Planet activist

Savitha Rao reminisces on the twists and turns on her road to becoming a passionate advocate of sustainability.

- Savitha Rao

My friends know me as a planet loving activist. A typical day involves working on ideas that blend sustainability with craft, or of nurturing our livelihood programmes for women. An unlikely space for someone who started off her career in the corporate world.

My career in international marketing took me to many corners of the world. From Tokyo to New York to Paris to the jungles of Vietnam and many fascinating parts of the planet.

But at some point, I decided to start off on my own. I was very clear that I wanted it to be something that focussed on the greater good. Around that time a dear friend gifted me a copy of Business as Unusual by Anita Roddick (the founder of Body Shop). Reading it brought the epiphany that as long as one is not selling liquor, cigarettes or ammunition, one can do good in any work. I realised that I could channel my love for fabric and do good. A few months later I was invited (by the same friend) to a spiritual workshop. On the last day of the workshop I decided to give myself 90 days to start my venture. Things started to fall in place. On the day I typed out my resignation I counted and, to my amazement, it was exactly on the 90th day.

I started off my entrepreneurship as a buying house, working closely with international markets. Since I had spent years in the business of menswear, a world I loved, I decided to start a brand of menswear accessories. I did the ground work – registered a brand name, designed the logo, conceptualised a range of products, and worked intensively on product development. The project was on its way to a launch when I read an article on the North Pole melting.