Yas Grigaliunas is the founder and chief evangelist of Circonomy, a circular economy business that rescues, repairs, repurposes and re-sells all manner of goods, connecting sustainably-minded shoppers with items otherwise destined for landfill.
Circonomy has diverted more than 4 million kilograms of waste from landfill. Preventing the production of new goods has saved an estimated 1.2 billion litres of water, and kept 770kg of CO2 from the atmosphere.
But, incredibly, this story begins with a charity bake sale.

Beginning with impact
Back in 2013, Yas was raising money for Cancer Research, selling cupcakes and brownies.
As a business and growth specialist, she was frankly underwhelmed by the results.
“It didn’t really get the traction I wanted,” she recalls.
Thinking outside of the box, Yas organised a charity garage sale, inviting friends, family and community members to donate bits and bobs to sell.
In one day, the event raised $15,000. Yas did the same a year later, and raised $60,000. In the third year, she raised almost $100,000.
And just like that, The World’s Biggest Garage Sale was born.
“All of that money was given away,” Yas explains.
“That is not a business model.”
However, it wasn’t long before businesses started donating surplus stock — stock that had to be shifted, and that would otherwise go to landfill. That was the lightbulb moment for Yas.
“It was less about the products and more about the problem,” she explains.
“I started to discover the circular economy — there was this different model we were providing through the garage sales: dormant goods for good.”
In 2017, Yas took the plunge and launched The World’s Biggest Garage Sale as a profit-for-purpose, circular economy social enterprise — the business that would later be rebranded as Circonomy.
“I quit my job and went all in. No plan B,” she recalls.
“Unapologetically, I wanted to make a difference. And, unapologetically, I wanted to make money. It was my job as a founder to work out how I could balance that pendulum perfectly.”
Circonomy’s funding story
Yas isn’t your stereotypical startup founder. She’s business-minded and laser focused on growth, but non-technical and uninterested in moulding herself to fit the ‘norms’ of the ecosystem.
“When I’ve raised capital, I’ve just done it how I’ve done it, whether that’s the right way or the perceived wrong way,” she says.

River City Labs accelerator
In the early days, Circonomy had no real tech platform. But when Yas pitched the River City Labs accelerator program, she had revenue coming in, and a hunger to learn about the tech she needed to realise Circonomy’s potential.
Being accepted meant a $100,000 investment, and an open door to the startup world.
“I used that capital to invest in team, tools and tech,” Yas says.
“And I lived and breathed the startup ecosystem for the next few years.”
Interest-free loan
As Yas continued to build Circonomy, she connected with the SheEO community (now called Coralus), securing a five-year interest-free loan.
Coralus is about women investing in women, with ‘activators’ pooling their funding to distribute loans to women-led startups creating social impact.
Founders also gain access to advice, support and the network that comes with a community of like-minded entrepreneurs. All of that helped grow Circonomy to a point where Yas was ready to raise.
Mini-seed
Circonomy’s first seed round was far from typical — not least because of the timing.
This was the early COVID-era of 2020. So, mid-raise, investment (and everything else) ground to a halt.
But even before the unprecedented lockdowns, Yas wasn’t travelling around the country, cap in hand. She simply didn’t have the time or the inclination.
“At that time, my business would have failed without me in it,” she admits.
“That would have been so irresponsible.”
Instead, she hosted an event, inviting partners, government representatives and leaders of the local startup and impact scenes.
She invited experts to speak about social enterprise, circularity, and the importance of impact-focused investment.
“It became an education session,” Yas says.
“But, of course, it also opened my investment round, and I got a few hundred thousand of commitment from that event.”
Seed 2.0

During the pandemic, Circonomy was an ‘essential retailer’, trading in repaired desks, chairs and office equipment through its partnership with Officeworks.
In 2021, after a strong year of revenue, it was time to raise again. This time, however, there was no grand event — quite the opposite.
“I locked myself in a capital-raise cave,” Yas recalls.
She hit the phones, and raised $4 million in four weeks.
Since then, Circonomy has invested in its technology platforms and team, while reducing operating costs. Within three years, revenue had tripled.
Enter Tractor
Today, Circonomy sees solid monthly revenues, and has used Tractor debt funding to fuel yet more tech development, as well as funding general operations around marketing, hiring and training.
For Yas, it’s meant freedom to spend in these areas without worrying about cash flow or inventory — especially in a business that relies on a variable supply of goods.
“It just takes away the friction, and allows us to get on with business.”
Funding the ‘surprise chain’
As Yas puts it, Circonomy operates within a ‘surprise chain’; it receives different goods at different times, from hardware and furniture to swimwear and clothing. The warehouse might receive 1,000 units of one item, and just two of another.
Overall, however, volumes are increasing.
“The business has matured operationally, to be able to accept and flow more surprise chain products,” Yas explains.
“But that takes investment.”
Yas is now considering Tractor’s Inventory Advance financing. For her, building up stock without the need to raise equity capital is “a no brainer”.
It means more revenue in less time, and better outcomes for the business, team, and existing investors.
But perhaps most importantly, it’s an opportunity to speed up growth and create more impact, as quickly as possible.
“It really does open up game-changing capabilities for my business to make faster decisions,” Yas says.