SME /  SUSTAINABILITY

By FedEx | First published: June 30, 2023    Updated: April 24, 2024

SuperBee started out as a small business making homemade beeswax wraps in the mountains of Northern Thailand. Today, the social enterprise has expanded to global markets to help combat single-use plastic.

SuperBee started as a five-person team with a vision to make households more sustainable and preserve food with homemade beeswax wraps. Today, it’s a household brand known in kitchens across the world. Inspired by Australian-born founder Antoinette Jackson's grandmother, this homegrown beeswax wrap brand has evolved from a simple kitchen table solution to a thriving small business promoting sustainable household goods across the globe.

Established in Chiang Mai in 2016 and nestled in the picturesque mountains of northern Thailand, SuperBee’s mission is to reduce single-use plastic products by offering eco-friendly and reusable products for the household, such as reusable beeswax wraps and food bags. At the same time, the business functions as a social enterprise, creating opportunities to empower women in Thai communities.

Most employees are women from local villages, many of whom have been with SuperBee from the beginning. Outreach, education and awareness-building is also a priority for SuperBee, and they partner with other ethical businesses and charities to build more sustainable communities. They’ve also been targeting more overseas markets, slowly expanding their online business to target new customers with e-commerce.

Today, SuperBee ships globally from warehouses in Thailand, the US and Europe with FedEx as a fulfillment partner.

Teaming up with a reliable logistics provider to scale

The brand was making steady progress until the pandemic hit. Challenges began to pile up, including the slowing down of orders and overseas shipments being delayed or lost. SuperBee needed a reliable logistics partner and they turned to us for support in 2021.

As well as tapping our expertise in customs clearance and connections to more than 220 countries and territories worldwide, SuperBee partnered with us to leverage innovative delivery options and our comprehensive pickup arrangement.

Since then, the brand has grown fourfold from its humble beginnings. This includes exporting over $390,000 worth of products per order to a supermarket chain in the US.

While SuperBee operates an offline business through wholesale and small retailers, its main sales channel is through e-commerce where close to 80% of all transactions are from overseas customers.

“FedEx offers a comprehensive portfolio of services to support small businesses with e-commerce shipping needs. Because our products are made from the heart, we want our logistics service provider to deliver them with care, so that they arrive safely in the hands of our customers,” said Chomchanach Yanaharn, logistics manager of SuperBee.

“Since we normally ship in large orders to the United States, we need to ensure that the products can clear customs at the destination without any hiccups,” Yanaharn added. “With FedEx, it’s so easy to arrange a pickup, even though we’re located in a remote location. It gives us the flexibility to choose a pickup date and time that is most convenient for us.”

A shared vision for a greener and sustainable future

SuperBee places high importance on promoting women’s empowerment through creating employment in rural areas and offering 20% more than the minimum wage in Thailand.

The brand is also committed to providing a safe and supportive working environment for their employees through family-friendly working hours, proper working conditions, and adequate tools and information on how to live a greener lifestyle.

As an advocate of sustainability, SuperBee donates a portion of its earnings and products to support sustainable projects globally. The brand is also active in promoting ethical business practices through its company blog and social media channels.

SuperBee stands out thanks to their high standards of processes and practices in all aspects of their business, which has led to them qualifying for B-corp certification. They aim to live up to the pledge as stated on their product packaging: ‘these product is hand-crafted with love’.

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