[100 Emerging Women Leaders] This woman founder feels networking is the key to tackling all challenges

Online shopping is here to stay, but does the packaging have to be part and parcel of our lives? 

One day, in the midst of the pandemic, Prianka Jhaveri noticed the unnecessary cardboard packaging that one of her online deliveries brought along. She discussed her concerns regarding the environment with her college friends, Rishika Reddy and Rhea Kothari. 

“Sustainability as a concept was picking up around that time. But a large part of our population did not know how to adopt sustainable practices. We decided to address this issue. What began as a random conversation in our WhatsApp group became the basis for Mend Packaging,” Jhaveri recalls. 

The trio, who come from different corners of the world, namely Mumbai, Hyderabad and New Jersey, launched Mumbai-based The Mend Packaging, a sustainable packaging solution that reduces cardboard wastage, in 2020.

Jhaveri’s first brush with packaging solutions happened much earlier. After graduating from Barnard College, US, she worked with Dubai-based Cedar Management Consulting where she was tasked with finding alternatives to plastic bottles for a leading FMCG brand in India. 

With Mend Packaging, Jhaveri and her friends decided to break myths related to sustainability such as the lack of sustainable raw materials and the quality of sustainable packaging products.

However, operating in a male-dominated and fragmented market is not easy. Apart from busting myths around sustainability, Jhaveri says they had to deal with bias from local vendors and suppliers.

“One way to deal with these biases is clear communication. From day one, we have been very vocal about what we are doing and our brand ethos to our clients and customers. We relied on our strengths like building networks, using our technical knowledge of the industry, and strategising,” she says.

Persevering and adapting to challenges is important, and Jhaveri feels that pushing one’s limits when “things are sailing smoothly is as important as trying harder during hard times”. 

“Perseverance can make or break things. When things seem easy, the three of us push ourselves harder. That’s when we create, build, and innovate for our audience. We are very driven and keep each other on our toes to think about the next improvement,” she explains. 

Networking and constant learning are vital to success, and the founder gives the example of her own company where her team members meet industry stakeholders over coffee and learn better about the market.

“I met my co-founders at a college networking event and some of our big clients at networking events. The minute you start networking, you are encouraging collaboration over competition, which enables you to do so much more,” says Jhaveri.