BRITA Group's Strategic Investment in Hello Klean

BRITA Group is a strategic minority investor in Hello Klean. Hello Klean remains independently operated and led by its co-founders, Karlee Zhang and Omer Ozener.

Announced 12 March 2026 · London

BRITA's first-ever beauty investment

Hello Klean, the London-based brand that pioneered shower filtration as a beauty category, announced a strategic investment from the BRITA Group in March 2026 — the 60-year-old water filtration company's first-ever move into beauty and personal care. BRITA has taken a minority stake in Hello Klean. Terms are undisclosed.

Hello Klean stays completely independent and continues to be led by its co-founders. The partnership brings together BRITA's six decades of filtration science — including R&D infrastructure, ISO-certified testing facilities and a multitude of filtration innovations — with Hello Klean's consumer brand, product design and category-defining approach to water-optimised beauty.

Why BRITA, why now

Two fast-growing markets — shower filtration and personal care — are converging around water quality. Hard water affects more than 60% of homes in the United Kingdom, over 85% in the United States and a similar proportion across Europe and the Middle East, yet it remains the most overlooked barrier to product performance.

The partnership combines two distinct capabilities: Hello Klean's direct-to-consumer brand expertise — a digitally native growth engine, a highly engaged community and a subscription model with over 75% recurring revenue — and BRITA's filtration science. It accelerates Hello Klean's ambition to build the definitive shower filtration brand worldwide, with investment priorities spanning next-generation filtration products and international expansion from the brand's UK and European base.

What was said

“Hello Klean has rapidly proven the rising global demand for smarter water-quality solutions in daily life. We share the belief that water is the often-overlooked variable that fundamentally shapes both product performance and personal wellbeing. What convinced us was their disciplined approach to solving a real consumer problem paired with a brand that resonates deeply with customers worldwide. For BRITA, this partnership is a strategic move into a category where our decades of filtration expertise can create meaningful value — and it supports our ambition to evolve into a purpose-driven lifestyle brand that inspires people to rethink the way they consume water.”
— Markus Hankammer, CEO, BRITA Group
“Besides the obvious fit of a very adjacent category with a proven razor and blade business model, there has been a personal connection and shared values with Karlee and Omer from Hello Klean from the very first beginning, and I am really looking forward to working together as non-executive director on the board in further scaling the business.”
— Hanns-Michael Arenz, Director M&A and Corporate Venture, BRITA Group
“We built this category before anyone was paying attention. When we started, ‘shower filtration' wasn't a beauty conversation, it was a plumbing one. We started with £60k and our own bathroom, won Dragons' Den, and proved the model works. BRITA saw what we saw early: that water is the first ingredient in every routine, and most people are fighting against it.”
— Karlee Zhang, Co-Founder and CMO, Hello Klean
“We grew to double-digit-million revenue without a single pound of external equity funding. We didn't take BRITA investment because we needed money — we took it because BRITA brings something money can't buy: six decades of filtration IP, global manufacturing, and the scientific credibility to scale this category. Our ambition has always been to make water quality a standard part of every beauty routine. With BRITA, we have the infrastructure to actually do it.”
— Omer Ozener, Co-Founder and CEO, Hello Klean

What this partnership means — and what it doesn't

  • A strategic minority investment. BRITA Group holds a minority stake in Hello Klean. Hello Klean is not owned by BRITA and is not a BRITA subsidiary.
  • Independently operated. Hello Klean remains founder-led. Hanns-Michael Arenz, Director M&A and Corporate Venture at BRITA Group, joined the Hello Klean board as a non-executive director.
  • R&D collaboration. The partnership gives Hello Klean access to BRITA's R&D infrastructure, ISO-certified testing facilities, manufacturing network and six decades of filtration expertise.
  • Our products remain our own. Hello Klean develops and tests its own products — our shower filtration is independently tested by SGS. BRITA's investment does not mean Hello Klean products use BRITA technology, and it is not a product certification.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hello Klean's relationship with BRITA Group?

BRITA Group made a strategic minority investment in Hello Klean in March 2026 — its first-ever investment in beauty and personal care. Hello Klean remains an independently operated company led by its founders. The investment reflects BRITA Group's confidence in Hello Klean's water-first approach to beauty and its long-term growth potential.

Does Hello Klean use BRITA technology?

Hello Klean develops and tests its own products, and its shower filtration is independently tested by SGS. The partnership gives Hello Klean access to BRITA's R&D infrastructure, ISO-certified testing facilities and filtration expertise.

Who owns Hello Klean?

Hello Klean is majority-owned and led by its co-founders, Karlee Zhang and Omer Ozener. BRITA Group is a strategic minority investor. Hello Klean is not part of the BRITA Group.

About Hello Klean

Founded in London in 2019 by Karlee Zhang and Omer Ozener, Hello Klean makes beauty solutions for your water: independently SGS-tested shower filtration and water-optimised hair, scalp and body care designed to reduce the everyday impact of hard water and chlorine. Trusted by more than 500,000 customers, with over 1.2 million products shipped, Hello Klean is stocked at Selfridges, Sephora UK, Cult Beauty and Ounass, and at helloklean.com. Read our story and see all press, awards & recognition.

About BRITA Group

Founded in 1966 and headquartered in Taunusstein, Germany, BRITA is one of the world's leading water filtration companies, operating in 69 countries with more than 20 billion litres of water filtered through its products every year. Hello Klean is part of BRITA's ventures portfolio — see BRITA M&A & Ventures.

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