The Unscented Company: Reducing single-use plastic packaging

The video starts with a display on which is written “CED X The Unscented Company,” with the logos in bright white. The voice of Anie Rouleau, President and Founder of The Unscented Company, is heard:

“- With The Unscented Company, I wanted to redefine the notion of cleanliness.

Anie Rouleau appears, smiling, in front of a mural of the image on her range of body care products:

- I am in an industry that contributes to one of the greatest environmental scourges, single-use plastic packaging.

A man with his arms full of empty plastic bottles drops several bottles on the ground. He is then seen filling a bottle using a refill product from The Unscented Company. Anie Rouleau continues to be heard:

- The mission of the business is not to become a world leader in dish soap. My business mission is to change or rather to inspire consumers to adopt more sustainable consumption habits.”

Anie moves towards Assia Chaala, Team Leader of Policy and Programs at CED, and shakes her hand. Assia Chaala speaks while standing in front of a shelf displaying products from The Unscented Company:

“- The green transition does involve traditional businesses making the shift and reducing their impact on the environment, but it also involves businesses created with environmental issues at the very centre of their business model.”

Assia Chaala and Anie Rouleau are seen looking at new arrivals among the products on the display shelf. Anie Rouleau continues:

“- The Unscented Company is not just about products. I really wanted to start a business with strong values. In truth, they are my values.”

Assia Chaala explains:

“- Our objective at CED is to reach, within three years, a target of $50 million in investments per year in green projects. The Unscented Company’s project is one we adhere to 100% because The Unscented Company has several green aspects to its operations. This includes its ecofriendly products, and also its ecofriendly packaging, the formats it can offer for its products, and this also includes the fact that it does business with local suppliers.”

As Assia Chaala speaks, products from The Unscented Company are seen one by one on the screen to show the packaging for solid products, refill formats, and the BCorp logo.

Anie Rouleau is then seen speaking with one of her employees. The camera then shows her dog, Patch, sleeping on a cushion in the centre of the office. Anie Rouleau continues:

“- 85.6% of my suppliers are within 500 km of our headquarters in Ville-Émard. Twelve percent of my suppliers are also women owned. For me, it is super important to be certified Women Owned. In 2015, we decided to become BCorp certified. As a BCorp-certified business, we use our business to benefit the community.

The camera shows Stephen, Anie Rouleau’s spouse, placing a case of soap in the warehouse. It is understood that the business is also a family business. Anie adds:

- In 2017, Gwyneth Paltrow visited me and wrote about The Unscented Company as being one of her favourite products and she distributed it on her website in the U.S. This is when we felt the company gain momentum. Right after, I was called to do Dragon’s Den in Toronto, and Radio‑Canada’s Dans l’œil du dragon. Following my stint on Dragon’s Den in Toronto, I had the opportunity to meet with Canadian Tire and to sign the largest lifetime contract for my business.

At the same time, the camera shows Stephen having a lively discussion on the telephone. He is seen to be on Canadian Tire’s website and holding the business card of the Canadian Tire accounts director. We return to Anie in front of the mural:

- Funding for a business always has quite a delicate part to it, and when a business is BCorp certified, it is a bit harder to obtain funding from traditional institutions.”

Assia Chaala is seen using a machine that recycles cardboard boxes. She then explains:

“- There are several advantages to doing business with CED in terms of funding, because the contributions that are provided are interest-free, and the repayment period is flexible. It is a bit of patient capital, it enables us to share in the client’s risk, and it also enables the business to attract other funders to the project.”

Images are seen of Assia Chaala playing with Patch in The Unscented Company’s warehouse and Anie Rouleau speaking with some employees, including her husband. Anie adds:

“- CED understood the meaning behind the company, but also my own needs. Thanks to CED’s funding, within two years, not only will we have doubled business sales, but we will be distributed at over 20,000 retail outlets across Canada and the U.S. Today, with a bit of hindsight, I am really proud to see all that has been accomplished since 2016. I am proud to have helped change the standards in my industry for a better future.”

The camera now shows Anie preparing for her interview when Patch surprises her by jumping on the desk in front of her. She bursts out laughing and pets him. The image is replaced by a green screen with the words, “SMEs, contact our business offices to build your green projects” and CED’s web address, “ced.canada.ca.” This is then replaced by a black screen with CED’s corporate signature, followed by another black screen where the Canada wordmark can be seen in white. The Government of Canada’s musical signature is then heard.