Every now and then we get to hear an inspiring story that’s worth being shared with the world. In the intensely competitive world of international trade, there are a few entrepreneurs who understand their responsibility towards the planet, who believe that sustainable growth is the only way forward and who invest in extensive research to find ways to create high-demand and sought after recycled products. One such story of “best-out-of-waste” is from our remarkably gifted gold member, Mr. Michel Goldbach.
When Goldbach noticed large amounts of eucalyptus leaves separated from twigs before being sent to the world famous Aalsmeer Flower Auction by a friend, who owns the largest Eucalyptus plantations in Europe in Portugal; he was quick to wonder what happens to the leftover/rejected leaves. When the idea to recycle the leaves came up, a new business was born. “Using a handful of leaves and one liter water, we started distilling the leaves, first to prove a point and then to lay down the foundation of a business that took two years to grow.”
Adding further, Goldbach says – “So that’s how the whole thing started. Let’s just say it was our inspiring moment of sustainable business growth.”
The global Eucalyptus essential oil market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.1% to US$181.205 million in 2024, a market estimate report suggests. Its application in food flavours, in perfumes, aromatherapy along with pharmaceuticals and home cleaning products makes it a popular and in-demand commodity. It is also a trending commodity with demand for Eucalyptus oil for skin, Eucalyptus in showers etc.
Since the purest form of Eucalyptus essential oil containing high concentration of Eucalyptol was most in demand, Mr. Goldbach began operations by setting up the second distillery in The Netherlands, under the company Dutch Essentials B.V. Showcasing a range of essential oils including cold pressed orange oil, the company is now looking to increase production.
The objective
The primary objective of the company was to expand business by generating enough revenue to take up large orders for Eucalyptus oil and essential oils. The real roadblock was finding buyers regionally and globally. From the very beginning, Mr. Goldbach maintained that sustainable growth of his business was paramount to him –“we are distilling the leaves in Portugal and the steam is also from our own water source so we are not disturbing the ecosystem and then we ship the crude oil which is not pure enough to our distillery in The Netherlands and here with the second distillation, we obtain a very nice, very pure Eucalyptus oil.”
The challenge
Since the product Goldbach deals in comes under the niche category, finding buyers for small orders as an essential oil manufacturer turned out to be more cumbersome than he imagined. Despite being in touch with big clients, handling orders was a challenge, and his company needed the backup of successful sales to take up biggest orders.
“We had one international client who is very big. Since we’re affiliated with the biggest Eucalyptus plantation in Europe, these companies have high expectations from us. In order to process large volumes of orders, we needed kosher, halal, SHC for sustainable wood, UEBT for ethical buying trading, bio certificates and all of these certificates which will make us the only essential oil suppliers in the world to conduct business while holding all these certifications.”
The framework
When Michel Goldbach joined go4WorldBusiness, his first and only B2B portal experience up until then, the decision was met with an assurance for success, a promise that we kept. The assigned Relationship Manager, with the help of internal team members went out of the way to look for global buyers of such a niche product. Within a week, we had multiple potential buy leads which were handed to Mr. Goldbach.
We also wanted to make sure that Mr. Goldbach is well versed with the portal and regular communication with him was the key to helping him find more business.
“My experience is quite well, the platform is very user friendly, whether it’s for a buyer or supplier and it is a very good tool to do international business and the fact that I get calls from you guys for providing assistance, is just amazing,” Goldbach said, smiling.
It did not take him long to find his first serious buyer and that too from a region he did not expect.
“On the portal, we got lot of leads and clients and we’re handling a lot of quotations and messages and quite recently, I sent a sample of eucalyptus oil to a buyer in Trinidad and Tobago which is on the other side of the route and i would say normally we would not have found this lead. But through this website, we were able to and i think it is very encouraging for our business.”
The Results
With the help of his dedicated Relationship Manager and support staff that’s always available, Mr. Goldbach managed to successfully close the deal with two buyers of Eucalyptus and essential oils.
While Dutch Essentials B.V. await the certifications necessary to process diverse orders in essential oils, the groundwork for taking up such orders has been laid down.
Afterword
The steady and impressive rise of Dutch Essentials as Eucaluptus oil manufacturer and Essential oils supplier in European and global market is proof enough that even if you have a small team, with the right resources, it is possible to find genuine buyers and fetch big orders.
When asked what advice he would like to give to other budding entrepreneurs, Goldbach was quick to respond – “I would say, the best advice is to never give up. We started this company in such humbling circumstances and now we have two facilities and a range of wholesale buyers. So in the developmental phases like this, you will find a lot of problems and difficulties, and it’s very easy to say – ‘ok leave it, I’m not going to continue with this’, but then the never-say-die attitude is the key.”
Those are words to live by. Thanks for your trust in us, Mr. Goldbach. We wish you great success.
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