Raising awareness about the pollution of rivers and seas led an Ecuadorian family to create biodegradable cleaning products that they rely on today

Editor’s note: This story was supposed to be exclusive to our subscribers, but as a contribution to those who aspire to undertake and improve the country’s economy, we offer it open to all our audience.

The seas and rivers of Ecuador are used for waste disposal. It is not surprising to see plastic on beaches and river banks. And under the idea of ​​reducing this environmental contamination, Andrea Torres and her family designed products that are not harmful to the environment.

Together with her father Álex and sister Daniela, Andrea designed cleaning products whose packaging and contents are environmentally friendly. And thanks to Álex’s knowledge of chemical engineering, they were able to create a detergent biodegradable enzyme base and drain plug.

“We realized that there are components that are very expensive and difficult to remove from wastewater, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, which are used to make detergents or soap-based products such as dishwashers, and we began to investigate biodegradable enzymes as alternative to remove nitrogen and phosphorus, and we realized that it is an excellent raw material for the production of products that do not pollute with their use,” says Andrea, 32 years old.

He quit his job to devote himself to selling chili powder and now sells more than 5,000 units a month in Quito

During 2017, they focused on developing these products, measuring efficiency and aroma, but the name was missing and they marketed Hogar Verde, today a recognized company in Quito. “All the formulations were designed by my father, we did the tests and our quality control was always done by the family, my mother, our grandmothers and they tried to remove the stains until the formula was perfected,” recalls Andrea, also the communications director.

A year later, Hogar Verde made the jump to business fairs, a space that helped them introduce themselves and open home delivery locations in 2019.

The goal was to continue to create structure: more products and make them available. And so the two initial products were joined by biodegradable degreaser, dishwasher and hand soap. The latter is promoted by Daniel, Product Manager.

This family was more and more involved and Hogar Verde was not only a product, but also a website and social networks with adviceFor example, how to remove a coffee or rose stain. “We liked it because people started to be more aware of their health, of the planet,” emphasizes Andrea.

Months later, the COVID-19 pandemic arrived and it was a fear for them. However, it ended up being the opposite: peace and increased sales. “It was a big growth for us. Thank God we already had that infrastructure for home delivery, so it didn’t surprise us. That year we moved to the production workshop in Tumbaco”, he says.

On that way, they had more obstacles than usual. “The moment when the product already prevails among people, they realize that they are equal or more effective (than ordinary ones) and that is a super big deal for us, That challenge comes hand in hand with how to market it to communicate and inspire peoplehow it is used,” explains Andrea.

With an investment of 100 dollars and bottles without a logo, Wilfrido García started selling cocktails that allowed him to educate his children, and today they are the source of life and progress of the family

In the period from 2019 to 2020 Hogar Verde records annual sales of 155%.; from the year of the pandemic to 2021, it was 59.33%, and from 2021 to 2022, it was 8.91%. They have eight products on the market, like 60 eco-tablets biodegradable detergent, for 60 washes, $19.68 each; drain opener $18.35; a gallon of liquid hand soap $11; a $6.96 natural toothpaste and even a $5 bamboo toothbrush.

Hogar Verde is present in more than fifteen shops, such as Minka, Gracies Natuals, La Tiendita, Healthyland Market, Vitaleco, Te Quiero Verde, among others, and some are located in Quito, Cuenca, Puyo, Riobamba, Portoviejo. Recently, they managed to enter Megamaxi, Supermaxi and Superaldos in Guayaquil, Esmeraldas, Manta and other cities.

For Andrea, this journey of almost seven years It was an experience, a great pride and a great achievement. “This allowed me to meet my father and sister in a business environment. This relationship, which is always what is required of us, I think works because everyone respects the other’s options and we have well-defined roles when making decisions. And there is a lot of trust in the work of others,” he notes.

She failed to graduate from college, but Fernanda Hidalgo’s love for teaching children led her to create books in Spanish, English, Italian, and even German.

Hogar Verde, except in specialized stores and supermarkets, expect export. “We believe they can reach more people. And the more they use biodegradable cleaning products, the less pollution there will be in our rivers and seas”, he points out and adds that the belief will always be to educate the community.

La Quito believes that motivation is necessary to go far. “Belief that is born from motivation, that’s the thing Get up every day to keep working on that idea, despite every challenge or thanks to those challenges, motivate yourself even more. Because? I think that when someone undertakes, it must be with a very strong and personal motivation, for example, it is for our family and care for others”, Andrea expresses.