Coming from Melbourne, it’s no surprise the cups have been received well within the coffee-crazed culture, but Forsyth says overseas its popularity is also growing.
“Its reception has been varied in different markets, but on the whole it’s been embraced enormously. In Asia, KeepCup is in Korea, Japan, China and Taiwan and these markets are growing,” she says.
In terms of business competition, Forsyth says there are now other products on the market, but KeepCup has maintained its unique-appeal.
“There have recently been some new reusable cups come on the market, but we’ve designed one really fit for the speciality coffee industry.”
KeepCups are specifically designed to be appropriate for the coffee industry, with their dimensions determined to fit under the coffee machines.
Forsyth, along with her brother, enlisted the help of industrial designers Cobalt Niche to give the cups a unique, fashionable look, but it’s the ability for individuals to design their own cup Forsythe believes distinguishes her cups from others like it.
“You can really individualise them and this makes them fun to reuse and they can be a part of yourself. We were coming up with the name and working with the graphic designers at the start. We knew they needed to be fashionable, an accessory you want to drink your coffee out of,” she says.
Forsyth is currently working on plans to expand KeepCup’s product line within the speciality coffee industry.
“There are some plans afoot, but they’re all within the speciality coffee field. We’re working on another product made from a different material and something more suitable for cold beverages,” she says.
Each day, Forsyth monitors the brand on social media and looks at web traffic and advertisement hits.
“We have Google Analytics, so we’re constantly looking at the website and analysing who is coming there and what they’re looking at. We also monitor what they’re looking at on Instagram, Twitter and have a database of 30,000 subscribers,” she says.
Despite trying to leave work on time, Forsyth’s day almost inevitably ends with “a flourish of people” asking questions.
Forsyth either finishes at 3.20pm or 5.30pm, depending on if she’s collecting her kids from school.
When she gets home she’s a normal mum – she cooks dinner and sits down to watch Fireman Sam with her kids.
“I also take the kids to after school activities, tennis and piano, play dates, that kind of thing.
“Then I’m cooking dinner, reading stories, bathing kids and putting them to bed and then I sit down and watch mindless TV.”
Like many who lead a busy lifestyle, Forsyth finds “mindless” TV a good way to relax while doing other activities.
“Shows are designed that way, these days you can watch them with only half your attention span focused on what you’re watching.”
Of all the programs on offer, Forsyth favours Friday night crime shows on the ABC.
But she finds it hard to completely switch off, saying “then I open the computer like a loser and do more work”.
“You have to train yourself to turn off and you do have to let a few balls drop and kick them under the couch. It’s a matter of working out what isn’t going to work and letting it go,” she says.
When asked about her heroes, Forsyth says “they’re all close to home”.
She looks up to her family – her parents, husband, brother, and her friends.
In 10 years, Forsyth says “we may have done ourselves out of business”.
“We’re just going to keep doing what we’re doing; we want to be known as the brand that brought about the demise of the disposable.
“In 10 years there could be no more disposable cups. There are plenty of opportunities out there for getting rid of single use items.”
Her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs is to make sure their product is “something it’s worth the world having”.
“Be committed to what you’re doing and believe in the product because you have to be able to sell it. Everyone I speak to, I’m trying to sell our message in one way or another,” she says.
