After 46 Failed Prototypes, This Pune Startup Successfully Converts Used Sanitary Pads Into Reusable Materials; Expands to 1,500+ Locations

When Ajinkya Dhariya was studying mechanical engineering, a weekend getaway trip changed the course of his life. 

Along with his college friends, he went to visit the green woods near the city of Pune. To their surprise, the quiet of the scene was disturbed by used sanitary napkins hanging from a Jambul tree. 

From then onwards, Ajinkya decided to create a change in the menstrual waste disposal system. 

Recently, he took to LinkedIn to share a detailed post and video about the journey of how PadCare started and what it has achieved so far.

46 FAILED PROTOTYPES

In his LinkedIn post, startup founder Ajinkya Dhariya stated that when PadCare started, the team had no guidebook to follow. 

They were just trying to answer one question: the question of how to “solve India's massive sanitary waste crisis."

Initially, PadCare’s team went through as many as 46 failed prototypes. 

Ajinkya Dhariya wrote, “The breakthrough came after our 47th attempt – technology that could transform used sanitary napkins into reusable materials Something the world had never seen.”

Despite people telling the team that the model would never work, they persisted. 

PadCare was addressing the entire value chain of the sanitary pad disposal system – from collection to processing. 

This not only solved the problem of waste but also added dignity to the lives of rag pickers and waste workers.

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PADCARE’S IMPACT

According to Ajinkya Dhariya, PadCare now serves more than 1,500 locations in 24 Indian cities. 

In his post, he mentioned the amount of sanitary pads the startup has successfully recycled. 

In Ajinkya Dhariya’s words, “Till date, we've recycled 200 MT+ sanitary pads last year, saving 450 tonnes of CO2e.”

“More importantly? We've created dignified jobs for waste workers who once handled these materials with bare hands,” he added. 

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UNIQUE DISPOSAL SOLUTION 

PadCare has patented technology that recycles used sanitary pads into pulp and plastic that is then used by various other industries. 

For direct collection of used sanitary pads, the startup installs specialized bins in restrooms. 

The startup’s website also offers various products like desk calendars that are made with recycled sanitary pads. 

In 2024, PadCare pitched on Shark Tank India and received a blank cheque offer from Peeyush Bansal. 

Ultimately, the startup secured a 4-shark deal of Rs 1 crore against 4% equity that involved Peeyush Bansal, Namita Thapar, Vineeta Singh, and Anupam Mittal.

As far as numbers are concerned, nine months ago, Namita Thapar had mentioned on LinkedIn that PadCare exited FY24 with Rs 10 crore in sales and a 7% PAT. 

She wrote, “Ajinkya was around 1 cr annual sales when we invested at the tank about 18m back, he exited FY 24 at 10 cr sales (7% PAT) with an order book already of 22 cr for FY 25!”

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