Verity Packaging

What they do

Verity is revolutionizing the sustainable packaging industry with their commitment to combating the plastic crisis. They have crafted a timeless range of packaging solutions that are plastic-free, modern, and straightforward for brands in the personal care and beauty space.

Moving away from plastic altogether, Verity is transforming the sustainable packaging landscape by using metal options ranging between reusable, hybrid, and fully recyclable solutions. Offering metal packaging elevates a brand and user experience through aesthetics, form, and function, and will actually get recycled at the end of its life.

Led by founder and CEO Kerri Leslie, who has a background in the medical device industry, Verity is making it easy and practical for brands, retailers, and consumers to shift to using sustainable packaging solutions for their products.

As Kerri says, “At Verity, we pride ourselves on performance and style. Our sleek packaging can transform your brand and can be integrated seamlessly with your product portfolio. Every hour of engineering spent creating our products is working towards one goal—a more sustainable future.”

What they stand for

Verity was born out of the shocking statistics that only 9% of the plastic that makes it into a recycling bin actually gets recycled. Aluminum is seven times more likely to be recycled and can be infinitely renewed while other metals, like stainless steel, can withstand a lifetime of use.

Until now, personal care companies have struggled to move into truly sustainable packaging because current options typically sacrifice esthetics or function. While Verity recognizes the efforts of bioplastics, coated cardboard and other greener alternatives striving to do better for our planet, the truth remains that these options are still causing extensive waste and aren’t as recyclable as once thought.

Even with new types of plastics, most labeled “biodegradable” or “compostable” do not break down under natural conditions. Instead, they require chemical additives and processing in highly specialized composting facilities—and end up causing further pollution.

Like many other pollutants, the most devastating impacts persist in the bodies and environments of underinvested and underserved communities (locally and worldwide).

The company name—Verity—came from the fact that Kerri had to dig deep to find the truth about “recyclable” packaging and uncover sustainable packaging production methods.

Verity is changing that by eliminating the need for single-use plastics in the personal care and beauty industry with high-quality metals like aluminum and stainless steel, ensuring that products can be reused and truly get recycled at the end of their lifetime.

By working with sustainable brands like Noniko, a clean natural skincare company, Verity is on its way to make reuse programs accessible to all brands and consumers.

Why we invested

To us, Kerri’s tenacity is clear. To launch a new company would be daunting to many, but doing so in the middle of a pandemic can seem impossible. Kerri’s observation is telling though: “You have to be an optimist to be an entrepreneur.”

Despite being a new company, because personal care industry sales have been going up even during the pandemic, “increased revenues have allowed skincare and beauty companies to explore new forms of packaging in order to respond to demand from environmentally conscious consumers,” says Kerri.

We saw the potential in Verity to make an impactful change in the beauty and personal care industry and the drive that Kerri has as an entrepreneur to keep pushing the needle on environmental products. In our continual mission to use finance as a tool for change, Mission Driven Finance partnered with Verity on a $100,000 loan to complete their first purchase orders when other lenders turned them away.

We also love Verity because Kerri and her team have made mentorship—especially for women—a point of focus. They hire young talent and give new hires permission to take risks and work outside of their functional area to grow their skill set. The team also supports their staff in building a network, particularly through groups that promote sustainability, such as Naturally San Diego.

Verity plans to bring on five new hires annually, helping to create more jobs in San Diego County using diverse and equitable hiring practices.

Verity’s commitment to sustainability and equity earns our respect, and Mission Driven Finance’s investment will support Verity’s current needs, capacity, and operations, which allows Kerri to focus her time on further fundraising to grow her company.

Updates

06/2022—Verity successfully repaid their second loan with Mission Driven Finance.

10/2021—Mission Driven Finance invested a second time in Verity Packaging, which has grown exponentially since our first investment in 2020:

• They have been able to grow their team from three full-time employees to eight.
• In 2020, Verity manufactured 60,000 units, and they are currently on track to manufacture 220,000 in 2021!
  

05/2021—Verity successfully repaid their first loan with Mission Driven Finance.

03/2021—Verity got to pitch in front of angel investors at the San Diego Angel Conference and received at least $75,000 in funding.