Olive Branches Out to the B2B World with Relaunch

Nate Faust continues to be an innovator in the ecommerce space. But sometimes, even certified innovators, who previously built a $3.3 billion game-changing business, must go back to the drawing board. Today, the Jet.com founder and former Walmart exec announced the relaunch of his latest venture, Olive, an eco-friendly delivery and return service initially launched in February 2021. The service eliminated single-use packaging from online purchases by consolidating customer orders and shipping them weekly in reusable containers, thereby reducing emissions. McDonald’s Turns Its Trash Into Gold for Customers Who Keep the Netherlands Tidy The fledgling service had quickly amassed hundreds of impressive brand partners and was well received by customers (“99% positive customer feedback,” according to Faust). In fact, it became so successful, the company realized it needed to shift its model from direct-to-consumer service to direct b-to-b logistics. It began offering shoppers a chance to opt into during their online checkout experience from even more brand partners, and their wholesale fulfillment centers, to meet the demand. “We [insisted in the early days], ‘No, we need to take this approach where all the stuff comes to us first and we combine it all into one shipment because that’s how we can make the whole model work so we don’t have to charge you any more out of pocket for it and you can get everything together,’” Faust said. “But then we had enough brands sort of push on us and ask us to provide that experience directly that we went back to the drawing board and relaunched as a direct b-to-b logistics offering where now we partner directly with brands.” Faust, who started Olive to reduce waste in ecommerce, told Adweek that the company’s waste-free packaging is now an available option through third-party logistics providers (3PLs) that pack customer orders for brands and retailers and ship nationwide. Shoppers can select the service during checkout at no additional cost. “The fulfillment center will pack it directly into our reusable packaging so there’s no single-use packaging used at all, and then we power the deliveries and pickups, along with any returns from there,” Faust said, adding the company has a partnership with Loop Returns, a software as a service provider for Shopify brands that “performs the digital side of returns.” Conscious consignment For the eco-conscious entrepreneur, Olive’s new business model made way for an opportunity Faust previously expressed plans about to Adweek as he considered the company’s evolution and its ability to create impactful and beneficial change for the environment. With 75%-80% of the company’s containers being returned empty once the product is delivered, the company added a consignment offering to their repertoire. Customers are encouraged to place clothing they no longer use in the containers, which the company would then retrieve and sell on the customer’s behalf for a fee through their subsidiary, Linda’s Stuff, which Faust noted is one of the largest resellers on eBay. Faust said the company has seen encouraging consignment usage among customers of premium menswear brand Rhone, with an increasing number sending 5-10 items on “the reverse leg” of the delivery, admitting that he has also used the service with positive results. “We’ve been surprised at the things that have been coming back,” he said. Fashion forward Prior to its official relaunch, Olive began beta-testing its new iteration through its partnership with Rent the Runway, which Faust called “a natural fit” due to their preexisting adoption of reusable packaging and its “closed-loop supply chain model,” meaning items are expected to be returned. The company has uniformed drivers in the New York metropolitan area that facilitate Rent the Runway’s deliveries and pickups and gives customers the option of scheduling returns directly through the service or by using an enclosed UPS label. (For deliveries outside of the NY metropolitan area, Olive uses UPS, FedEx and USPS.) While Faust noted the company may add additional categories in the near future, for now, Olive is concentrated on apparel exclusively for several reasons: It’s the top category in online shopping, its high return rate and its potential for consignment conversion. It’s also the most detrimental to the environment, with 13 million tons of textile waste every year and with CO2 emissions generated by the shipping and return of ecommerce goods accounting for 37% of the planet’s total GHG emissions in 2020. “From an operational perspective, it’s easier to manage logistics of apparel in comparison to other categories that are bigger, bulkier, [and] more fragile. Over time, we will expand into other categories.” With Sustainability a Priority for Consumers, SodaStream Sees a Chance to Shine

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Olive Branches Out to the B2B World With Relaunch

Eco-friendly delivery service adds consignment, resulting in new business from men

Leslie Blount

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Leslie Blount