NEXE Innovations Inc (TSX-V:NEXE, OTC:NEXNF) president Ash Guglani talked with Proactive about the company’s growing partnership with EKOCUPS, a major US-based Amazon seller.
He emphasized that this collaboration marks a significant step for Nexe as it strengthens its recurring revenue in the US coffee capsule market.
Proactive: So, another news release from the company today talking about more recurring business. As far as this company called EKOCUPS that we've talked about in the past—this is really the pathway for the company into the US.
Ash Guglani: Yeah, absolutely. Look, I mean, we have a good growing relationship with EKOCUPS know, they're giving us more SKUs. They've got quite a few SKUs. So, this is a good partnership for us in the US. You know, they’re one of the larger Amazon sellers. They sell completely online.
So, again, it's a different audience for Nexe. But, you know, it puts us in the US, where I think about 80% of the coffee capsules are consumed. So, happy to be working alongside them and happy to be booking some recurring revenue from all the partnerships we've announced today.
Tell me a bit about some of the feedback you're hearing from EKOCUPS and what brought them to this decision.
You know, I think EKOCUPS was really about sustainability. I think, like a lot of people, they’ve been focused on recyclability. And I think they're starting to realize recycling doesn't work, like everyone else. You needed the right compostable technology. And I think we have it.
So, you know, the fact that we have a compostable capsule that can hold 13 grams of coffee—I think that really sets us apart from everyone. But, you know, they're obviously having good feedback because they continue to expand their SKU count with us.
So, I think you'll continue to see them expand their SKU count with us. And I think it's going to be a really strong partnership for 2025 and beyond.
I want to pick up on one thing you said there about the amount of coffee within the pod. That's an important differentiator between your company and some others that are attempting to do what you're doing. The fact that it increases the coffee volume per pod—maybe explain why that's so key.
Let’s say this. I mean, what we have is a pod that you get 13 grams of coffee, and because of some of the IP around our capsule. But the bigger part is, you know, we've spent our time to really understand our capsule and what we're able to do on the extraction side to actually make sure that you get a cup of coffee, and it actually mimics more of a pour-over than just your standard K Cup.
That's really been key. So, it’s not just, you know, putting a little bit of a bigger filter in there. It’s some of the components within that capsule that allow us to get more volume, which also allows us to get better extraction as well.
So, like I think I’ve said multiple times in some of our interviews, it’s great to have a compostable capsule that’s great for the world, but it’s even better if the coffee tastes amazing.
Quotes have been lightly edited for clarity and style