By Kathy Chouteau
Vericool, Inc., an East Bay company that manufactures environmentally-friendly packaging and was founded by a Richmond native, has just closed on a $19.1 million in Series A Preferred Stock financing.
The funding closed in late March and will be applied to meeting the major demand for Vericool’s “patented, market-leading products and increased business by customers across industries, including food service and pharmaceutical,” according to a statement by the company.
Vericool specializes in replacing traditional packaging materials that pollute the environment with its products made from 100 percent recycled paper fibers and other plant-based materials.
Darrell Jobe, CEO of Vericool, called the closing of the company’s equity financing a “transformative event for Vericool [that] solidifies us as the industry leader in sustainable thermal technology.”
“Our cost-effective, patented products outperform polystyrene and can be used for many applications and customers. This new capital enables us to rapidly penetrate and support the exploding market for these environmentally-friendly solutions,” he added.
Jobe has an inspiring story. After dropping out of school in 8th grade and overcoming various struggles, including homelessness, he persevered to land a sales job with a packaging products distributor and attained success in that career. In 2015, Jobe went on to found his own company after noting the dearth in environmentally-friendly packaging products.
Vericool is headquartered in Livermore; learn more about the company here.
