This woman entrepreneur from Odisha is redefining clean cooking with low-carbon stoves

Company: SS Associates

Founder: Subhrarani Mohanty

Place: Jagatsinghpur, Odisha

Turnover: Rs 30 lakh

Subhrarani Mohanty, a homemaker from Jagatsinghpur, Odisha recalls the time when she used to cook on a regular stove. The 47-year-old says she used to notice large volumes of carbon emissions coming from the stove. Troubled by this, Mohanty started finding ways to cut down on these emissions without having to change the fuel infrastructure.

“I was personally facing several technical problems while using a traditional stove, and added to that was the carbon emissions,” she says. “This inspired me to solve this problem for all households by providing them with low-carbon equipment they can use every day to cook food.”

Hence, in 2018, Subhrarani Mohanty, with the help of her husband Satyabrata Mohanty, turned her idea into reality and launched SS Associates, a manufacturer of low-carbon kitchen cooking equipment.

Excerpts from an interaction with SMBStory:

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SS Associates facility

SMBStory: How did you start the business and how was it funded?

Subhrarani Mohanty: When I found the problem of high carbon emissions from traditional stoves, I did a detailed study of these stoves and their technology, and saw a potential business which makes low-carbon cooking equipment. With the help of my husband, local government agencies and Canara Bank, I invested Rs 13 lakh to launch the business and commenced operations.

SMBS: How are you differentiating from the competition?

SM: The market size is huge because all households as well as hotels cook on a daily basis. Our products are unique because of two things. First, they are smokeless, helps people to reduce carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide emissions and are cost-friendly. Second, they can also be used to reduce the biomass deposit around the house. This is done by converting biomass waste into clean fuel, all at a very negligible cost.

SMBS: What are your challenges in terms of sustaining and growing the business?

SM: Because of the low carbon emissions, our products are a step towards ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ and ‘Swachh Tahi Seva’. Despite this, creating a social awareness about the problems and solving them is a challenge for us. There isn’t enough awareness among the public and the society about the products which are, in fact, beneficial for them. For any business to succeed in this sector, I advise them to focus on making products that will benefit the society and raise awareness at the same time.

SMBS: What are your expectations from the government?

SM: Primarily, we need help to supply our products to the government and semi-government sector, and to tap and utilise CSR funds of big companies. We are already focusing on individual customers. If we can get tests conducted and a performance report delivered by the concerned government agencies and The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, we can get their approval. With this, we can expand and directly offer the benefits of our products to the customers.

SMBS: What are some of the biggest learnings from your entrepreneurial journey?

SM: I learned that one person cannot manage cash flow and suppliers. I have hired different people for specific areas of work. Besides this, I saw that having the right mindset, working hard and behaving appropriately in business situations can lead to success, which is more of a journey than a destination.

(This story is published in partnership with the MSME Ministry to showcase success stories of SMEs)