Small, but mighty: Wellington company takes global innovation honor

A Wellington company behind the world’s smartest mouse trap has just been named among the world’s top design innovators—winning against some of the biggest names on the global stage.

Goodnature has taken out the Small and Mighty category in Fast Company’s 2025 Innovation by Design Awards. The category celebrates companies with fewer than 100 employees that are creating outsized global impact. Goodnature now sits alongside international winners including The New York Times, Adobe, and Ralph Lauren.

A Small Team Making a Big Difference

Founded in 2005 by Craig Bond and Robbie Van Dam, Goodnature set out to tackle pests like rats and mice without relying on poisons. Today, the Wellington-based team of 40 has manufactured more than 600,000 traps, with over 100,000 produced in the past year alone. Their reach now spans more than 60 countries.

Twelve months ago, they launched their first Goodnature Mouse Trap—a solution designed to meet exploding global populations of mice. Since then, nearly 100,000 traps have been activated everywhere from New Zealand to Norway to Namibia.

Craig Bond credits this momentum to the passion of their small but nimble team:

“Once people join us and get hands-on with our mission, they genuinely get passionate about trapping rats and mice. They bring back insights from the field, and that’s what drives our innovation. It wasn’t so long ago that recycling wasn’t the norm, but now it’s a collective purpose. We believe pest control can follow the same path.”

Innovation Over Scale

While Goodnature competes against companies with workforces 100 times their size, CEO Dave Shoemack says this recognition proves that scale isn’t everything:

“You don’t need a massive team, in a giant factory, to make a lasting impact. Kiwis are known for their ingenuity, and we’re proud our small Wellington team is reshaping a global challenge. Mouse and rat populations cause billions in damage, spread diseases, and devastate wildlife. Using poison only makes things worse. Our goal is to make trapping simple, safe, and effective for everyone.”

Goodnature’s award builds on a top-10 finish in Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies (Household & Consumer Goods) list earlier this year and a win at the iF Design Awards—further solidifying its reputation as a global leader in household innovation.

About Goodnature

Established in 2005, Goodnature is a B Corp-certified pest control company with a mission to eliminate 100 million pests by 2030. Their products are non-toxic, humane, and trusted by leading conservation groups including The Nature Conservancy, Predator Free 2050, and the United Nations Development Program.

So far, Goodnature traps have removed more than 22 million pests worldwide, including eradicating rat populations in four of New Zealand’s most fragile ecosystems. In 2024, they launched the Goodnature Mouse Trap—their first trap designed specifically for use inside the home.