When Cheeky Wipes first launched in 2008, its main product was eco-friendly reusable wet wipes, and now it has grown into a multi-million-pound business recently featured and winning the BBC’s ‘The Customer is Always Right.’
The brand provides great economical alternatives to a number of single-use, disposable sanitary products including baby wipes, make-up removals pads and even toilet paper.
A New Type of Baby Wipe
The idea for the company came to founder Helen Rankin when she was pregnant with her first child Archie. She was finding that the single-use baby wipes available even the sensitive ones aggravated her eczema. She developed her own alternative in repurposed terry cloths combining them with essential oils.
Environmentally conscious already, making her own wipes was just an extension of her desire for a less wasteful product. She started to improve the product, testing new materials, and creating a kit that can be stored, organised and safely recycled for reuse with mesh bags for easy washing. By the time that she was going to have her third child, Helen knew that there was a market for sustainable baby wipes.
It was when she was eight months pregnant with her third child that Helen decided to take the plunge and launch her own business. Her experience as a former banker and marketing manager came in handy during the start-up phase. With the help of her in-laws, she was able to get the business moving as she handled the administration and converted their garage into a mini-warehouse.
A Culture of Reuse
While it started with Helen at the helm, Helen has built up a team that is as focused and driven in their mission as she is. Cheeky Wipes is not just a singular product, but a more eco-conscious lifestyle that informs its entire product line and she and her staff use their products daily.
As consumers become conscious of what they are buying, its sales have grown in line with renewed calls against pollution and single-use plastic, using cotton and bamboo within their products.
The Move
When Adam Berger, business manager at Locate East Sussex, met Cheeky Wipes it wanted to scale up the businesses efficiently so it could keep up with the growing demand for its eco-conscious products.
With Adam’s support, the company was able to access East Sussex County Council’s East Sussex Invest grants and loans programme to assist with the fit-out of a new unit on the Eastside Business Park in Newhaven. As a result, they have been able to install a new mezzanine floor, a picking and packing floor, offices and warehouse racking as well as hiring six new staff.
The ESI programme is open to prospective clients right now.
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Cheeky Wipes Official Website Funding Our services Get in touch
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