The future of cleaning is green

HYGENIC’s natural cleaning products are set to conquer the world. The company has a mission. As far as HYGENIC is concerned, the days where you could find a skull on the back of aggressive cleaning products containing harmful chemicals are over. The world deserves better. The company from Enschede has a ‘next-generation cleaning’ product line with ecologically degradable cleaning products. Green, sustainable and safe are the key words. “Marcel in ‘t Veld, our director, comes from a family of cleaners’, says Joyce Roelofsen, marketeer at HYGENIQ. “The harmful products that he used in the cleaning company were a thorn in his side. He wanted to do things differently. Marcel sold the company and founded HYGENIC in 2012. We now supply a hundred different green cleaning products to hospitals, cleaning companies and the hospitality industry. Individuals can order our products on bol.com, among other places.”

Facilities wholesaler Twepa has six branches, and ‘cleaning’ is just one of them. “Our family business has a range of 55,000 articles”, says Jeffrey Krijgsman, sales manager at Twepa. “Anyone can become a customer of ours because everyone needs something from us. We supply to large businesses in the food, retail, care and service sectors, as well as to individuals.”

Twepa has been looking for an innovative partner and found one in HYGENIQ. The company used to do business with a German cleaning manufacturer. “The great thing about Twente is that companies can easily find each other. You meet each other in clubs and at get-togethers. That is how we met HYGENIC”, says Helmhout. Twepa was looking for a partner with a green label and a focus on sustainability. Krijgsman: “Green is the future. We have been working with this theme for a while now at Twepa. We work with sustainable cardboard and use sugar cane and bamboo for disposables, for example. HYGENIC is, therefore, a suitable partner to us.”

It is essential for a company to set a goal, says Krijgsman. “You have to choose; doing a bit of everything just does not work. We consciously chose to do business with just one partner in the cleaning sector. We are joining HYGENIQ’s actions. These are handed to us on a silver platter, as it were. We bring our own Twepa twist to them, though. It is great for Twepa to have an organisation behind them that thinks along.” The two companies have developed a joint campaign for schools, among other things. “We presented them with a cleaning box. The box was made of grass cardboard and contained four ecological cleaning products. Sustainable through and through. The schools really appreciated this. “Sustainability is ‘top of mind’, we can see that everywhere”, says Krijgsman. However, he believes that sustainability is still being neglected in the cleaning sector. Much can still be achieved, and there is much to innovate. Twepa and HYGENIQ have embarked on this journey together. “We are still in the start-up phase, but the collaboration is already bearing fruit”, says Krijgsman.

HYGENIC, located on the Lenteweg in Enschede East, now employs 40 people. “Our workforce has doubled in just one year. That says enough about how fast we are growing”, says Raymond Witvliet, sales manager at HYGENIQ. “There is a lot of competition in the current market, but there are many producers who only sell sustainable and safe products on the side, just because the market demands it. It is an addition to the toxic cleaning products that they have as their core product. We don’t do that. Green is at the core of everything at HYGENIQ.”

Krijgsman, from Twepa, found that consumers are willing to pay more for sustainable and safe products. “That was not the case ten years ago. A low price was the most important. A green product is cheaper, though, since consumers can use it longer. You do not need big squeezes from the bottle; just a drop is enough. Our account manager uses test materials to demonstrate this to new customers. Our products still require an explanation.”

Roelofsen is very proud that the products from Enschede are now being used at hotel chain Van der Valk. “Van der Valk is a completely Dutch family business, just like HYGENIQ. The fact that they are buying our products now is a great boost to us.”