The DTC refill model serves only a profitable segment, not the mass market

The problem

The integrated DTC concentrate-refill solution is honest that it serves a segment, not the whole market. This sub-issue states that limitation as its own problem, because "what about everyone else" is not addressed by the solution and should not be quietly dropped.

Who the model does not reach

The DTC refill model fits customers who are urban (route density is engineerable), routine-oriented (they re-order against a cutoff), and at least moderately affluent (they are not buying purely on lowest price). That leaves out:

• Price-sensitive mass-market buyers, who buy the cheapest available shampoo and will not pay any premium or accept any added step.
• Rural and low-density populations, where the route-density requirement that makes the model work cannot be met.
• People without the routine or stability to manage cutoff-based ordering and container swaps.

Why this matters

If the goal stated for this whole problem is to "get rid of every bit of waste," a segment solution does not reach it. The DTC model can capture a meaningful, profitable slice and coexist alongside single-use plastic — but the majority of the market, by volume, stays on plastic bottles. Treating the segment solution as if it were a universal one would overstate what has been achieved.

What a resolution needs to address

Approaches for the segments the DTC model structurally cannot serve — for example: refill via existing mass retail rather than dedicated delivery, concentrate sold as ordinary low-cost parcels with no return loop, public/municipal refill infrastructure, or extended-producer-responsibility and deposit policy that changes the economics for the low-price mass market. These are distinct problems needing their own solutions.