Ridwell, the Seattle startup that collects plastic and other hard-to-recycle items from consumers, keeps growing its footprint across the U.S. The company recently expanded beyond the home pickup bins where it got its start with a new mail-in service that has already attracted about 20,000 users in recent months.
It is also reeling in more investment. A new SEC filing reveals the company has raised $15 million in fresh cash. Ridwell CEO Ryan Metzger declined to comment on the filing. Metzger, a former director at Madrona and Zulily, told GeekWire that the mail-in service has grown 鈥渞emarkably,鈥� helping Ridwell extend its reach to 130,000 customers in all 50 states.
Customers can recycle multi-layer plastic such as bags for chips or candy wrappers, as well as plastic film, which includes grocery bags and bubble wrap, by packing it all in a bag provided by Ridwell. They schedule a home pickup through Ridwell鈥檚 integration with the U.S. Postal Service and then track their garbage鈥檚 recycling journey online.