Lohith Gowda
Pragya Dokania
Deepanshu Jain
Saket Jain
Salil Maini
Goa Institute of Management
Divya Singhal
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The company, OldGoa pursues it’s business strategy of introducing products that give consumers health & wellness, OldGoa operates in a manner that not just continues to generate an attractive return for the company, but also minimizes our impact on the environment and helps in replenishing the planet; while lending a helping hand to the community. Its mission is to find the best quality organic food and beauty products and take it to the end-user.
OldGoa believes in giving back to society ensuring socio-economic development of the farmers through different participatory and need-based initiatives in the best interest of the poor and deprived sections of the society so as to help them to become self-reliant and build a better tomorrow for themselves. It also aims at ensuring environmental sustainability through waste management, ecological conservation, and regeneration, protection & regrowth of local coconut species.
The major challenge of the farmers in Goa was that they had no immediate buyer for their coconut. As this was available in bulk Mr. Paresh was curious to know how can this be judiciously used. He researched and traveled to different parts of the country like Chennai, Cochin, Kerela and figured out that the extraction of oil couldn't be done on a small scale. He realized that the scaling needs to be very high. The biggest challenge he faced was the lack of awareness among people about pure virgin oil.
When a coconut is plucked from the tree and is kept for a long period its price is dropped and if he takes the help of all these farmers and preserves this it will be a viable thing. Therefore, he went to the literature of European standards and found that there is one economic way. He realized that if the processing is done in a hygienic way people will pay good prices for it. He made sure that the right kind of air, the exact temperature and the other parameters are carefully taken care of. Then, he worked with engineers and tried different methods and finally started his plant. Now his product is being tremendously sold in more than 150+ shops.
The product Mr. Parekh created has helped a lot of farmers by making them self-reliant. It also provides clean and safe drinking water to the farmers and their families and education and training to the needy farmers to help them prosper in their trade and help their business grow. The business also ensures environmental sustainability through waste management, ecological conservation and regeneration, protection & growth of local coconut species. Thus, OldGoa is making the world a better place.
"I was inspired by a book 'Colloquies on the Simples and Drugs of India' written by Spanish author Garcia da Orta. The author stated about the extraction of coconut oil on a domestic scale", shared Mr. Paresh.
Mr. Paresh then traveled through the different parts of the country like Chennai, Kerela, Cochin to know how the virgin coconut oil was made, and through his journey, he could figure out that the oil couldn't be made on a small scale and required a large scale in practice. He talked to farmers and he figured out that their primary problem was that they had no immediate buyer for their coconuts, as this was available in bulk with them it made him research on this.
"When I gained the knowledge from the book I decided to start my plant with the aim that this could solve farmers' challenges as well"
Then, he started his manufacturing along with an engineer and they tried different methods. Firstly, when the process did not turn out well they decided to shut down the plant in 2 days but when they checked on the plant again they found out that the centrifuge of the plant was damaged. They repaired it again and started the work again and they could finally make the finest coconut oil.
The company, which started by gathering knowledge from the book, is now one of the leading virgin coconut oil companies. Over the years, the company has expanded from the small state of Goa to all over the world. Earlier, most of the companies produced low-quality processed coconut oil, so the company decided to provide highly processed virgin coconut oil and target the upper middle class. Not only is the company able to grow manifolds, but it can also make sure that all the stakeholders are able to grow.
The company has educated more than 300 farmers, which in turn resulted in an increase in their income. First, all the farmers gather, then the major issues are identified and the solution is given by the expert to the farmers. Earlier, farmers used to face a huge issue in finding buyers. That issue was resolved by the company by providing an offer to buy coconut at a decent price.
The company has also helped farmers grow chilly, which is not in the purview of the company's business. It has also connected to several coconut-producing societies in order to maximise the reach of available farmers. These societies help them gather information about small coconut-producing farmers and the issues facing them. Those issues are then rectified by using the expertise of the company and society. This will help the farmers grow their business, i.e., cultivate more and better coconuts. This will increase the income of the farmer as well as the company. A business that started small has now grown manifolds and provided oxygen to all the stakeholders.
OldGoa is the manufacturer and exporter of organic products mainly produced out of coconut and caters to health, body and hair, and face care products. It is one of the leading market players in Goa and has a manufacturing unit set up in around 15000 sq. ft.
Being known for its valuable research in Goan coconuts and with the faith and trust of people on its side, OldGoa has been able to create a mark and make a strong position in Goa as well as the international market. It has an authorized capital of INR 50 lakhs (5 million) and a paid-up capital of INR 21 lakhs (2.1 million). Also, OldGoa has received various certificates and awards in 15 years. It has been certified as 'Best Brand' in Vibrant Goa Summit by the Chief Minister of the state of Goa. It has also been awarded as the Best Brand by Economic Times and has also bagged many awards and certificates on the international platform.
The business revolves and is segmented around 2 categories- OldGoa (Organic Products) and Mogo (Premium range products). In terms of business from foreign countries, OldGoa has expanded to more than 9 countries which include- Spain, Italy, Abu Dhabi, the USA, and many more. OldGoa is expanding its business by selling its products via online mode through- Amazon and Flipkart. All this has been possible due to an innovative mindset and dedication of the founder and the 12 years of research which is now allowing them to acquire more and more market share and generate higher profits.
OldGoa uses 2% of its profit for CSR activities. OldGoa pursues its business strategy of introducing products that give consumers health & wellness, OldGoa operates in a manner that they believe in giving back to society, thus it not just continues to generate an attractive return for the company, but also minimizes our impact on staying innovative, dynamic, and socially responsible at every step in the journey.
The whole focus of OldGoa is to buy coconuts from farmers and make virgin coconut oil as per the company's products. But the way OldGoa works beyond its supplier relationship with farmers, providing the necessary education on farming coconut in a way to increase productivity, is remarkable. The company has helped farmers get a decent price for their coconuts and grow their business by cultivating more and better coconuts.
The waste management of the used coconuts by the OldGoa is for the benefit of society. They even incur more costs to process waste effectively rather than just getting away from the produced waste, which most companies do.
Through sustainable measures, OldGoa actively contributes to the social, economic, and environmental development of the coconut farming community. Ensuring participation from the community thereby creates value for the nation.
MISSION OldGoa
1. Ensuring socio-economic development of the farmers through different participatory and need- based initiatives in the best interest of the poor and deprived sections of the society so as to help them to become SELF-RELIANT and build a better tomorrow for themselves.
2. Ensuring environmental sustainability through waste management, ecological conservation, and regeneration, protection & regrowth of local coconut species.
EDUCATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP
OldGoa provides scholarships for 2 deserving village children in Goa and pays for their schooling expenses for the year.
TRIBAL FARMS & FARMERS
The CSR activities we pursue will be in line with our stated Vision and Mission, focused not just around our plants and offices, but also in other geographies based on the needs of the communities.
The two main focus areas where special Community Development programs would be run are:
1. Providing clean and safe drinking water to the farmers and their families.
2. Providing education and training to the needy farmers to help them prosper in their trade and help their business grow.
WORKSHOP & TRAINING STUDENTS
OldGoa offers apprenticeship courses for students wanting to learn Coconut farming and also for working in a VCO manufacturing plant.
Besides these, OldGoa also contributes in various funds like
• Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund
• Any other fund set up by the Central Government for:
socio-economic development and relief, for the welfare of Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, other Backward classes, minorities, and women.
Thus, OldGoa helps in giving back to society in an inspirational way.
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Paresh Shetgaonkar, Founder
OldGoa Oils and Foods Private Limited was founded by Mr Paresh Shetgaonkar in 2006. It was launched in 2018 after 12 years of extensive research and development in Goan coconuts and its medicinal benefits to develop the best products for the local and international markets.