The BamBox

The Problem

Takeout food is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Meal options seem endless while scrolling through the Uber Eats and DoorDash apps. The convenience is unmatched to cooking for yourself or even sitting down at a restaurant. However, we often do not consider the environmental impact from the thousands of plastic utensils, boxes, and bags sent to the landfill. Many of these items are not recyclable due to food contamination.

For Start-Up Fundamentals class, my project group aimed at alleviating some of this burden with a sustainable container option. We met with employees from several takeout restaurants on the University of Pittsburgh campus to gain insight into their purchasing habits, customization preferences, and typical assembly regarding takeout supplies. These businesses included Mario’s Oakland, Divvy Coffee and Buns, Pizza Italia, and Roots. Their feedback conveyed to us that their customers expressed a desire for sustainable takeout packaging options. The manager at Divvy told us that they purchase containers with their logo on them for a small upcharge. We used this information to craft our solution. 

Our Solution: The BamBox

Our team laid out some goals for our potential solution. It needed to be sustainable, durable, and customizable. Bamboo is a fast-growing resource that is biodegradable, can be ethically sourced, and does not contain any bleach or toxins. We constructed the shape of the box with a handle to eliminate the need for a plastic bag to carry the food. Additionally, we added the option of a logo to differentiate ourselves from competitors who also use bamboo to make takeout containers. We understand that a collapsible design like a pizza box allows for easy, compact shipping, so we integrated a foldable construction into our model.

Takeout food container alternatives

The BamBox

(Note: the product was never physically constructed, only designed virtually)

How Does It Solve the Problem?

  • The BamBox is a sleek and modern design that is biodegradable in a very short time. It is an eco-friendly substitute for traditional plastic containers that pollute our planet.

  • It allows for quick and easy internal cleaning of the box for a longer life cycle compared to single-use plastic alternatives.

  • It is more structurally stable than paper, while also maintaining food integrity

  • It allows companies to show a sustainable image to their customers and increase brand recognition with the laser engraved logo

Business Model

Following the Business Model Canvas, the team outlined some operational guidelines and logistics.

Cost Structure

Bamboo is a natural resource that can be grown in a variety of environments rapidly. It doesn’t require much work to maintain, nor does it need pesticides and irrigation. However, the cost of bamboo is about $0.25 higher than plastic per unit, so we needed to provide benefits that offset this cost.

  • The BamBox offers redundant advertising for takeout restaurants that serve their food in it, via the personalized logo option. When customers of those establishments wash, reuse, and carry their Bambox to work or school, they are acting as a walking billboard.

  • The BamBox is genuinely a sustainable solution. No greenwashing here! With minimal resource inputs, reduced habitat destruction, and excellent carbon absorption, the BamBox is no match for paper and plastic. Businesses that highly value sustainability and have the means to make a switch may be swayed to do so.

  • Styrofoam and plastic can leave your food soggy and cold. Our research on the properties of bamboo shows that it’s effective at maintaining food integrity. This leads to an all-around better food experience and can potentially draw in glowing reviews for your business.

Revenue and Distribution

Online Retail:

The Bambox website would offer the option to upload a restaurant’s logo so that we can engrave it onto the box. We would then deliver the food box via parcel service and the restaurant owner pays for the BamBox itself, the optional logo engravement, and the delivery.

Department Stores and Restaurant Depots:

Restaurant owners could buy the plain, non-customized BamBox at these locations. In this case, we would sell and ship the food box to these stores and they would pay us for the amount they ordered.

Subscription:

This service would cost the restaurants a recurring fee and offer them a weekly or monthly supply of BamBoxes. The restaurant can rely on a steady supply of food containers, while we obtain a reliable revenue stream. This would also allow us to plan approximately how many boxes we would need to produce within the next months.

Following our research, ideation, and business model construction, we wrote a detailed report and presented our idea to the class. The team received an A+ on the project.