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Materials innovation company Xampla has bolstered its team with two new hires and two Director-level promotions as it gears up for a rapid, global commercialization of its plastic-free Morro™ materials. Following a $14m Series A funding round, this bolstered team will help Morro materials replace ten billion units of single-use plastic over the next five years.
Morro targets global expansion with new hires
Former BioPak UK Director Sam Walker joins Xampla as Head of Business Development and Sales, bringing extensive experience of developing sustainable packaging for global brands and their supply chain partners. He will oversee all customer relationships around the world, fostering high-value partnerships that will meet the rising demand for Morro materials.
Walker played a leading role at BioPak UK as Director of Strategic Partnerships, building out its UK and global customer base with brands including Deliveroo, Dishoom, Morrisons and Wahaca, and supply chain players such as Bunzl. Walker also led BioPak’s product innovation function as Technical Director, developing an extensive knowledge of the legislative and environmental challenges that face the industry.
Bolstering Xampla’s marketing and communications is David Cohen, joining as PR & Communications Manager. Cohen has over a decade of experience building the reputations of global science and technology companies, with a particular focus on the sustainability space.
Director-level Technology and Marketing promotions
Xampla has also promoted its Technology and Marketing department leads to Directors, reflecting its scale-up to a global player in plastic-free materials.
Scott Thompson steps into a newly created Technology Director role and is responsible for scaling Morro materials through innovation. Thompson and his team are leading the development of new Morro product offerings while also maximising the material’s performance. As Head of Technology & Development, Thompson played a pivotal role in bringing Morro Coating to market by developing high-performing grease and water barriers ahead of partnerships with sustainable packaging giant Huhtamaki and Just Eat Takeaway.com
Katrina Curl is promoted to Marketing & Corporate Affairs Director, where she will lead Xampla’s marketing and corporate affairs efforts globally. Since joining Xampla in 2021 as Head of Marketing & Communications, Curl has played a pivotal role in the growth of the company, notably creating the Morro brand in 2023 to bring together and launch Xampla’s plastic-free applications. Prior to Xampla, Curl built up a wealth of industry experience delivering award-winning marketing campaigns for some of the world’s best-known technology, FMCG and retail brands, including Unilever, Canon and Britvic.
This news follows a run of exciting developments at Xampla. In September the business secured a $14m Series A funding round which will help the business replace 10 billion items of single-use plastic. Morro was also recently announced as the first packaging material to be tested as plastic-free, as per REACH and SUPD regulations, by the National Physical Laboratory, the UK’s national measurement institute and a world-leader in measurement science.
Alexandra French, CEO at Xampla, said: "I am immensely proud to be leading such an outstanding team. Expanding our business development and marcomms functions is crucial to building our global business, as is broadening our product capabilities and portfolio.
“Sam is an industry veteran whose knowledge of the commercial and regulatory landscape will be invaluable as we continue to develop partnerships with household names and scale up Morro materials. We’re delighted to welcome him, and David, to the team.
“Thanks also to Scott and Katrina for their years of service and exceptional work. Their expertise has been vital in commercialising the technology behind Morro materials and getting it to market. Their new roles are very well deserved and their strategic leadership will support Xampla as it looks to global expansion.”
Sam Walker, Head of Business Development & Sales at Xampla, commented: "Having spent my career advocating for compostable materials to be mainstream, Xampla feels like the next big step forward in plastic-free packaging. Coming out of the University of Cambridge ecosystem with leading experts at the helm and major partnerships secured, the technology is highly capable and ready for market. As regulatory and consumer pressures converge, more and more brands are keen for plastic-free replacements such as Morro and we’re making this shift away from plastic a reality.”
