Green businesses or businesses that focus on making the environment a better place always get my attention. You don’t have to come up with an alternative to oil or fossil fuel in order to become a green entrepreneur although that would be a dream come true for everyone.
The first interview with a green entrepreneur on Wayne Liew Dot Com is finally here when I had the chance to interview Ash Sud, Founder of ZippGo.
In this interview, Ash tells his story as an entrepreneur and why entrepreneurs should adopt the triple bottom line approach to run their business. Additionally, Ash also talks about how ZippGo created customer evangelists and fans despite the young age of the company.
Introduction of Ash Sud, Founder of ZippGo
Wayne: Ash, I have been looking for an entrepreneur running a green business for some time now and I’m more than glad to have you as an interview guest. Thank you. Before we look at the questions I have for you, can you do a brief introduction about yourself and your background so that my blog readers can get to know you better?
Ash: I have been around entrepreneurs since the time I could walk. My parents have owned and operated a number of small businesses in the last 30 years including a drive-in dairy in the early 80′s, an employment agency, and a metal manufacturing business. Working at these businesses growing up, I developed an internal passion for entrepreneurship.
Ash: After working at a few startups during the dot-com boom of the late 90′s and early 2000′s as an ERP developer, I was laid off during the market crash in 2001. I used this time to travel to Europe, let my creative juices flow, and focus on my true calling of being an entrepreneur. A few months later I started my first green venture called Westside Organics.
Ash: Westside Organics was a web-based organic food home delivery business serving the San Francisco Bay Area. During the 7 years I operated Westside Organics, the business had lot of press, awards, and happy customers. I merged Westside Organics with North America’s largest organic home delivery company, SPUD, in 2008 in order to increase our market share, expand outside the San Francisco area, and benefit from economies of scale.
What is ZippGo?
Wayne: Our interview today is going to revolve around your current venture, ZippGo and your experience as an entrepreneur. ZippGo was launched in November 2009 and I think it’s still a fairly new business. In simple English, can you explain what ZippGo is all about and the service that it offers?
Ash: ZippGo was created to solve the problem of excessive waste created during the moving process. With 46 million people moving annually in the United States, and many using cardboard boxes during their move, our landfills are becoming congested with cardboard boxes.
Ash: ZippGo created a reusable moving box made from 100% recycled plastic to replace the conventional cardboard box. Each of the ZippGo boxes can be used 500 times each where as cardboard boxes even if reused can be used a maximum of 3 times. ZippGo rents our green moving boxes to people relocating to a new home or to a new office. We deliver our boxes and sustainable moving supplies using trucks powered by biodiesel made from waste vegetable oil. We typically rent our boxes for a 2 week period with an option for additional weeks if needed.
Wayne: Does your company provide moving services or just the boxes?
Ash: ZippGo provides rentable moving boxes and sustainable moving supplies such as recycled packing paper, a compostable bubble wrap made from recycled paper, and eco-friendly packing peanuts also made from recycled paper. While we don’t provide moving services ourselves, we have partnered with green moving companies who share our same vision of reducing waste and reusing when possible.
ZippGo Services for Business Owners
Wayne: Let’s say a business owner reading this is planning to move his/her office soon. What is the process they need to go through? Can you briefly explain the process that a customer has to go through after he/she got in touch with ZippGo?
Ash: Our goal is to simplify the moving process and make it as easy as possible for our clients. We offer our clients two methods of ordering. They can call our toll-free phone number and speak with one of our green moving agents or place an order and schedule a delivery on our easy-to-use website. We will ask them a few questions about the size of their move, including the size of their current office and the number of employees they have to determine how many boxes they will require for a successful move.
Ash: We will then schedule a delivery day and time that works for the client, they receive an email confirmation with the details of the move, and a cheerful ZippGo driver will be at their office as scheduled. After the move is complete and the boxes unpacked, a ZippGo driver will return to pick up the empty boxes again at a time that is convenient for our clients.
Providing Great Customer Service in Business
Wayne: I want to move into your experience as an entrepreneur and I’m sure you have tons to share. What do you think is the most important lesson that you learned from your previous venture that you have applied to ZippGo?
Ash: A principle that I always live by in business is to make sure the client is always happy. I will go to any length (almost any) to make sure our clients are thrilled with our products and service.
Ash: I once had a customer in my previous organic grocery delivery business who had placed and received a food order a day before Christmas. She was hosting her family for a Christmas dinner and was preparing a home cooked meal. For one reason or another, the bottle of organic olive oil she ordered was not included in her order. She called on the 24th around 4pm after all our drivers had gone home and I was on my way out to my own family Christmas party. I knew I had no other choice but to drive to her home which was 3 hours roundtrip through heavy rain and traffic.
Ash: I could have just given her a credit for the missing olive oil, but I wanted to make sure she was absolutely thrilled with our service. After this "emergency trip" this customer started increasing her weekly food orders and turned out to be one our top ordering customers. Going above and beyond to make a customer happy can do amazing things for your brand and customer loyalty.
Creating Customer Evangelists for Your Business
Wayne: ZippGo’s Twitter profile and Facebook page show that it is indeed a company that successfully won the heart of its customers. Also, Ash, I think that you did a great job of explaining the purpose of ZippGo and how it could help the environment. Apart from this, can you share with us some tips on how you get the word out and more importantly, how did you create a fan base that does not only follow but also tell others about the services you offer?
Ash: People appreciate products that are not only good for the environment but also make their lives easier. Moving is rated as one of the most stressful events in a person’s life. ZippGo takes much of the stress out by providing a solution that simplifies the moving process. We provide ready-to-use moving boxes (no assembling or tape required), deliver them to our clients on an eco-friendly truck powered by biodiesel, and pick them up when they are done unpacking.
Ash: Most of our clients become evangelists for our products after using them and realizing how much easier they are compared to cardboard boxes.
Future Plans to Make ZippGo Greener
Wayne: Zippgo is a great business concept and I do foresee growth for the company. I believe that most green businesses are always looking for opportunities to become more sustainable, whether it is by introducing more green features into the business or by taking up initiatives such as tree planting. Can you share with us some of your plans to make ZippGo a more sustainable company?
Ash: Our entire business is based on reducing waste using sustainable methods and practices. In addition to the core green of our business model, we are also in the process of being certified green by our local state agency for practicing green methods in our office and warehouse. Much of the policy is based on things such as internal recycling, using energy efficient equipment, and developing green initiatives within our organization.
Ash: We also plant a tree for each new person who becomes a fan of our Facebook Fan Page.
Advice for Aspiring Green Entrepreneurs
Wayne: With two green ventures under your belt, what will be your advice for entrepreneurs who are planning to start an environmental-friendly business?
Ash: Working for a triple bottom line of people, planet, and profits is how every business should be run and I commend anyone who aligns themselves and their business with these values.
Ash: Whatever business you decide to do, make sure you are passionate about it because there will be days when you are challenged, things may feel impossible, and you’ll feel like giving up. Don’t give up on your dream. You need to keep pushing forward because success is around the corner.
Connect with Ash or Learn More About ZippGo
Wayne: Good advice. Ash, what you shared with us today means a lot and before I end this interview, how can my blog readers get in touch with you, whether to learn more about ZippGo, or just to connect?
Ash: Thank you Wayne for this opportunity to discuss ZippGo with your readers. You’ve done an excellent job of providing interesting content for your readers. Your readers can contact me in a number of ways:
- Web: http://www.ZippGo.com
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/zippgo
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ZippGo
Wayne: Thanks again for taking time to do this interview and sharing your experience as an entrepreneur with me. I truly appreciate it.
Share Your Thoughts on ZippGo and Green Businesses
With this interview with Ash Sud, I am looking forward to talk to more entrepreneurs behind green businesses so that they can share their insights on green business trends and tips to run a successful business that is also sustainable at the same time.
What do you think about ZippGo’s business concept and what do you think makes a great green business?
Share your thoughts and let us know about your opinion in the comments section below.
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