Bamboo Agropreneur

Eight years back, Yogesh left his decade-long successful career in the IT sector to start his own business of innovative bamboo products to resolve a global problem—plastic pollution, and today, he is leading the bamboo industry. Yogesh Shinde, founder, Bamboo India, manufactures innovative products from bamboo as a replacement for plastic products used in our daily lives. He founded this social enterprise in Pune in 2016, and today he is exporting bamboo products to 48 countries. For Yogesh, his conviction towards nature conservation and helping the farmer community is the reason behind the global recognition of Bamboo India

His ladder to success was made of bamboo, literally and figuratively. Yogesh has successfully created his business empire worth ` 2.8 crores by selling innovative bamboo products in domestic and international markets. The idea of establishing Bamboo India came from the streets of Germany. Yogesh, during his trip to Germany, observed that no one was throwing plastic garbage on the streets, but they were putting it in the machines installed outside the shopping malls, and in return they were getting shopping coupons. As a result, there was not a single plastic item seen lying on the streets. “The manufacturer and the shopping mall collectively should take this responsibility. As a manufacturer, either you can reduce the plastic replacing it with bamboo products or you can just make sure that collection machines should be available on the streets, in the shopping malls and grocery shops,” he said. Bamboo India was established with an investment of `10 lakh in Pune, and today his company is operating in 22 countries, including India, UAE (Dubai), Germany, the US and Canada.

From poor man's timber to wise man's choice

The bamboo is usually called a poor man’s timber, but Yogesh, with his innovative bamboo products, has turned it into a wise man’s timber. Founded in 2016, Bamboo India is a social enterprise that works with the objective of replacing plastic products and adding value to the existing bamboo product development process. With innovative products like bamboo toothbrushes, bamboo earbuds, bamboo straws, bamboo travel kits, and bamboo notepads, Yogesh is religiously working to replace plastic products used in our daily lives.

In three years, Yogesh’s business gained several recognitions from social organisations and the government. But then Covid pandemic hit, which Yogesh says, was the most difficult phase for his business. Everything he earned till 2019 was washed off in Covid. However, post-Covid, he got to particpate in Shark Tank India and pitch Bamboo India products. He got an investment offer of `50 lakh from Sharks Anupam Mittal and Ashneer Grover. This investment gave a boost to his enterprise, leading him to gain huge international exposure. He says, “Entering Shark Tank India season 1 was the most beautiful milestone in our journey. It helped us build the credibility of our company at a huge level. Today, I feel fortunate that people from different industries, including the corporate sector, government, and film industry, are endorsing our products for free of cost”.

"With innovative products like bamboo toothbrushes, bamboo earbuds, bamboo straws, bamboo travel kits, and bamboo notepads, Yogesh is religiously working to replace plastic products used in our daily lives"

-Yogesh Shinde

Building from scratch

In his early days as an entrepreneur, as Yogesh remembers, he had no machinery to manufacture his bamboo products. So, he used to rent machines from other factories to manufacture his products. He says, “The first machine we bought was of around Rs 8,500. Gradually we started buying those machines, and now we have a machine setup of worth more than two crore rupees”. He owns three factories, based in Pune, Himachal Pradesh and Guwahati, with 6,000 active farmers and artisans across India. With more than one lakh unique customers, he is successfully able to save 48.8 kg of plastic waste that comes to the market. He says, “I want to make people start using alternatives to plastic. I also want to generate the circular economy within India, to give the real price to the bamboo farmers and what they deserve”.

From convincing the farmers to join this cause, to taking the final product to the international market, Yogesh strategically manages everything. However, providing the right and good price to the farmers for bamboo is his priority. Further, with cutting-edge machinery, he designs high-quality bamboo products. He began with producing only toothbrushes, and today he manufactures more than 20 bamboo products, including oral care products, personal care products, corporate gifts, stationery and pet products.

Before launching his products in the domestic and international markets, Yogesh says that they undergo several strict tests, including sustainability, durability, hygiene and comfort. This precision has led Yogesh to connect with some of the world’s largest toothbrush manufacturers, who are sourcing from him to make space in the US and UK markets.

Environmental impact

Bamboo India, as Yogesh says, has customers from all walks of life, right from the people who are staying in the slums to the middle class to the people staying in five-star luxury hotels. The company has products available in more than 2800 retail shops across the country. He says, “Our aim is to reach every Indian household and to replace plastic with bamboo”.

Switching from plastic to bamboo toothbrushes, as Yogesh says, significantly reduces plastic waste—one bamboo tree can produce 110 toothbrushes, sufficient for a lifetime. He says, “Bamboo grows in just four years with absorbing carbon dioxide from the environment. Planting two to three bamboo trees can make your entire life carbon neutral—making bamboo the wise man's timber for a greener future”. He further describes that unlike plastic toothbrushes that take 200 years to decompose, bamboo toothbrushes biodegrade naturally.

Family support

In these eight years, the support of the family was crucial for Yogesh. His entire family and his friends were helping him shoulder-to-shoulder to achieve his dreams of making India plastic-free.

His wife Ashwini Shinde co-founded this startup and is currently handling all the e-commerce platform, management and finance, at Bamboo India. He says, “When I wanted to start my business, no financial organisation provided me loans; however, my family and friends trusted me. My parents, my sister, and my friends gave me an interest-free loan to setup this business, and today they are proud of me”.

Join the green movement

The hard work and dedication for the welfare of society has earned Yogesh various accolades, including recognition by the United Nations for his sustainability efforts. He further urges people to use products manufactured under the Make in India initiative, as it will help farmers and small businesses grow. “Wherever possible, try to purchase sustainable products and avoid plastic because there are so many companies that are importing products from China and dumping them here in India. Sometimes they are labelled as Made in India. Thus, one must check the source before buying such products. Also, switch to sustainable products and contribute to a more sustainable tomorrow. This small change can make a big difference,” he concludes.