From spilled buckets to purposeful design: our story begins in the shower.
Growing up in Sydney during the Millennial drought, water restrictions weren’t just policy, they were part of everyday life. For years, we hand-watered the garden using a bucket we filled from the shower. I remember lugging that bucket down the stairs, water sloshing out with every step, just to keep a small patch of grass alive.
Mum always noticed if we missed even a few days as the lawn began to fade. I went to a school with many boarding students, and I’ll never forget their stories: failed crops, cattle sold off, and families battling through seasons of no rain. Those memories stayed with me.
Fast forward a couple of decades... and not much has changed.
Today, my family lives on tank water, with a daily awareness that every drop is a privilege; and we still use a bucket in the shower every day. It's second nature now, a little daily ritual we don’t think twice about. And today, my two young boys now slosh water down the hallway on their way to water the garden, just as I did.
An idea was born out of this small frustration; ugly buckets, constant spills, and a bigger idea: If this were easier, more intuitive, and better designed, would more people be motivated to save water too? Could a small habit every day make a big impact if more people did it?
From an idea to a Prototype
After convincing my husband and now co-founder that this might work, I did what any rational person would do, I Googled “how to invent something.” That search kicked off the entire journey: a product engineer on Upwork, some truly questionable sketches, and more than a few late-night Zoom calls. Bit by bit, the very first SEVAS water catcher started to take shape.
Talking to friends and family helped us refine the idea. Our parents mentioned how hard it was becoming to lift and pour a heavy bucket, so we added thoughtfully placed handles. Then came the watering can attachment - an easier, more controlled way to reuse the water without the mess.
What followed was months of trial and error: 3D printing, experimenting with different water catchment slopes, testing plug types, smoothing out edges, reworking lid designs, and searching high and low for the most sustainable manufacturing partner we could find. Eventually, we landed on a supplier that uses a closed-loop cooling system (also learnt what this was), so no water is wasted in production process when cooling the plastic container when it’s molded into shape.
After six months of quietly testing our early prototypes at home, we had created something we’re truly proud of - a design-led, patent-protected, and sustainably made water-saving device that sits seamlessly in modern homes.
The unexpected viral moment
With a background in brand and marketing, I thought the hard part was done. Spoiler: it wasn’t.
We hadn’t even ordered stock yet but once our design was certified and patent protected (that was a whole new learning curve), I posted a quick video to our new Instagram account (with a whopping three followers- me, my husband, and my sister). Within a couple of days, it hit a million views.
Cue the internet: “Just use a bucket.” “How long does your shower take to heat up?” “What about the soapy water?” “What if I pee in the shower?” And then, just as many comments of “This is genius.” “Where can I buy this?” “Our shower takes 5 minutes to warm up.” “I need this for our caravan.” And my favourite: “Now I can’t unsee the water I waste every morning.”
Controversy and curiosity did their thing and after 8 million views, 123,000 likes, 40,000 shares, and thousands of email signups later, we knew we had to go for it and place an order.
A Product and a Purpose
The name SEVAS is SAVES spelled backwards. (See what I did there?) From the beginning, we knew we wanted the business to do more than just sell a product. So with every purchase we: fund 2 days of clean drinking water through The Water Project, Plant 2 mangrove trees with Earth Lungs Kenya and Offset 50kg of carbon supporting the UN Supported Burgos Wind Project in the Philippines
We do this through our partnership with Greenspark, supporting vital conservation work and water restoration projects around the world. This is probably the part of SEVAS we are most excited about.
What’s Next
We're just weeks away from launching our very first run of SEVAS units, and we couldn’t be more excited (and mildly petrified) to finally bring this idea into homes across the globe as Summer takes hold of the Northern Hemisphere, and 3 States in Australia are declared back in drought heading into a dry winter.
Thank you for being here, for being curious, and for believing that a small habit everyday can make a big impact. And if you have ready this far down and you're still thinking "just use a bucket" that is great, please use a bucket! We don't care, just start saving more water as when we really need it, it will be too late.