How, Phool, a Flower waste recycling startup clocked $15 Million?

… and 10 Product management lessons to take away

Alia Bhatt joined Phool as a brand ambassador. How? Read on …

Alia Bhatt, a HUGE Bollywood star !

Phool.co is an incense sticks startup — where incense is extracted from flower waste in the rivers. Incense sticks are burnt in temples and homes to spread good smell.

Agenda:

1. Why should we learn about Phool?
2. How Phool started?
3. Founder vs Parents?
4. Product management — 5C framework in Phool
5. Why not sell on Amazon primarily
6. Why not Influencer marketing
7. How Alia Bhatt happened?
8. How Pricing was setup ?
9. Conclusion

8 million tonnes of flowers contribute to river pollution in India

Phool.co uses flowers from rivers to extract perfume

Why should we learn about Phool.co ?

1. noble idea — reduces 11000 tonnes of flower waste in rivers per year
2. fair trade — India’s 11th company that has fair trade certification (safe working conditions, sustainable livelihoods, drinking water and sanitation facilities for the employees etc)
3. the founder and the company come from a Tier-2 city in India and made it big!
4. employs 75+ women in its factory
5. no chemicals used, essential oils used for perfume are natural !

How Phool started?

As opposed to other startups that start with addressing a customer pain point, Phool started with addressing a pollution issue.

Ankit Agarwal wanted to address the river pollution issue and on his friend’s suggestion — he landed on the idea of reducing pollution waste from rivers.

That’s how Phool started.