- 10/06/2026
- Interview
- Women in the packaging industry
“We Don’t Need New Packaging, But a New System”
Returning cosmetics bottles through existing reverse vending machines and refilling them in future: Heilbronn-based start-up reo is testing how existing structures involving retailers, logistics providers and brand owners can be connected. In this Women4Packaging interview, founder Steffanie Rainer discusses the initial findings from the pilot phase, the planned regular operation and the experiences that have shaped her entrepreneurial journey
Written by Alexander Stark
Since the end of October 2025, reo has been testing the return of empty cosmetics packaging through existing reverse vending machines in retail stores. What stage has the pilot project reached, and what have you learned so far?
We are now in the final month of our pilot phase. Since the end of October 2025, we have been testing the system in 28 stores: 18 Kaufland stores in Munich and Heilbronn and ten VollCorner organic supermarkets in Munich. Around 5,000 bottles from our brand partners, including Kneipp, lavera, Sante and Logona, have been labelled for the project. Customers who return an empty bottle through a reverse vending machine receive 29 cents.
The most important finding is that customers understand the system immediately because it is so simple. Everyone knows the way to the reverse vending machine. At the beginning, the machines still had some difficulties recognising the bottles, but we resolved these issues together with the manufacturers TOMRA and Sielaff. That is exactly what a pilot project is for.
How will the system work during regular operation?
Purchase: The customer buys her shampoo or shower gel as usual, regardless of where she shops. The bottle carries our purple circle and a code.
Return: The empty bottle is placed in a reverse vending machine, where it is recognised. We can already see that bottles purchased from other retail partners are being returned to Kaufland. This shows that it is an open system rather than one tied to a single retailer.
Logistics: The retailer collects the bottles and returns them through the existing empty-container logistics system, just like drinks crates.
Cleaning: The bottles are not yet being cleaned, but the cleaning process has been prepared. Initial tests have been completed, and we know that we can meet the standards required for cosmetics packaging.
Refilling: In future, the brands will refill the bottles before returning them to retailers.
reo acts as the data platform and coordinator. We do not build washing facilities or reverse vending machines; we connect the infrastructure that is already in place. During regular operation, each bottle is to be uniquely identifiable by means of a GS1 DataMatrix code. This will allow us to know where it is, how many times it has circulated and when it needs to be removed from the system. It also provides the basis for the digital product passport that will be required under the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.
You grew up in a medium-sized family business. How did this environment shape your own path as an entrepreneur, and which experiences have proved particularly helpful?
I grew up around a metal stamping company that handled call-off orders for the automotive industry. You become familiar with every stage of the operation and quickly learn how to understand processes, establish them and make them efficient.
The second formative experience was the refill station I built at the time and the many conversations surrounding it. That taught me that you cannot simply change existing processes. Anyone who starts overturning procedures that have been optimised over years or decades will never bring about change. You have to proceed step by step and always build on what is already there. That is precisely the principle behind reo today.
How did the idea for reo emerge, and when did you realise that it should become a company?
The idea came from my own everyday life. As a student with a young child, I wondered how we could improve the situation, given all the packaging that ends up as waste after a single use.
I initially did everything wrong with the refill stations. But that is exactly how I learned what matters: building on existing processes and making implementation as easy as possible.
We realised step by step that it would become a company, through the support of Campus Founders and now through the trial with Kaufland. The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation will affect everyone, and that is why reo is needed. We do not need new packaging; we need a new system. The dual systems have had their day.
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