.

The entire operation is economical for a subscriber, $10-14 being charged per month for two collection trips. An additional $9 can be deposited to dispose 40 gallons of styrofoam. Subscribers are free to ask questions regarding the subject. Currently, they have over 1,000 active subscribers, they are scaling up with Portland being their next destination. Ridwell has kickstarted a movement towards holistic waste management.