Putting money where your mouth is – launching the Fongky Toothbrush

Entrepreneur and Business Owner Gavin Fong came up with a simple idea with the potential to have a big impact. Wiri Business Association sat down for a chat to get the heads up on the Fongky toothbrush, getting a handle on product design and the plan to reimagine the oral care industry.

85% of oral care waste – that’s toothbrushes, dental floss and toothpaste tubes – end up in landfill. With over 5 million people in New Zealand, replacing toothbrushes on average 4 times a year, that works out to be 20 million toohbrush waste going to landfill per year.

This is where Gavin Fong, creator of the Fongky toothbrush and owner of Wiri based-business Pluspac, had his lightbulb moment.

‘I was brushing my teeth with my daughters and then I could see that my toothbrush is due for a replacement. I looked at the handle and I thought, ‘This is crazy. The handle’s still really good quality. Why are we throwing this away every three months? Surely there must be a better solution for this’.

And the idea for Fongky was born. Fongky is on a mission to reimagine the oral care industry and look to eliminate oral care waste from landfill. The Fongky toothbrush has just been launched to market – it’s a sustainable, affordable and reusable toothbrush handle with replaceable heads.

Creating a product that looks to close the plastic recycling loop was important to Gavin.

‘The handle is made from 100% recycled plastic. The packaging is made out of FSC certified paperboard and is also curbside recyclable. The bristles are nylon bristles with a tapered trim that are charcoal infused’.

The process of coming up with an idea, design and product development has occurred over the last two years and has been an interesting journey for Gavin.

‘I’ve had several mentors, including Business But Better mentors and an industrial designer. They gave a lot of really good advice about the look and the feel of the product and what would appeal in the market. We also had some feedback from Wiri Business Association, KP Communications and Empower Your Social on website and marketing which has also been helpful’.

‘It’s taken several iterations and finding the right manufacturer, however now we have landed at the right spot’.

Being a business owner of a plastics manufacturing business that produces recyclable plastic trays has provided Gavin with invaluable knowledge and connections.

‘I’m involved in external groups that focus on sustainability and waste and I’ve been able to use that knowledge and experience and turn it into practice. I know what the limitations are with the New Zealand waste system and I understand the waste hierarchy’

And what’s in the name you might wonder? Gavin needed to find something that is catchy and original.

‘Originally we had come up with the name Toothly. We planned to trademark the name and Toothly was too closely aligned with toothbrushes and too difficult to trademark’.

‘We needed to find something more unique. We used name generators but nothing really stuck. It was over drinks with friends which the idea of using my surname came about’.

Gavin has ambitions of taking the Fongky toothbrush to the wider world in the future. And once Fongky takes off, there will be no stopping them.

‘Our short-term plan is to launch in New Zealand and Australia. We are going to start with e-commerce and then look to get our range into retail stores. In the long term, we are aiming for the international market’.

‘Once we get bigger, we’ll be looking into recycling of the replacement toothbrush heads. We’re already thinking about what the next of product will look like’.

How amazing it would be to help save 20 million toothbrush waste to landfill each year. If you would like to get behind Gavin’s sustainable Fongky Toothbrush, you can buy from the Fongky website: https://fongky.co.nz/