Better World Books draws up $4.5M for textbook rescue service
San Francisco-based Better World Books looks a bit like a philanthropic mission: The company saves old textbooks from the landfills, selling them cheaply through its online store and buying carbon credits to offset emissions from shipping.
However, Better World is a for-profit venture, and earned over $16 million in revenue last year. The company says it has also saved 6,500 tons of books from going to landfills and bought 2,400 tons of carbon offsets.
Good Capital provided $2.5 million of the total funding from its Social Enterprise Expansion Fund, while 18 private investors gave the remaining $2 million. Better World is based in San Francisco, Calif. and says it employs 160 people.
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About the Author, Chris Morrison
Chris Morrison writes about cleantech and environmental issues for VentureBeat, with occasional forays into gaming and semantic technology. He got his start writing about tech for Business 2.0 magazine, but quickly realized new media was the ticket when that institution closed its doors in 2007. Chris has also covered public equities and regulatory issues. He originally hails from southern Virginia, graduated from Evergreen State College in Washington, and now lives in San Francisco.