Misha Vitels from Earth Brands

Entering into the double digits now, a big milestone for the podcast, what better way to celebrate than to have a big man with an even bigger dream: Mr Vitels, with Earth Brands, and his goal to take down the plastic, red solo cup that plagues college campuses across the nation. Mr Vitels and his Co-Founder started this company in 2021 in his junior year at Williams College, where they were star varsity tennis athletes. A tough start for a party accessory company, Covid was a big challenge for the young duo but they persevered. Reaching out to Williams Alumni, and emailing every angel investor on Linkedin, they eventually landed their first investor – Mark Cuban. From there, it wasn’t long before they took off. Their first fraternity was at Cornell, but they quickly spread to other campuses. Becoming the official partner of Barclay center, and starting Earth Brands Alliance, an effort that sells Earth cups for 3¢, demand took off in 2024. Moving from their garage with just 60,000 cups, to opening an entire production facility in Kansas, in a matter of years, their takedown of the red solo cup is almost tangible. The environment isn’t contained to just college campuses, though, so expansion has brought them to other areas. Now found in cafés, homes, and restaurants, Earth Brands has one thing still to do – break the international barrier and really take over the Earth. Who knows what’s in store for the future – solo cups will go the way of the cassette player – but wherever the future of sustainability is, Mr Vitels will be leading it.