Meet six eco-preneurs who opted out of the corporate rat race

Apurva Kothari of No Nasties

His Green initiative: NoNasties.in

Sells organic T-shirts

Why did he go green? "After the cotton farming crisis that erupted in India, I wanted to work with these farmers to help them. I found an opportunity in selling organic clothing."

The Mumbai-based company helps cotton farmers in India by fetching them a better price for their produce. They also work with art designers and send the designs to a manufacturing unit in Kolkata, partially owned by a farmers' association. The company sells about Rs80,000 worth of T-shirts per month, and managed to break even in the first seven months of operations. These T-shirts are priced from Rs 599-999.

Sunil Mahajan & Naresh Chand ofKleeto.in

Their Green initiative: Kleeto.in

Next gen paper solutions

Why did they go green? “We didn’t want people to print multiple copies of a single paper to share it. Our aim is to encourage complete digital sharing.”

The duo founded Kleeto.in, which helps digitise all documents, from bills and tax papers to insurance policies and wills. They use a password protected server, facilitating quick access from anywhere for Rs 1,200 a year. Their company helps avoid wastage of paper by allowing customers to share their documents digitally via e-mail, as an attachment or link or through temporary sharing. In a couple of years, the company projects to reach a turnover of Rs 100 crore.

Yogita Mehra & Karan Manral of Green essentials

Their Green initiative: Green Essentials

Home improvement shop

Why did they go green? “We are led to believe that making money is always at the expense of nature. We didn’t think so and wanted to show that it can be done in a nature-friendly and responsible way.”

The Panjim-based couple quit the rat race and made an eco-conscious decision to sell eco-friendly home products. The shop stocks natural detergent and household cleaning material. It also undertakes pest management, offers home composting, provides solar lighting and organic-manure. The couple also conducts agricultural workshops on organic farming in Goa. They sell products worth Rs 70,000 a month on an average and the profit margin is about 25% of the sales.

Hitendra Chaturvedi of Greendust.com

His Green initiative: Greendust.com

Reverse Logistics Co (RLC)

Why did he go green? “I was surprised that Indian companies knew little and cared even less about waste management and the benefits of reverse logistics.”

This Delhi-based company collects rejected, unsold products from OEMs, or original equipment manufacturers, refurbishes and sells them as factory seconds at 25-30% of the market price on their portal. Besides offering an eco-friendly way of disposing of such products, the venture also helps reduce the cost of storing these goods. The company has a two-lakh strong online customer base and an online conversion rate that is close to 5% of the total hits.