MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota — A story is unrolling in Minneapolis, told not in pages but in toilet rolls.
"We are now the toilet paper that keeps selling out on Amazon," said Zoë Levin, founder and president of Bim Bam Boo.
Bim Bam Boo is a tree-free paper brand, based in Minneapolis. The company's eco-friendly, 100% bamboo toilet paper is designed for women's health.
Bim Bam Boo is a formula that's designed to be pH neutral. It's hypoallergenic so it's a skin-safe, body-safe formula and it's the first of its kind to be that," Levin said.
Levin created the product about three years ago out of necessity.
"I have struggled with inflammatory bowel disease and a couple other autoimmune disorders. So one of the first things I did on my journey to wellness was... I looked at my entire life and I was like what chemicals am I surrounded by and how is that potentially creating irritation or inflammation in my body. From there, I designed this product formula," Levin explained.
Bim Bam Boo is lint-free, pH-neutral, hypoallergenic and free from toxic-chemicals.
"It's a pH-neutral formula which is really important for vulva health. You throw off the pH in one direction or another and you can end up with infections, UTIs, yeast, all kinds of really not fun stuff," Levin said.
Levin said the toilet paper is also a more sustainable option, using FSC certified sustainably-sourced bamboo. Levin said the toilet paper is also septic safe.
"Every day in the United States, 27,000 trees are flushed down the toilet. That's essentially like a forest every day," Levin said. "The average tree used for paper pulping takes 27 years... for it to grow. Bamboo takes 2-3 years, the species we use, and produces more cellulose... so more actual material to make the product. So it's really overall way more sustainable."
Bim Bam Boo also has toilet paper "residencies" in bathrooms around the Twin Cities. For the month of April, their toilet paper is in bathrooms at Blooma and Tula Spa.
"It is so important to be more conscious with the products that we are using," said Sarah Longacre, founder and owner of Blooma. Through yoga, barre, childbirth education, wellness and a community of support, Blooma helps moms-to-be, new mamas and their families.
About the partnership, Longacre said, "This is exactly what we're about... supporting the Earth, supporting moms and supporting products and brands that fit with the future."
Bim Bam Boo recently started writing "love notes" to customers by using a typewriter to type messages on their toilet paper. They use the typewriter during pop-up events as a way to introduce customers to the toilet paper and it gives them the opportunity to feel it. Levin likes to say their bamboo toilet paper is "softer than a baby panda."
Levin said she loves hearing from customers, adding, "Those moments remind you that you're not just a company. You're providing so much more than just a product."
A 24 roll box costs $28 on Amazon. Bim Bam Boo is also sold at local co-ops and Kowalskis.