The founding of The Good Roll

How it all began...

Travel back in time with us for a moment, to the days when founders Melle and Sander were still active in the hospitality sector. Nobody and we really mean nobody at all, would have thought back then that they would ever start a toilet paper brand. But sometimes the best ideas emerge from the most unexpected situations.

Melle had a simple dream: to improve the world with something we all use every day. It started when he was commissioned by a major hotel chain to research sustainability in the hotel industry. He was thinking about the usual sustainability issues, such as linen, food waste, and energy consumption. But to his surprise, Melle discovered that huge amounts of toilet paper were being wasted. In fact, guests expect a brand-new roll when they enter their hotel room, resulting in huge amounts of unused toilet paper. After some in-depth research, he started thinking about how to solve this problem.

Our mission

He didn't just want to develop sustainable toilet paper, he wanted to actually help people move forward. Inspired by Earth Water and their motto "You never drink alone", he wondered how cool it would be to produce toilet paper that builds toilets in places where that is not a given. We did not want to bear the stamp of a social or sustainable company, but to show that this approach to business is the most logical option.

Then in 2017, in the basement of a club in Amsterdam, he and Sander sat down to work out the idea. After setting up a small webshop, the first large order arrived from Albert Heijn. The enthusiasm for the brand and its mission to 'build clean and safe toilets for everyone' did not go unnoticed. The colorful designs of our wrappers combined with our social focus made the webshop grow into what it is today!

Social workplace

Besides making an international impact by building toilets in Ghana, steps were also taken in the Netherlands. A social workplace for people distanced from the labor market was opened in Weesp, soon followed by a second, and in March 2021, a third warehouse.

Today, our products are available not only in the Netherlands but also internationally. We can be found in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and, recently, the UK, both online and in physical shops. And that's just the beginning of our ambitious plans!

What originated for Melle and Sander as a desire to make an impact with something as simple as toilet paper ended up creating a movement. A movement that proves that change can be easy! The mix of entrepreneurship and the will to improve the world without too much fuss ensures that we keep your butt soft and make an impact to this day!