When Ultropia Co-Founders Amy Swanson and Cody Birkland set out to revolutionize the laundry space, their path was anything but conventional. What began as a small-scale university project aimed at rethinking how clothes could be washed and dried turned into a thriving business focused on energy-efficient industrial laundry solutions. Along the way, the team’s tenacity, customer discovery process, and willingness to continuously adapt have been key drivers of their progress.
Ultropia uses ultrasonic high-frequency waves to clean and dry laundry; the ultrasonic technology works faster and uses less water and energy than traditional washing machines and dryers. Swanson and Birkland were confident that this technology had strong commercialization potential, offering both sustainability benefits and meeting a market need. However, Ultropia’s first product—an ultrasonic home washer and dryer model designed for consumers seeking a compact, sustainable option—wasn’t resonating with their intended customers.
“At first, we were building the product we wanted,” says Swanson. “Then we realized we had to talk to people and understand what they needed.”
This is a common challenge for entrepreneurs who are just starting out—beginning with a technological innovation and looking for a problem to apply it to, rather than first validating the problem in the market. This mismatch often leads to wasted resources at a critical stage of startup development. Swanson and Birkland had a product, but they needed to determine whether a market existed before achieving product-market fit. This meant diving into customer discovery to identify exactly who their customer might be.
Spoiler alert: It wasn’t who they expected.
Pitch Competitions Can Provide Both Funding and Guidance
Over roughly six months in 2021-22, Swanson and Birkland entered more than 20 pitch competitions, winning cash prizes in 13. That slew of pitch competitions provided an unconventional path to funding Ultropia’s early years, as well as providing Swanson and Birkland with much-needed expert advice.
Hardtech startups like Ultropia often face a funding gap when it’s too early for substantial venture capital investment, but they need money to grow. “All those pitch competitions helped us find our voice and refine our pitch,” says Swanson. “Plus, we got advice from top-tier experts we wouldn’t have met otherwise.” Those experts encouraged Swanson and Birkland to dig into customer discovery and learn the pain points for different markets so that they could make a more informed decision about existing needs and who would pay for their solution.
Their pitch—and even more significantly, their company—transformed through every conversation with potential customers. “We weren’t passively pitching the same idea over and over,” says Birkland. “We were very active. We added information we gained from these customer conversations. We would experiment with strategies, get feedback from the next competition, and iterate some more.”
The Path to Customer Discovery Can Mean Going Back to Basics
Swanson and Birkland quickly realized that designing their washer and dryer was the easy part; finding the right market was the real challenge. Once they understood that customer discovery was key to a successful launch, they went all in. “We started cold-calling hotels, nursing homes, and talking to nurses at hospitals,” Swanson says. “We interviewed everybody about their laundry.”
They learned about the common problems in regions where hand-washing laundry is the standard. They explored commercial applications, intentionally expanded their network, and continuously asked questions, refining their approach with every conversation.
Swanson and Birkland learned that most large hospitals and hotels in the United States outsource laundry to industrial plants—an industry dominated by two major players and roughly 1,700 large plants with little technological innovation. “It’s a very traditional industry,” says Birkland. “The attitude is basically: Why innovate? It’s already figured out.”
Breaking in wasn’t easy. “It took forever to reach [contacts in the industry],” Birkland says. “They’re not on Google or LinkedIn. We had to pay to join their professional organization and attend their one big conference.” But once they connected with laundry plant operators, they found a receptive audience.
The laundry industry is surprisingly collaborative. Plant operators share insights, bring in competitors to tour their plants, and embrace innovation if it proves beneficial. Ultropia’s technology stood out as faster, more energy-efficient, and cost-effective.
Swanson and Birkland partnered with a local plant in Tacoma, Washington, to prototype their ultrasonic technology into the current dryers. If this proof of concept succeeds, both parties see a clear pathway to scaling. “We could sell thousands of these machines in the U.S.,” says Birkland. “It’s a real market, with a clear entry point.”
Sustainability Is a Selling Factor—For the Right Customer
Sustainability is a key motivator for Swanson and Birkland, who recognize the urgent need to reduce water and energy use in laundry to curb pollution and conserve resources. Through customer discovery, they also realized they had to make a strong business case for sustainability.
The laundry industry is, as Birkland puts it, “hyper-aware of sustainability.” It is also self-regulated, and the major players are actively setting and meeting sustainability goals. “They’re willing to invest significant time and effort into making processes more sustainable,” Birkland says.
One significant barrier to making industrial laundry more sustainable is reliance on heat-based dryers. Hospitals and medical facilities prioritize sterilization for patient safety over sustainability. “Nurses will give you a warm blanket anytime,” Birkland says. “Every single blanket must be laundered after each use.”
Despite a push toward electrification, most industrial dryers are powered by gas, which is costly and polluting. Ultropia’s technology, which uses ultrasonic waves rather than heat to dry laundry, is faster and more energy-efficient, saving minutes per load and saving hours over time.
“It took us a while to grasp the sheer scale of water and power used in laundry,” Birkland says. “Laundry plants are so remote from daily life,” Birkland says. “Sustainability opportunities at the industry level aren’t always obvious, but the potential impact is huge.”
Customer Discovery Is a Journey
Neither Swanson nor Birkland expected to found an industrial, sustainable laundry company based on ultrasonic waves, but they’re glad this is where they’ve landed.
Their success has inspired many entrepreneurial friends. “It can be a struggle to talk to people,” says Swanson. “The business and marketing sides are challenging for engineers. Ultimately, I enjoyed customer discovery. We learned so much in a short time.”
Now that they’ve found Ultropia’s customers, they’re focused on growing their business and reach. “It was a long, challenging process,” Swanson says. “Now we’re in the joy.”
Ultropia participated in Stage 1 (Pioneer) and Stage 2 (Propel) of the VentureWell E-Team Program, which provided them with $25,000 in grant funding. They were recently selected for the Spring 2025 cohort of our Aspire Climatetech investor-engagement program. Hear more from Birkland about his journey to becoming an entrepreneur:
About the E-Team Program
Through the E-Team Program, VentureWell has trained over 600 student teams and more than 1,800 student innovators. The teams have raised over $587 million in follow-on funding and have launched over 260 ventures since taking part in our program.
About the Aspire Program
Since its inception in 2015, Aspire has had a significant positive impact on seed-stage startups. Across 207 startups, the teams have raised over $570 million in funding, with an 81% venture persistence rate. Aspire startups that are also E-Team Program grantees are eligible to receive matching investment from VentureWell.