“Accelerate Action” is the theme of International Women’s Day this year. It’s a message that goads society into taking swift and decisive steps to achieve gender equality. Following this mandate for the last few years is Varanasi-based Shikha Shah, the founder of ScrapShala.
This women-led Indian brand makes premium environment-friendly products which are upcycled from discarded wares, by reviving traditional Indian handicraft methods. Their products promote sustainability by using pre-existing raw material. Most importantly, they employ women artisans to create handicrafts, in turn helping them earn a respectable livelihood.
Shah is a serial entrepreneur working on reshaping the textile industry with a focus on sustainability and social responsibility. Apart from helming ScrapShala, she is also the founder and CEO of AltMat which transforms agricultural waste into innovative materials, primarily for textiles.
As someone deeply committed to social causes, she founded the ScrapShala India Social Foundation – a Varanasi-based organization that spearheads CSR initiatives to empower artisans. Her initiatives have led to the creation of a diverse product line spanning 12 categories of waste material, innovative product designs that minimize non-biodegradable waste, upcycling of over one lakh kg of waste into functional products and the empowerment of more than 100 local Indian artisans. Shah’s products are delivered to over 20 countries worldwide.
On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Sunday Guardian speaks to Shah about her unique idea and the progress of her startup, ScrapShala. Excerpts from an edited interview:
- When and why did you begin ScrapShala?
A: My growing years were spent in Varanasi, before moving to Delhi to study at Hansraj College, Delhi University. I also have a post-graduate degree in environmental studies from TERI University in New Delhi. For internships and my first job, I had to travel extensively around India. I met a new set of people every time and these experiences made me evolve into a better person. I worked at the Reliance Foundation, which exposed me to rural India and its problems. It was the perfect transition from academic to working life. An opportunity to research at IIT Madras introduced me to the idea of social entrepreneurship. There, I met many startup founders and understood the hardships involved and strategies followed to implement an idea successfully. Experiences at both these organizations made me confident about building an idea and starting my own journey of entrepreneurship.
In November 2015, I returned to Varanasi from IIT Madras and spent two months brainstorming an idea which finally became ScrapShala in January 2016. I belong to a traditional Marwari business family where most women are homemakers. It was by meeting new people outside my hometown that I was inspired to follow my heart and take risks.
I tapped into my mother’s creative skills of upcycling waste materials, and we began using pre-existing scrap as raw material and hired local artisans to start a sustainable, innovative and experimental product line for home décor, lifestyle and gifting. My mother has done this as a hobby all her life, and now it has become a full time venture that I run. We have over 100 local Indian artisans – mostly women – working with us.
Currently we have around 125 items in our product line. We try to improvise older versions of products on a monthly basis and introduce five to eight new items at least four times in a year. We sell our products online on our website and marketplaces like Amala Earth and through our flagship retail store in Varanasi.
- What is your motivation behind running this unique business?
A: I had a vision to create a better life for the people around me and our planet by innovating the use of pre-existing material. Additionally, I’m very keen to provide an authentic and accessible space to create and buy world-class quality upcycled goods that are manufactured in India, using local Indian craftsmanship.
- What hurdles have you faced over the years?
A: The word ‘scrap’ itself has negative connotations as it triggers images of something useless and unpleasant. Hence, it took us a tremendous amount of energy to convince traditional artisans to work with scrap instead of new materials. And this is an ongoing struggle – it still requires a lot of effort to train and get new artisans on-board.
My team also spends a lot of time educating consumers about our purpose before promoting our product line and the positive impact it can create in our lives and that of future generations. The product pricing can also be a deterrent for some, because they expect it to be cheap as we use pre-existing material. In the era of e-commerce, consumers choose products based on price points and not quality, despite this leading them to discard the items quickly.
I also face struggles of managing time between personal and professional life and the uncertainty of getting daily orders. The investment of time and energy in starting an unconventional business like ScrapShala is huge.
Further, there is a stereotype that unmarried women founders will shut down their business after marriage or change of location, which I want to dispel. The world is digital now so locations and gender roles have become redundant.
- How has your business been received in Varanasi?
A: It took us a few years of hard legwork to get visibility and credibility amongst consumers in Varanasi. We organised educational workshops and street activities in more than 20 locations in the city that brought together more than 2000 people, as well as exhibitions at crowded locations like Assi Ghat to reach the maximum number of people. By winning awards and with the validation received in the media and by participating in shows like Shark Tank India, people have accepted us.
I feel proud that we have been able to change the local culture. Before the pandemic, every morning we had four to five bags of pre-existing material in good condition donated at our door when we opened the office
We felt successful when we were able to make people think before they throw their things. People in Varanasi are now more conscious about their consumption habits and we are proud that we have contributed to this.
Our service of customising old furniture and antiques is also popular, and our clothes swap events as well as regular artisanal market events, have become a one-stop-solution for sustainability in the city. In fact, ScrapShala has become a tourist spot for visitors too!
Noor Anand Chawla pens lifestyle articles for various publications and her blog
www.nooranandchawla.com.