Elcove

Babson College

Industry: Consumer Packaged Goods

Founding Student Name(s): Anastacia Yefimenko

Brief Description of Solution: Elcove is a line of zero-waste and non-toxic home care products. We offer reusable glass bottles as well as compostable refill pouches that have all the ingredients to make the product at home when mixed with water. Simply fill the bottle with water, pour in the pouch, and enjoy the soap of choice that is just as effective as conventional products.

Funding Dollars: $50,000 equity-free from competitions and grants

What led you to launch this venture? My journey began with a personal struggle as I suffered from allergies, which were caused by harmful chemicals in conventional home care products. I found that the products meant to keep homes clean were compromising my health. When I dug deeper, I was shocked to learn that 2.5 billion plastic cleaning product bottles are discarded annually in the U.S. alone, contributing to an escalating environmental crisis. After looking for alternatives that were safe for both my health and the planet and not being able to find any, I decided to create my own solution.

What has been your biggest accomplishment so far with venture? My biggest accomplishment so far has been launching four products on the market in 2023 and having the business be on track to be profitable by the end of this year in 2024. It has been incredible to see the positive response from our customers about how the products I created are helping them solve the same issues I was facing in the past, such as allergic reactions.

How has your business-related major helped you further this startup venture? Studying entrepreneurship at Babson has been incredibly valuable with my venture. I have taken classes that have directly helped my business, such as Grow your Venture, Crowdfunding, and even a course about VC and Private Equity” Each of these courses has helped me learn about different stages of a business and learn how to take a business from an idea to an actual business that is in market.

Which business class has been most valuable in building your startup and what was the biggest lesson you gained from it? The most helpful business class has been Crowdfunding. During this class, I had a chance to learn about crowdfunding and work with a team of other students to launch an actual campaign for my company. This class taught me how to set up a campaign for success, how to launch it, and how to manage the campaign after. I was able to raise funding for my company through this and help scale Elcove with new packaging and products! The biggest lesson I gained from it is the importance of community around a business. Without a strong community and supporters, a business cannot be successful.

What business professor made a significant contribution to your plans and why? I am extremely lucky that so many professors have been kind and supportive along the way. I am forever grateful for all the time that everyone took to help. One of my professors who has been extremely supportive for my entire journey at Babson is Professor Lucy Turner. Professor Turner was my first-year professor at the required Foundations of Management & Entrepreneurship class at Babson. Her support continued after this class. She has been so supportive and has taken time to meet and guide me throughout the journey. Especially during the early stage, her guidance was incredibly helpful. She connected me with others and shared wisdom that helped shape my path!

What founder or entrepreneur inspired you to start your own entrepreneurial journey? How did he or she prove motivational to you? It’s hard to pinpoint just one entrepreneur that helped inspired me to start my own journey because there have been so many. I always knew that I wanted to start my own venture, but the support of so many other founders made that possible. I live in an entrepreneurship dorm on campus with 20 other entrepreneurs who have all inspired me to start and continue. I have been lucky to have mentors that are founders that have inspired me to start. Most of all, both my parents are entrepreneurs and their support and belief in me made me believe that I could do it too.

What is your long-term goal with your startup? My long-term goal with Elcove is for it to be a household name and to change the way we think about cleaning and home care products. We have redesigned the process to be safer for people and the planet and my goal is for us to have a large impact. My long-term goal is for Elcove to be easily accessible to everyone on major shelves across the country and to have a whole line of products for every use in personal and home care!

How has your local startup ecosystem contributed to your venture’s development and success? The local startup ecosystem at Babson and Boston has been huge for Elcove’s development. Babson has so many incredible resources that have prepared me for other opportunities in the greater Boston area and across the country, such as pitch competitions and even the Babson summer accelerator! I’ve also been incredibly lucky to participate in MassChallenge and have met so many incredible mentors through that (as well as Babson that have helped guide me to where I am today)! I wouldn’t be where I am without the incredible support of everybody in the startup ecosystem around me.

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