Batu69 Posted February 10, 2016 Share Posted February 10, 2016 It will only cost you £80 (CNN) An idea dreamed up out of thin air appears to be earning one businessman some serious money. British entrepreneur Leo De Watts, 27, has made thousands of dollars selling bottles of British country air to Chinese buyers, but the price alone -- £80 ($115) per bottle -- could knock the wind out of many customers. De Watts says the 580 ml (about 20 oz) glass jars have been flying out the door, many headed for pollution-plagued Chinese cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. Since launching late last year, his air farming company Aethaer has sold hundreds of containers of clean breeze from windswept locations across Britain -- including Dorset, Somerset, and Wales. Setting off with a car full of empty jars at 5 a.m., the team "harvests" air in large nets and seals it in the glass jars before shipping it across the world. "Quite often a lot of our orders are bespoke -- we have clients who request very particular circumstances for their air," De Watts explains in a video on the company's website. "Sometimes we'll be at the top of a mountain, other times the bottom of a valley." Once opened, a jar of pure British air might last just a few seconds, and it's understood many customers are purchasing the product more as a novelty gift that will sit in homes unopened. De Watts, originally from Dorset on the southern coast of England, now lives in Hong Kong where he can be found selling his bottles of fresh air at local street markets. The businessman appears to have chosen his market wisely. In December, Beijing issued its first ever red alert because of poor air quality, closing schools and restricting traffic. Back in Britain, De Watts' team of air farmers continue harvesting away from roads which might pollute the precious produce. Hoping to cash in on Chinese New Year festivities, the company is now promoting a 15-jar gift set for -- take a deep breath -- the discounted cost of £888 ($1,200). Funnily enough, for those dismissing the unusual business model as just a bunch of hot air, it is in fact Britain's "cool air" which gives buyers the most bang for their buck. "The colder air means we can fit more in the container," De Watts said. "When it's warmer, we can't fit quite as much in." Aethaer follows in the footsteps of the Canadian company Vitality Air, which recently started selling canisters of fresh air from the Rocky Mountains to Chinese buyers. Though at between $14 and $20 per canister, Canadian air seemingly costs a fraction of British breeze. Article source Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vibranium Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 Unbelievable! I thought pet rocks were bad enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurch234 Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 On 2016-02-10 at 9:50 AM, Batu69 said: the team "harvests" air in large nets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
software182 Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 Not sure if clever or stupid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batu69 Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 10 hours ago, software182 said: Not sure if clever or stupid Which one, seller or buyer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CODYQX4 Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 Anyone want to buy some snow or leaves from USA? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurch234 Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 1 hour ago, CODYQX4 said: Anyone want to buy some snow or leaves from USA? How about some topsoil from Canada. Dirt cheap... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
info999 Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 selling bottled water sounded crazy only a few years ago, not it's a huge industry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CODYQX4 Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 6 hours ago, info999 said: selling bottled water sounded crazy only a few years ago, not it's a huge industry My tap water tasting like poison is a good way to keep me buying bottled watter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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