From Grape Waste to Sustainable Sneakers: How Viola Weller Built VLACE into a Profitable Fashion Startup
Volume #9 of "Happy Bootstrapping" Newsletter - sustainable & bootstrapped e-commerce
Innovative materials from fruit waste, a European production chain, and a profitable business model without external investors – that's the success formula of VLACE.
In this interview from episode 120 the Happy Bootstrapping Podcast, founder Viola Weller shares how she built her sustainable sneaker startup that produces vegan shoes from grape, orange, apple, and even coffee waste, causing 69 percent less CO2 emissions than conventional leather production.
From Idea to First Prototype
The business idea emerged during an internship in London when Viola, between her bachelor's and master's degrees, met a manufacturer of pineapple leather. Fascinated by this material, she couldn't let go of the idea during her master's program. "My master's degree coincided with COVID, which meant I was mostly at home and had a lot of time for research," she explains. She used this time to learn more about sustainable materials.
Finding suitable manufacturers proved challenging. Viola had to travel to Portugal in person and literally knock on doors. After numerous rejections, the breakthrough came when a large manufacturer referred her to a family business with just 25 employees – a stroke of luck that remains a key pillar of the company today.
The Product and Its Unique Material Cycle
VLACE sneakers consist of about 80 percent "grape leather," complemented by details from other plant materials. Waste from Tuscan vineyards is finely ground and mixed with recycled materials. This mixture is "baked" at 150 degrees until a leather-like material emerges.
"Can you imagine, calfskin costs about 3-4 euros per meter and my grape leather costs around 50 euros. So it's an enormous difference, which is why we have to charge the price we do in order to grow profitably."
The materials come from Italy, while the manufacturing takes place in Portugal. This European production chain reduces transportation routes to about 4,000-4,500 kilometers per sneaker and enables faster response times for problems or new designs.
Business Model and Bootstrapping Strategy
Viola's financing strategy is a prime example of clever bootstrapping. The first collection was completely financed through pre-sales. "I set up a Kickstarter campaign as well as pre-orders in my online shop, and only after I had sold 500 pairs of sneakers through pre-orders did I go into production."
Currently, VLACE offers two shoe models in 13 different color variations and employs a team of five. Interestingly, the business initially developed more strongly in the B2B sector. The ratio has now balanced to 50:50 between B2B and D2C sales, with direct-to-consumer sales growing significantly since the appearance on "Die Höhle der Löwen" (German Shark Tank) in September 2023.
Marketing and Collaborations as Growth Drivers
Instead of paid advertising, Viola focused on PR, regional newspapers, and a strong presence on LinkedIn. "You really shouldn't underestimate regional newspapers. They really have a strong impact," she emphasizes and refers to the "trust factor" that local media in particular convey.
A key to success was strategic collaborations with established brands like Innocent, Trigema, Breuninger, and Tchibo. These partnerships provided the young company with not only credibility but also valuable reach without a large marketing budget.
"I said to myself, I need to approach companies whose values align with VLACE to gain marketing momentum. So I actively went into acquisition to find companies that would want to work with me."
Learnings and Challenges
The biggest challenges for Viola were finding manufacturers, pre-financing, and building brand awareness without a large budget. But these hurdles led to creative solutions such as pre-sales and B2B partnerships.
Viola's most important learnings:
Build a network: "I would advise anyone who wants to start a business to find someone who is already much further along and regularly sit down with them."
Start small: The example of the shoelaces she sold before VLACE shows how important it is to gain experience with a lower-risk product.
Develop resilience: "I'm becoming more relaxed month by month because you realize something always goes wrong. But the world doesn't end because of it."
Be present in person: Personal contact with manufacturers and partners has proven to be irreplaceable.
Today, VLACE faces the challenge of growth - more manufacturers are being integrated and new products like bags are being developed. Despite the success on "Die Höhle der Löwen," Viola remains true to her philosophy: "VLACE runs profitably and can grow on its own."
Happy Bootstrapping is a German podcast where I interview bootstrapped founders, indie hackers, and solopreneurs about their startup journeys. Over the years, I've connected with many successful entrepreneurs who have built e-commerce shops, SaaS platforms, mobile apps, content businesses, or hybrid models.
Furthermore I am a bootstrapper myself and growing my DevOps-as-a-Sercice and Web Operations Company “We Manage”.