Couple Launches Eco-Friendly Stationery Biz, Earns ₹40L in few Months

Shradha Pasari (40) was teaching as a kindergarten teacher at a prestigious Noida school when her daughter jolted her from her reverie. It was one of those days when the daughter was brushing her teeth, and she turned the tap off to save water. And in that moment she realised how children are immensely impacted by their teachers, as this was taught to the child by the teacher. And this led to the realisation that small things do make a big impact.

An advocate of sustainable living, Shradha often made small changes in her life. She explained to the journalist from Startup Pedia, “We come from a generation when our parents often re-used jam jars and other bottles. This was probably the first lesson in sustainability of my life. Later as a parent myself I would wrap gifts in newspapers. But my daughter would be embarrassed after seeing other blingy wrappings. And we realised something had to be done.”

Husband’s story

Her husband, Naynesh Pasari was then working for Shri Krishna Paper Mills, a paper company established by his father Narendra Kumar Pasari in 1974. Over the years the company has produced different kinds of paper. What started as a publishing house for calendars changed with the changing times and for the past 25 years the company has been making glossy paper. 

Naynesh, a graduate in B Com (Hons) from Delhi University had also pursued his MBA from Bentley University, Boston. In 2007 he had a stint at a corporate job with Future Group, Mumbai. Later he went on to start a business of imported and premium watches. He also dabbled with a recruitment firm. While things were going smooth, Covid stuck and the business also stopped. 

Naynesh started focusing on father’s business, which was still doing well. The B2B company was then making paper for industrial converters. Publishers bought paper from them and then used it for printing. With 400 employees under its aegis, this one is a public listed company.

Small beginnings

Shradha would often ask Naynesh for some leftover rolls of paper to package gifts. She requested him for some recycled craft sheets and that worked. She told the journalist from Startup Pedia, “A lot of people noticed the wrapping and appreciated the idea. This paper was mostly recycled paper.  We saw an opportunity there to give back to the environment. And thus launched Packmate Green LLP in 2023.” A majority of their employees are women, thereby ensuring women upliftment too. 

The dream team

The couple, married for 16 years now worked fabulously as co-founders. Even as Shradha is the creative mind and designs the products, Naynesh handles the marketing and meeting customers. Naynesh gives 70% of time to Packmate and 30% for father’s business. 

“A few people liked the idea, so we realised this idea can be explored. To validate the product, we exhibited in Frankfurt, Turkey, Istanbul, Dubai and Delhi and got great reviews”, Naynesh shared during an interview with Startup Pedia.

“We have improved paper quality, and can now have a handmade looking paper without the chemicals. We use 100% recycled paper pulp along with cardboard and used office paper instead of cutting fresh trees. Produced without any harmful bleach or chemicals, we end up saving the soil and water table as well since the chemicals mix with water and run down the water table. We also save a lot of water compared to traditional paper production”, He added.

Products

Packmate, a B2C brand produces registers, envelopes, notepads, notebooks, gift wrapping paper, paper bags, food wrap paper etc. They also produce India’s first BIS approved copier paper which is not white. Thus this enables them to bid for govt tenders as well. The products are sold through their website, Amazon as well as through resellers. The cremish looking recycled paper is slowly getting acceptability. 

Finances

The company clocked Rs 40 lakhs in financial year 2023-2024 even as it operated for a few months since launch. In 2025 they are aiming at Rs 1 crores. 

Naynesh told the journalist from Startup Pedia, “B2B is a different ball game altogether compared to B2C. We have become category creators as nothing exists like this. White paper is so ingrained in our mind that people say that the cremish looking paper is not good enough for the printer. So we are creating awareness too.”

Impact to the environment

Even as sustainable products have become the need of the hour, the couple realises one key factor. While the functionality is the same, the cost to the environment is much less. Till now they have saved around 1100 trees and 8.75 lakh litres of water thereby bringing down carbon footprint by a whopping 80%.