Plastic Maker Hubs aims at tackling the wicked and highly critical problem of plastic waste from the source. We believe the problem is rooted in miscalculated value: negative externalities are not priced in waste, waste pickers valuable work is not reflected in their income, and consumers do not have an opportunity to spend her money on a 'better' plastic. Our contribution to the solution is a series of small-scale hubs/workshops where waste-pickers convert plastic waste into a range of design products such as coasters, notebooks, wall clocks, furniture etc. These products embed principles of fair trade & circular economy, tapping into a huge global market of conscious consumers, both B2B and B2C. We aim at an holistic upliftment of the waste-pickers' communities & livelihoods, in terms of more income, dignified work and status.

1. 1
the price of plastic
doesn’t accurately reflect
its true costs to society
1
the value generated by the
informal economy goes
unrecognized
2
the conscious consumer
cannot spend her dollar on
a ‘better’ plastic
3
Price: low
(virgin plastic)
Wastepickers in India divert
4.7 million tons of plastic
waste per year
Avg wastepicker woman in India
earns $2-3 a day
PLA STIC WA STE: A TA LE OF MISC A LC U LATED VA LU E
Growing market of
conscious consumers:
Fairtrade
Organic
Other certified products
(e.g. FSC)
Cost: high
(food contamination, water
pollution, ecosystem threats,
human health hazards,
infrastructure costs)

2. SMALL-SCALE WORKSHOPS
WHERE WASTEPICKERS CONVERT
PLASTIC WASTE INTO NEW PRODUCTS
High-end,
signature
products
Premium price for
recycled plastic
Empowering
women
wastepickers
New income, new
skills, dignified
work
Changing
consumer
mindsets
Decentralized,
scalable model

3. 3
H OW IT W OR K S
Landfill plastic Upstream plastic collection
Product
Designers
Corporate
buyers
Direct to
consumer
Indigenous
knowledge
Expertise,
training
Wastepickers
collect plastic
waste at landfill
and further
upstream
1
Trained
wastepickers
sort, clean,
shred plastic
waste and
mould into new
products using
machine setup
in workshop
2
Plastic Maker
Hubs sell
‘better plastic’
products (B2B
or B2C)
3
‘Better
plastic’
goods
Fair share of
higher priced
goods
WORKSPACE:
PLASTIC MAKER HUB

4. 4
PEOPLE. PLA N ET. PR OFIT.
IMPROVED
WASTEPICKER
LIVELIHOODS
NEW MARKET
FOR RECYCLED
PLASTIC
LEAN, SELF-
SUSTAINING
BUSINESS MODEL
• Higher income (E.g. $5-10/day
in Mumbai, 2-3x current income)
• Elevated status (empowering
marginalized women, and
associated health / education
outcomes)
• New skills / training (micro-
manufacturing, basic literacy)
• Dignified work (gold standard
for working conditions, health /
safety)
• New brand showcasing
beauty and durability in
plastic (focus on design,
aesthetic – shifting consumer
perception of plastic as ‘cheap’
and ‘ugly’)
• Social story around
recycled plastic (refreshing,
positive messaging around
plastic)
• Agile, lean growth model
(new hubs built according to
demand growth)
• Designed with scale in
mind (replicable toolkit and
training material,
recognizable product mark for
‘better plastic’)
• Financially self-
sustaining (expected to
reach breakeven point in less

5. 5
PILOT IN MU MB A I
That one can work within the
manufacturing constraints of a
small-scale workshop to create
quality, aesthetic products out
of recycled plastic.
That one can train
wastepickers with minimal
formal education to create
products in these workshops.
That consumers will be
willing to spend more on
‘better plastic’ products.
1
3
2
3-MONTH PILOT IN
MUMBAI.
6 INTERNS FROM
LOCAL UNIVERSITIES
(IIT + IDC).
50+ STAKEHOLDERS
ENGAGED.
7+ FIELD VISITS.
20+ EXPERIMENTS +
PROTOTYPES.
3 KEY HYPOTHESES TO TEST

6. 6
POSITIVE EA R LY R ESU LTS FR OM PILOT
“Before this, I never associated the
garbage I picked up with attractive
products. I proudly told my family I
worked at a factory today and it
earned me a lot of respect”
Satya Didi
Mumbai wastepicker
Wastepicker engagementEarly sales
65+
Sales orders generated
/ 2-week sales test
/ Pre-orders through social
media channels only
/ Avg. order: Rs. 700 ($10)
(premium price for chosen
product categories)
/ 27% margin*
Retailer response
Social media
500+Followers on social media,
rapid organic growth and high
user engagement
“Love the products, great aesthetic – look forward
to taking this further when you are ready to sell”
“We would like to stock the coasters in our gift
shop”
* Based on assumptions made around
Hub operating costs

7. 7
NGO Training
Coordinator
Committed
Corporate
Buyer and
Retailer Interest
Wastepicker
Cooperative
s Onboard
Local
Government
(BMC) Support
Waste Collection
Startup
Partnership
Secured
Universities
Providing Interns
and Resources
Technology
Partners Lined
Up
MUMBAI
PILOT
ECOSYSTE
M
ESTA B LISH ED PA R TN ER C ON STELLATION
Selected for Pro
Bono Legal
Advice Program

8. 8
N EXT STEPS / H OW YOU C A N H ELP
STEP 1 STEP 2 STEP 3
Set up first fully-functioning
Hub in Mumbai
Scale sales and operations
across India + set up product
mark
Partner for global scale
(sales in Europe, N. America, etc. + operations
in Indonesia, Ghana, Brazil, etc.)
!
!
Grant funding to support the
set-up costs of the first Hub
In-kind support to develop
branding + marketing material
Technical advisory on plastic
micro-manufacturing
machinery
In-kind support on supply
chain + operations research
in India
In-kind support on
developing training
programs for illiterate
communities
!
Connections to mission-
aligned retailers + other
potential product buyers in
India
Expertise on developing a
product mark / trust mark in
India
Connections to potential retail
partners across 1st and 2nd tier
cities in India
Connections to potential retail
partners across key sales
markets (Europe, North
America)
Connections to potential
operational partners in target
geographies (Indonesia,
Ghana, Brazil, etc.)
Connections to potential
operational partners across 1st
and 2nd tier cities in India
1 year 1-2 years 2-4 years
DEVELOP SOCIAL IMPACT INDICATORS AND MEASUREMENT