Published by Programme B
Adrian Pereira, a well-known and respected entrepreneur based in Victoria, BC, has announced plans to expand The Eco Pea Company, which currently utilizes three warehouses in the United States, with a new warehouse in Canada.
Pereira and his wife Kelly founded The Eco Pea Company, which makes diapers and baby wipes out of bamboo when one of their children reacted negatively to name-brand diapers and wipes. This led the couple down a journey to create a healthier solution, suitable for babies with sensitive skin, and at once ecologically sound and healthy for the environment.
While Adrian Pereira Victoria has found success in the other sectors, having founded and launched several companies, and participated on the boards of many of Victoria’s most renowned technology firms, the father of three is now focusing his marketing expertise on growing the green Eco Pea Company.
A graduate of the University of Victoria, Pereira has demonstrated the tenacity of his entrepreneurial spirit and passion in many of his past projects, in which his dedication and strategic vision have assisted the growth and expansion of several start-ups that went on to become successful businesses. Today, his entrepreneurial drive and meticulous work ethic have found a new avenue in a business endeavor that is perhaps the one closest to his heart, a company founded to provide healthy alternatives for his own family.
The Eco Pea Company website describes the company as “founded by a rambunctious family of five from the West Coast” that has been “health and environmentally conscious.”
Adrian and Kelly stumbled into this niche business as parents struggling with an infant that was experiencing negative reactions to the chemicals in various brands of disposable diapers and baby wipes. This simple parenting challenge led the couple to begin extensive research on possible solutions and alternatives to commercial diapers and baby wipes. Soon the two embarked on a mission to create “the safest and most eco-friendly diapers and wipes” on the market.
The project took on even more urgency once the couple’s research made them keenly aware of the toxic environmental impact and excessive waste that disposable diapers generate. Upon realizing that regular disposable diapers can take many centuries or longer to decompose, they realized the severity of the problem.
As they began to take stock of how many diapers a baby may go through in a day, multiplied by the months and years that children need to wear diapers, they realized that the mission of their company now extended well beyond finding a healthy alternative solution to calming the irritation of their baby’s skin. At that point, The Eco Pea Company became a passion project, with a mission-focused not only on protecting the sensitive skin of infants and toddlers but also to protect the delicate planet we live on.
“In our quest to make a better diaper for our baby,” states the company website, “we realized we wanted to create a better diaper for the planet…our kids’ planet. Our grandchildren’s planet.”
The couple soon learned that the best material for their plan would be bamboo, a material that in recent years has gained popularity in many industries due to its sustainability, durability, and versatility. Bamboo is a sustainable material that is eco-friendly, easily replenished, and biodegradable.
Bamboo yielded the soft, non-irritating texture that satisfied their concern with protecting their child’s sensitive skin. The couple also looked at the biodegradability of bamboo, as well as its sustainability as an easily replenished crop. The result is a soft, non-irritating disposable diaper that is free of irritating chemicals and fragrances, is 100% biodegradable, and will take only a few months to begin decomposition. To further demonstrate their commitment to environmental protection and sustainability, even the packaging for these diapers is made using more biodegradable material.
The company website also hosts an eco-friendly parenting blog that helps customers find other eco-friendly solutions to common parenting challenges.
In its brief period of existence, The Eco Pea Company has seen unprecedented growth as more and more conscientious parents discover their products. Today, the company is currently marketing their very special, eco-friendly diapers and wipes through three distribution warehouses within the United States, with plans to expand into Canada in the coming months.