In 2001, Szaky enrolled at Princeton University where he met future co-founder of TerraCycle Jon Beyer. The two became good friends and even better business partners as they spent many sleepless nights trying to come up with a business plan for class.
After entering several business plan contests, and winning the majority, the two decided that their plan was worth pursuing. Szaky dropped out of school to start building the business while Beyer stayed to complete college but would remain active within the company, later becoming its CIO. On the verge of bankruptcy, Tom turned down a million dollar business plan prize. The venture capitalist that were supplying the money wanted to move away from the company’s ecological focus. Tom was not willing to sacrifice his dream and so he chose to go it alone.
Two years later, the company moved out of its original, closet digs and into a 20,000 sq. foot factory located in an Urban Enterprise Zone in Trenton, NJ. Like the product, the factory itself is unusual. Purposely covered from the floor to roof in graffiti, the building stands out as a community pillar and landmark. In high production season, Tom’s company provides up to fifty full time jobs to those in the neighborhood that would otherwise not have one.
About TerraCycle:TerraCycle Plant Food™ is the first consumer product made and packaged from trash. TerraCycle uses worm poop to make natural and effective plant foods, and packages them in discarded soda bottles, like the ones collected by The American Red Cross of the Heartlands. Whenever possible, the eco-capitalist company uses discarded materials, such as surplus spray heads and misprinted shipping boxes. TerraCycle products are available at leading retailers such as The Home Depot® and Wal*Mart®; at specialty retailers such as Whole Foods® and Wild Oats®; and at hardware stores including ACE®, Do it Best ® and True Value® and in 2007 will available at Target Stores™. In July 2006, an Inc. magazine cover story crowned TerraCycle, “The Coolest Little Startup in America.”
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