TARTU — In a groundbreaking move, local 17-year-old Alar has launched a doorstep bottle return service, declaring himself Estonia’s first eco-entrepreneur. Alar came up with the idea after a long sauna session, where he realized he wanted to make a difference while saving his friends from the drudgery of the bottle return queue at Selver.
”I thought, why bother wasting time when you can have the bottles brought to you?” he said, still covered in the smell of freshly burned wood from the sauna. Alar charges €0.10 per bottle collected, claiming this will help combat the grey winter blues and save the planet one plastic bottle at a time.
”It’s a win-win situation! I get rich while saving the earth!”
However, the attempt at eco-revolution has faced hurdles. Many customers reported that Alar often showed up to pick up bottles only to run away giggling when they answered the door. “I thought I could develop a loyal customer base, but he just disappeared like a tourist in the Old Town after dinner,” lamented one frustrated customer.
Despite the chaos, Alar remains optimistic. “I planned to expand to recycling electronics next week—can you imagine how many old chargers are lying around?” he said, eyes beaming at the prospect of more junk to collect.
As of now, it remains unclear how long this ambitious scheme will last, but Alar is taking lessons from the startup scene. With plans to pitch his idea at the next Techstars event in Estonia, he hopes to attract investment from ex-Expats bewildered by Estonian directness.
At press time, local investors were still trying to figure out if investing in a bottle prompt delivery service could actually be a thing.