How this Women Entrepreneur from Gurgaon is helping the environment through manufacturing sustainable and eco-friendly products

Meet Prerna Bansal Chatterjee Founder & CEO of Earthist.

Since childhood I was against waste and plastic. I remember making newspaper bags at home so that my father can carry them and not bring back new plastic bags every time he buys groceries.

What really motivated me to start Earthist was the difference we can make to the world by fixing these problems like the waste we create, the plastic we release into the environment and we are all seeing the results already, there is pollution, there is so much wastage, there is climate change, there are so many things happening because we as humans are not conscious enough.

Before Earthist I was doing a variety of roles with companies like IBM, American Express, Regi and more in recruitment, operations and product development.

I did start working very early because financial situations in the family were such that I needed to but I have always been extremely grateful for all the things and people and learnings that I had the opportunity to have but now I thought that I should use all of that to build something that will make this world a better place.

What were the challenges you faced?

Talking about the challenges the initial challenge was definitely idea itself. Because whenever I talk sustainability, people have this perception that it is very difficult and time consuming. It is something you do when you have free time which is absolutely not true.

However I got extremely lucky with this, my family has always supported me . My husband takes care of all the responsibilities which enabled me to quit my job and focus on Earthist full time.

My whole family has cut down on their own waste so much as well because they understand how much it means to me.

My mother even helps me in packing orders no matter how much work she has. I started by doing a lot of research like what kind of products are practical and usable in the Indian context, selling came much later only when I was confident that our products will be loved by those who order it.

What products you are offering through your brand?

Currently Earthist does a range of products that are sustainable, eco-friendly and can be swapped out from your everyday use products.

You can always choose to make sustainable simple swaps and find alternatives that you use for example use a bamboo toothbrush, or a bamboo earbuds and a bamboo tongue cleaner instead of plastic ones.

Use recycled paper pencils instead of wood pencils, use reusable straws instead of getting plastic or paper straws every time you go out.

Use a reusable multi-pocket grocery bag so that you don’t end up taking too many plastic bags from your grocery vendor. These are simple changes that do not take any time barely any effort and can be done day to day.

So these are the kinds of products that Earthist builds and brings to you.

How people can buy from you?

Currently we are selling on Amazon, Flipkart and Sustainkart. However all the promotions go live first on Instagram and www.earthist.in

We also have a website- www.earthist.in and they can people can go on the website and make the purchase. They can also DM or Whatsapp me on 8446610099 and I will take their order on whatsapp.