Paras Saluja
Founder and Director
VictoryTales with its mission to bring more and more inspiring stories for our readers, this time we are introducing Mr. Paras Saluja Founder & Director of Shayana Ecounified India Pvt. Ltd who is on the single point focus to reduce the dumping of plastics in the environment and save the planet.
Mr. Paras Saluja, is an entrepreneur, environmental advocate, an inventor, and presently Founder & Director of SHAYNA ECOUNIFIED INDIA PVT.LTD. With his innovation, Mr. Paras has turned plastic waste into reusable material and created affordable structural materials from plastic waste, and thus creating a better tomorrow for the generations to come. He gave the world community reusable products by turning plastic waste into High-Density Composite polymer (HDCP) tiles and blocks.
Previously, Paras remained involved in his pharmaceutical business. Being an enthusiastic traveler, he has been to many Asian and European countries in the past and he has trekked until Advance Base Camp of Mount Everest. His movement from mainstream business to being an environmentalist has inspired several young entrepreneurs to continue to narrate his story as a TEDx speaker. Mr. Paras has pooled various government & private organizations like Municipal Corporations of Gurugram, and Hyderabad L'oreal and TATA Motors to solve the plastic pollution crisis by deploying HDCP tiles in their principal offices.
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SHAYNA ECOUNIFIED INDIA PVT LTD
Shayna EcoUnified India Pvt. Ltd established with a single focus to reduce the dumping of plastics in the environment and save the planet. By using eligible plastic waste materials, the Company turns plastics into High-Density Composite polymer (HDCP) tiles and blocks. These final recycled/converted materials are weather-resistant, chip-resistant, acid-proof, durable and offer better structural stability at a lower cost as compared to other conventional.
The final product is composite, affordable, and contributes to the societal benefit. The company strives to deploy cost-effective architectural tiles further restructuring the recycling base of India and taking it towards a new and much-required evolution.
On inquiring from where did the idea to start something like Shayna EcoUnified came from and requesting him to tell us about his background and his journey as an entrepreneur, Mr. Paras Saluja apprised that;
I joined my family business after completing my educational journey from Delhi Public School, Ghaziabad, and Bachelor of Business Administration from I.T.S college in Ghaziabad. I shifted my focus after 15 years and took my first steps towards my life-long issue of reducing, reusing waste that’s present all around us, all the time.
As I grew, I became an avid traveler and during one of my trips, I was in Vietnam where I saw that they were very aware and sensitive about the waste they produced and how they managed to dispose of it. That is when it struck me that India is a big and populated country with a huge problem of waste being produced daily but not disposed of properly. I think that was the time when I decided to do something for my country and also wanted to contribute to the ongoing government of India’s “Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan''.
When the idea to make a difference in the way we (humanity) were operating about our plastic waste struck me, I did not want to lose even a single minute of my time not doing what I could for it to become a reality and change what can be changed.
Then I researched more regarding what I wanted to work on and contacted CSIR-NPL and together we came up with this technology that was later transferred to us.
On inquiring from him about what was your key driving force to become an entrepreneur? Mr. Paras Saluja replied that;
I belong to a business family so doing business was not something new for me. However, starting something new of my own in a sector I have no idea about was something that I didn’t foresee. When the idea struck me then I just followed my dream to do something for the environment which is sustainable and long-lasting and also helps all strata of society and can in turn do something for our country.
On inquiring from Mr. Paras Saluja, why he has chosen to become an entrepreneur over a job? He apprised that;
I belong to a business family and my upbringing was always done accordingly. I never really thought about a corporate career. Growing up I always wanted to do something of my own and to learn the ropes I chose to become the part of the existing business. During this time, between other qualities, I realized about my leadership skills, decision-making ability, and most importantly the ability to recognize an opportunity when it presents itself. After more than a decade of learning and growing it, when the idea to make a difference in the way we (humanity) were operating about our plastic waste struck me, I did not want to lose even 1 minute of my time not doing what I could for it to become a reality and change what can be changed.
When the opportunity presented itself then I wanted to make a product that is eco-friendly, something which did not wear and tear and could be used by us but since it came from waste, it shouldn’t touch our skin directly.
Shayna’s products help clients with easy, economical, and speedy construction. Hence came out with the concept of tiles initially and later other products were introduced as well, which helps the society in using green technology to build smarter and greener ways of living.
Can you please share with us your source of motivation for becoming an Entrepreneur?
My belief in myself and my dream motivates me to keep going on. The passion and drive to finally be able to do something for our environment keeps us going and reaching out to people. Also, the support of our clients and environmental enthusiasts provides the much-needed boost that inspires us to strive for more.
On inquiring how do you generate new ideas? Mr. Paras Saluja told that;
The ideas just flow when one has a need. I live and follow the habits of sustainable living in my everyday life and I happen to notice a lot of things around me, some of them bother me, that’s the moment when I am on a constant lookout for inspiration which can help me and my curious brain to eradicate the issue I encounter and this habit gives birth to new ideas which I try and build into new products.
On inquiring about the Uniqueness of his company Shayna EcoUnified, Mr. Paras apprised that ;
Recycling is not a new or innovative business. My product is unique, not the business. What makes us different from other recycling companies is that we aim at unifying and bringing new solutions to cater to almost all the problems of pollution and help provide clean, healthy living conditions for all people, economies, and areas whether urban or rural.
How did you come up with the name of your company?
Shayna means Shine and Ecounified is the vision we have as we want to unify and bring a one-stop-shop solution for all things related to recycling, pollution, and the environment. We want to make a sustainable and eco-friendly living into an everyday reality for all. We want to generate more ideas and concepts and unify the needs of the environment and just make this reality shine bright.
On inquiring, How many hours a day do you work on average? Mr. Paras explains that;
I work as and when and what the need of the business is. Being a start-up currently, my work hours are anywhere between 10-12 hours a day.
What advice would you give to someone starting out as an aspiring entrepreneur?
Patience, perseverance, commitment to the end goal, and always see and keep the big picture in mind. Obstacles come for everyone whether big or small, young, or seasoned entrepreneurs. What makes one sustain in the business is one’s patience, persistence, and the knack for looking for different possibilities from all sources known and unknown and waiting for the right time till things don’t work out.
