Sustainability is the current buzzword that is generating a lot of chatter. Be it environmentally conscious decisions in one’s daily life or even the need for suitability in business, one thing is clear- the future must be sustainable. A growing number of organizations are integrating sustainability into their business strategy—realizing they can do well by doing good. In business, sustainability refers to doing business without negatively impacting the environment, community, or society as a whole. The goal of a sustainable business strategy is to make a positive impact on at least one of those areas. When companies fail to assume responsibility, the opposite can happen, leading to issues like environmental degradation, inequality, and social injustice.
With an aim to take sustainability a step further, Indian mom turned entrepreneur Natasha began her venture Lagom India, which is a platform that engages with local artisans and rural women to create upcycled, traditional and artisanal products from Malabar. Natasha’s husband is a fourth generation organic farmer by choice. He has over 200 coconut trees apart from other local varieties of fruit and grain. The coconuts are used to make wood pressed coconut oil for home use, the shells of the coconuts are often discarded as they are of no use post the process of oil extraction. “We have so much wastage of these shells every year so I finally decided that something has to be done in order to combat this wastage,” shares Natasha.
Aiming High, After flying high
So in 2021, with an initial investment of Rs 5 lakh, this mother of a toddler decided to use discarded coconut shells to create beautiful artefacts and homemade products that add a touch of Malabar to every home through her start up called Lagom India. Here you will find a range of products- soap dishes, hanging lanterns, water goblets, bowls and much more. Additionally they also sell traditional south Indian delicacies like banana chips, murukus, masala podis and so on.
Perhaps one of the most surprising things about Natasha is that she is a Captain trained on 3 different aircraft’s and has been working with major domestic airline since the past 15 years! Natasha says, “I decided to take a sabbatical from flying post the birth of my son and focus on something else that I felt strongly about. I had shifted to a mindful way of living a few years ago, where I would not consume fast moving, toxic products, however the pandemic really made me realize how important sustainability is the need of the hour. We are currently in the midst of a major change in what people eat and in the way they eat because traditional eating has been related to positive health outcomes and sustainability.”
Mindful Consumption
Lagom India products are available online and through its official Instagram handle. The brand ships its products across India and had successfully fulfilled more than 100 orders per month. When asked what her plan is for the growth of Lagom India, Natasha says, “We are really passionate about mindful living and reusing products. We want to infuse the thought of sustainability into the minds of our consumers so that even a small step towards sustainability can create a huge impact on the overall health of the planet and ours. For Lagom in Swedish means, not too much, not too little, just right. We truly believe that sustainability shouldn’t be viewed as a burden but simply as a set of different viable and alternative choices.
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/thelagomlife_/
Website – https://thelagomlife.in/
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