Crowdfunding now: algae hats and insect pet food

Storied Hats only set out to raise £3.5K on Kickstarter, but it’s now reached an impressive £17K – with a while left to go. “We started Storied Hats two years ago because we couldn’t find quality hats, made from sustainable materials, in a range of designs without aggressive branding”, say founders Zach and Cameron.

The brand uses coffee grounds, cactus, algae biomass, banana fibres and other naturally wonderful materials to make its hats. Storied has sold over 10,000 hats to date. Inspired by Mother Earth, designs range from Forest Sky and Desert Sunset to The Explorer, and promise built-in odour and sweat protection.

As much as we all love our pets, it’s impossible to deny their environmental impact. Could this be the solution? UK brand Percuro is currently raising funding for its insect-based pet food on Seedrs. It’s under £30K short of its £560K target, with over a month to go.

Built for ‘conscious pet parents’, Percuro wants to move away from environmentally problematic livestock farming – and towards high-quality protein with a significantly smaller environmental footprint. And apparently this insect-fuelled food tastes good too. In a peer group two bowl test, 9 out of 10 dogs preferred Percuro food.

dooo is on a mission to shake up the £8B UK hair and beauty industry – and it needs your help to get there. The self-described ‘Uber for hair’ is overfunding its £50K target on Crowdcube. With this cash, it plans to develop native mobile apps, build out its marketing PR, and pay staff wages.

dooo connects stylists and clients via its mobile platform; it offers a fully portable set up for stylists on the go, and a hub and training centre where clients can hang out. The average salon takes 40-60% commission per haircut, but dooo will only take 20%, meaning it’s a good deal all round.