Founder of Female-Focused Eco-Startup Committed to Sustainable Lifestyle and Business in Kazakhstan

ASTANA – A five-yr nurturing of an environmentally helpful lifestyle led Saniya Arinova, 31, to commence her individual enterprise providing eco-welcoming hygiene merchandise to women, caring not only for the atmosphere and reducing squander but also for female reproductive health. Arinova spoke about her solution, issues, and rewards of creating an eco-small business in Kazakhstan in an exclusive interview with The Astana Moments.

Arinova’s eco-startup is just an obvious extension of her existence outlook. She began as an eco volunteer, organizing gatherings to thoroughly clean the Almaty highlands, forests, and mountains in advance of enjoying the amazing views. She is a trained journalist with marketing experience.

“I relished the environment and turned acquainted with the Kazakh eco-local community. Then I observed that the ecosphere has a small business element. I joined the HelloEco workforce, Kazakhstan’s 1st zero-squander retailer in Almaty,” she reported. 

Arinova began as an eco volunteer, arranging gatherings to clear the Almaty highlands. Photo credit score: Arinova’s personalized archive.

She is now the director of advertising and marketing and community relations for HelloEco and aspires to be a complete-fledged eco-specialist. She conducts talks about likely environmentally friendly in faculties, universities, and companies.

Arinova explains that her idea of launching eco-helpful cleanliness solutions is not new. They are generated in China, the European Union (EU), and neighboring Russia. Nonetheless, for Kazakh women of all ages, this was a relatively new detail. 

In accordance to Arinova, in Almaty alone, 1,200 tons of waste are accrued daily, and there are 9,000 unauthorized dumps in Kazakhstan. The reusable personalized care goods can decrease the squander level considerably, she said, highlighting they are each eco-helpful and cost-helpful. 

“A set of eco pads is significantly less highly-priced than a established of traditional pads. According to estimates I did previous 12 months, reusable items are 7.2 times less costly and have a service lifetime of two-a few years. Hygiene merchandise rates have risen by 20 to 40 per cent in the former yr. There was a instant when source was influenced by external forces unrelated to our domestic sector. I want Kazakhstan to have a domestic maker able of offering these types of important items for women of all ages no matter of the time of yr or the international political situation. The place also lacks a producer of disposable hygiene merchandise to shoulder this responsibility,” she reported. 

Saniya conducts talks about likely inexperienced in schools, universities, and companies. Image credit: Arinova’s personal archive.

Yet another important element of Arinova’s determination is how disposable personal care goods impression feminine reproductive health and fitness. According to her, synthetics and plastics employed in disposable cleanliness goods prohibit air movement, contributing to the formation of a detrimental microenvironment.

“First of all, latex, sodium polyacrylate crystals, and synthetic scents are located in disposable pads and one pad has the same volume of plastic as four bags! To bleach disposable pads white, chlorine fuel, primarily based on dioxin, a recognized carcinogen, is applied. Dioxin has been linked to cancer, toxic shock syndrome, and even miscarriage,” Arinova explained. 

Her smaller organization strives for social accountability. Arinova at this time runs her individual workshop, which employs single mothers, mothers with several young children, and women of all ages approaching retirement age. With her staff, she intends to boost the production degree to mass manufacturing shortly.

Arinova’s team contains one moms, moms with numerous youngsters, and females approaching retirement age.

“I would like to enter digital marketplaces like Kaspi and Wildberries. Having said that, I will want to dedicate particular methods, like revenue, time for documentation, and certification to deliver products on the mass market,” she claimed. 

Arinova’s business expanded quickly in just one particular yr many thanks to Almaty’s flourishing startup ecosystem. She has been a regular participant in several incubation and acceleration courses more than the prior several several years. She obtained a grant from the 3.2.1. Start off system by the Coca-Cola firm previous yr, which she applied to acquire technological gear for her workshop.

An eco-startuper you need to generally be proactive, search for chances, and network, states Arinova. Photograph credit: Arinova’s particular archive.

“This grant was sufficient for me for technological gear, the relaxation of the investments I made from my very own money. I did not have an investor, but I am usually open up to cooperation. I imagine that any start out-up, in principle, would reward from assistance. So right after successful my to start with grant, I participated in a lot of other folks,” she claimed. 

According to Arinova, those people programs supplied her with educational and networking possibilities. 1 of them, Eco-Converse, organized by the Kazakh-German University in Almaty, authorized her to journey to Latvia, wherever she figured out about the eco-startups in the EU.

“It was incredibly gratifying. There is a lot of informational help and desire in eco-projects ideal now, the two from the EU and substantial businesses operating in Kazakhstan that want to support the environment. They may pollute the ecosystem by means of production, but they have systems to assistance eco-startups like us. Of program, it is not up to me to come to a decision if this is an equivalent contribution, but it is nevertheless valuable,” she stated. 

Arinova shares that significant companies in Kazakhstan are motivating traders in inexperienced startups. Every incubator or accelerator has sponsors who established the standards for the organizations in which they wish to make investments, irrespective of whether it is an eco-IT startup, an eco-startup, or an oil and fuel agency. These providers are at this time trying to determine out how to initiate this interaction with startups, in accordance to Arinova.

She stresses that although the authorities of Kazakhstan presents a scheme to support work and plans for getting small-desire loans, an entrepreneur initially requires to be self-reliant.

“Of program, I can not assure that an individual starting out would receive quick aid, but if you look for it, and if these are the industries in which the corporations included are interested, this kind of as eco-startups and IT startups, then why not? I see this help, but to acquire it, you ought to constantly be proactive, search for alternatives, and network,” she extra. 

Whilst evaluating Kazakhstan’s assistance for environmentally pleasant enterprises, she said that the EU, in her expertise, is far more committed to the environmentally friendly agenda. Pretty much all of the businesses with an environmental part she visited as aspect of her educational trip, were partly funded by the EU bodies. 

“Answering your problem about whether or not or not eco-businessmen come across difficulties in Kazakhstan. It is difficult to develop a super factory and implement for governmental funding in Kazakhstan. In the EU, there is, of system, a independent budget for financing green improvements and inexperienced start off-ups. They also present grants for eco-startups,” Arinova explained. 

In accordance to her, large-scale businesses, these kinds of as food items squander processing plants, are particularly in will need of federal government guidance. 

Arinova stated the dialogue amongst eco-activists and the state is nonetheless in its early stages. But, she emphasizes that, despite some problems, those people passionate about environmental challenges are extremely inspired about what they do and cannot visualize their life any other way.

Arinova uncovered her ideas to manufacture children’s diapers as very well as particular treatment merchandise for ladies. She is good there are lots of chances in Kazakhstan for startupers. All they require to do is to attain out for them and be very motivated. She also mentioned that she has no intention of restricting herself only to the borders of her property country. 

“In the potential, I would like to participate in intercontinental incubators. I am intrigued in this global experience for the reason that I have witnessed how it could glimpse like in Europe. I also want to try out to enter and test out the markets of neighboring nations around the world,” she concluded.