Shree Ravindranath is an Associate Vice President at Intellecap. Intellecap (publisher of Beyond Profit) is a for-profit development firm with a focus on advisory solutions and intermediating capital for small and medium enterprise development.
It is that time of year in India when the streets light up with the color and gaiety of the Ganesha festival. The festivities are synonymous with people distributing sweets, and with the fanfare accompanying the immersion of idols of the elephant god Ganesh in local bodies of water. In spite of the piety, the immersion of these idols causes water pollution due to the presence of lead in paint and other non-biodegradeables. The situation this year might be worse than usual, for the monsoon has played truant. Over 250 districts – about half of the country – are declared drought hit. Scarce rains also mean trouble in urban areas, with some ground water sources running dry.
One enterprise in Hyderabad, India, is innovatively addressing both of these problems. The Emerald Mithai (sweet) Shop, located at the center of the twin cities of Hyderabad-Secunderabad, is an eco-friendly business that promotes the use of natural materials, recycling, and water conservation as a way to go beyond profit.
The shop sells lip-smacking sweets and savory snacks on ordinary days. The eatables are popular because the ingredients are all-natural and vegan. Each year during August and September, it transforms into a source of eco-friendly idols of worship. A banner outside the shop (see photo) announces the distribution of clay idols in the interest of the environment. Employees of the enterprise pack individual idols in newspapers and cheerfully hand them over to the crowds. Each clay idol taken away is a measurable reduction in environmental pollution!
Posters in the shop ask customers to inform the management of dried up bore-wells in their neighborhood. Experts on bore-well recharge can be contacted through the shop. A display model demonstrates the principle of rainwater recharge and take-away bags proudly proclaim that the Emerald team has recharged more than 50 wells.
The shop also offers a monetary incentive for customers to become enviro-converts – they get discounts if they bring their own bags and if they hand over plastic bags for recycling.
The promoter of Emerald, Mr. Vijayan, also runs an NGO named SAVE (Society for Awareness and Vision on Environment), through which he undertakes tree-planting campaigns, holds events for school children, and supports solid waste disposal in the community.
Having observed the shop for more than five years now, there is just one drawback- it has added just one outlet, taking the total to two in the twin cities of Hyderabad-Secunderabad.
Are you aware of such profitable enterprises that encourage its clientele to care for the environment? Do you support any such initiatives, especially in developing countries? Do you think that such models scalable? Can you suggest one that has scaled? If so, Beyond Profit would like to hear from you. Please write to ideas@beyondprofitmag.com.
The Emerald Mithai Shop can be contacted at +91-40-27654336.
