Cloversoft: Asian tissue manufacturer invests in the production of paper with bamboo fibers

In order to produce consumer goods such as toilet paper and tissues that are ecologically correct, executives Angela Sim and Lynn Yeo, founders of Cloversoft, invested in bamboo as a raw material.

The company was born in 2014, after its founders left their jobs as directors at an investment bank to dedicate themselves to a sustainable company.

After a study, bamboo was chosen as an input because it is a fast-growing plant that does not use chemicals in its cultivation, contributing to the environment.

“Brown bamboo tissue products are durable and sturdy,” says Angela Sim, co-founder and CEO, citing a two-year regeneration period for the treelike grass – faster than wood.

Cloversoft also only uses cruelty-free, vegan and eco-friendly raw materials. In its products, no artificial scents, colors, alcohol, chlorine, or other chemicals that might harm the consumer were included.

At first, the product was not so well received by local distributors. “Many believed our products were unsafe. We had aunties questioning why we were supplying such dirty tissue paper,” says Sim, referring to the brownish color of the product, which is made from chemically unbleached fibers.

The duo remained firm in their mission of educating customers, which had an effect, as distributors in the region soon approached them to discuss partnerships. In its first year, Cloversoft’s products were already found on the shelves of the largest supermarket chain in Brunei (a small Asian country) and, in the second, in the elegant rooms of ecofriendly resorts in the Maldives.

Cloversoft’s first year of business resulted in sales totaling six figures, and currently their numbers are in the millions.

Its main customers come from Malaysia, Brunei, Cambodia, Myanmar and Taiwan. By the end of the year, three more countries will be added to this list: Indonesia, Vietnam and the USA.

To continue promoting the purchase of environmentally friendly products, even with rising inflation, the company kept prices low by increasing the number of minimum orders, selling packages and negotiating raw material costs.

Going forward, Cloversoft aims to become the largest Singapore-based fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company with branches worldwide, providing safe, eco-friendly, plant-based products with fair prices.