Novoloop Raises $11M Series A to Advance Upcycling for Plastic Waste

MENLO PARK, Calif., Feb. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Advanced upcycling startup Novoloop has raised $11 million in Series A financing led by Envisioning Partners with participation from Valo Ventures and Bemis Associates; earlier investors who joined the round included SOSV, Mistletoe, and TIME Ventures.

Novoloop is pioneering the chemical transformation of plastic waste into high-performance chemicals and materials. The company's proprietary process technology, ATOD™ (Accelerated Thermal Oxidative Decomposition), breaks down polyethylene into chemical building blocks that can be synthesized into high-value products. Polyethylene is the most widely used plastic today yet only 9% is recycled and virtually none is upcycled.

The first product based on Novoloop's ATOD process is Oistre™ (OYST-rah), a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) for use in high-performance applications such as footwear, apparel, sporting goods, automotive, and electronics. Oistre is the first TPU made from post-consumer polyethylene waste that matches the performance characteristics of virgin TPUs made from petrochemicals. At the same time, Oistre's carbon footprint is up to 46% smaller than conventional TPUs.

"What really compelled us to lead the investment round is that Novoloop has found product-market fit," said June Cha, Partner of Envisioning Partners. "Novoloop has proven that Oistre has a wide range of applications in the market even at their early stage."

Novoloop's technology can upcycle carbon content found in common plastic waste like grocery bags, packaging, and agricultural plastics that is too low value for material recovery facilities to bale and sell. Instead, the plastics go into landfills or incinerators today. Novoloop's ATOD technology aims to increase commercial demand for waste polyethylene.

"Plastics are not going away anytime soon, so we need to innovate to close the gap between what is produced and what is repurposed. After years of technology development, we're thrilled to announce backing by high-caliber investors and partners to commercialize this much-needed technology," said Novoloop Co-founder and CEO Miranda Wang.

"With this funding, we look forward to completing crucial pilot scale-ups and commercializing our process technology to make a lasting impact. Our team is excited to lead the circular economy revolution for plastics," said Novoloop Co-founder and COO Jeanny Yao.

Novoloop is also announcing the company's new partnership with Bemis Associates, the leader in apparel bonding solutions such as seam tapes, which can be found in high performance outerwear. Together, the companies will introduce Oistre into the Bemis product portfolio as a first step to replace virgin petroleum-based thermoplastic polyurethane.

"We are extremely excited to partner with Novoloop," said Bemis Director of Sustainability Ben Howard. "Novoloop's technology is a major breakthrough for our supply chain. Scaling it will be a huge step in shifting away from virgin petroleum sources and reducing our products' carbon footprints".

Novoloop is currently sampling and taking pre-orders for Oistre 65A, a soft grade polyester TPU for injection molding especially suitable for footwear applications. Higher durometer grades of Oistre TPU will be introduced soon. For more information on the company's product, visit www.oistre.com.

About Novoloop

Novoloop was founded in 2015 to deliver quality chemicals and materials made from plastic waste through their patented, low-carbon upcycling technology process ATOD™. By transforming hard-to-recycle plastic waste into virgin-quality materials, Novoloop offers superior sustainability and performance at competitive pricing. With upcycled product Oistre™, Novoloop provides thermoplastic polyurethane solutions for footwear, sporting goods, automotive and more. To learn more, visit novoloop.com and oistre.com. Contact: media@novoloop.com.

About Envisioning Partners

Envisioning Partners is an impact investing venture capital firm in South Korea. Envisioning Partners focuses on four impact areas: Climate Change, Wellness, Education, and the Future of Work. The firm invests globally, and manages a fund dedicated to climate solutions in industrial and circular economy solutions, sustainable food and agriculture, energy solutions, and carbon-to-value technologies. To learn more, visit Envisioning Partners.

About Bemis Associates

For more than 110 years, Bemis has collaborated with the world's leading brands to design, create and construct cool stuff. Bemis' creativity and innovation in the world of bonding provides inventive ideas that revolutionize the way that adhesives, coatings, tapes, and specialty films are manufactured. They are constantly developing new ways to enhance the performance of their products while delivering sleek aesthetics and lightweight, durable applications. Headquartered in Shirley, MA with offices worldwide, Bemis partners with brands across multiple industries including sportswear, outerwear, intimates, consumer electronics, handbags, automotive, graphics, and beyond. To learn more, visit bemisworldwide.com.

SOURCE Novoloop