How A Woman Turned Textile Waste Into Recycled Paper And Built A Rs 20 Crore Venture While Battling Cancer

Paperdom is more than stationery. It is a world of carefully designed, eco-conscious and premium paper products. Leading this dream is Ritu Richa Jain, a courageous entrepreneur who created her place in a field dominated by men and also faced cancer with strength.

Her journey of trials and victories started in 2012 when she set up the company with Rs. 25 lakh. She invested her savings, the money earned from her handmade paintings, and the support she received from her father-in-law to make her dream come true.

Ritu Richa Jain, the woman behind Paperdom, turned textile waste into recycled paper and built a Rs 20 crore eco friendly stationery brand (Photos: Special Arrangement)

The company is headquartered in Surat, popularly known as the textile city of Gujarat. The company operates under the registered name of Vijita Ecovations LLP and is valued currently at Rs 20 crore.

Beginning their operations as a B2B manufacturing venture, Paperdom later began to directly sell their products to customers. The company recycles around 10 to 15 tons of textile waste and natural fibres every month to create sustainable paper.


“In 2012, the words ‘sustainable’ and ‘recycling’ were almost alien in India. It was very difficult to make people understand what we were doing. Selling the product was a big challenge. People asked me why they should buy paper from me. In fact, there wasn’t a single buyer for the first year of business,” recalls Ritu.

From 2012 to 2020, Paperdom focused on manufacturing and sold papers with a wide variety of textures, colours, grains, and finishes to traders and distributors.

In 2020, Ritu took a big step forward by turning her handmade papers into finished products. She introduced a variety of stationery and packaging items, which reduced direct paper sales by almost 80 percent and gave her brand a special identity.

Ritu carved her path in a male dominated industry and faced breast cancer with courage while growing Paperdom

Paperdom’s factory in Surat, Ahmedabad, uses textile waste, yarn from mills, and banana fibre from plantations to make recycled paper.

The product range started with 30 items in 2020 and has now grown to 45. These include notebooks, planners, organisers, sketchbooks, wood free pencils, memo pads, drawing books, and gift hampers. Prices start at Rs. 160 for a memo pad and go up to Rs. 1,600 for a daily planner, while hampers cost Rs. 2,800.

The business expanded into two units within its first decade. But in 2023, at the age of 37, Ritu faced the greatest crisis in her life after she was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer. The treatment pushed her limits in every way, both physical and emotional.

“It came out of nowhere during a routine check-up. Getting to know this, rushing to doctors, and finally hospitalisation was the hardest stop of my life. I never knew my body and routine would change so drastically,” she shares.

“I faced shedding of skin and hair, pigmentation - but more than the physical, the social stigma was harder. People’s reactions were difficult. For a long time, I stayed in my room, with a cloud over my head.”

Determined to overcome the isolation, Ritu opened up about her struggles on Instagram. “Pouring my heart out did a lot of weight shedding from my head. It gave me confidence to face the world. I still remember how my cook laughed the first time she saw me without hair. But there were also many who gave me strength.” Today, her treatment is over, and she is on the path to a strong recovery.

Despite the setbacks, Paperdom continues to thrive. About 80% of its revenue comes through its own website, while the rest is generated from e-commerce platforms like Amala Earth, Brown Living, and Amazon.

Operating from a 4,000 sq. ft. space, which includes a 750 sq. ft. store, the company also supplies premium outlets such as Design Ni Dukaan and Crossword.

Ritu with Paperdom’s premium eco friendly stationery

Ritu, now 40, grew up in Ranchi in a joint family of 40 members. Her father ran a printing business, and her mother was a homemaker who now helps with the store while Ritu manages the factory and her young daughter.

She completed her schooling at T & TV High School, VV Nagar, and earned her B.Sc. in 2005 and M.Sc. in 2007 from the University of Gujarat.

In 2007, she was awarded a junior research fellowship at IIT Bombay, but she left midway in 2009, searching for her true passion. That search took her to Sanganer, Jaipur, in 2011, where she attended a paper-making workshop.

The experience proved life-changing. “I used to visit my father’s factory, where 5,000 tons of paper was stocked. It was distressful, knowing that paper came at the cost of trees. After the course in Sanganer, I found my true calling in sustainable paper.”

With her Rs. 25 lakh investment, Ritu set up her first unit in 2012. The funds were used for space, interiors, machinery, raw materials, and working capital. Starting with 10 to 12 employees, Paperdom now has 15, though the number was higher when they ran two factories. But her own health crisis, combined with COVID, forced them to shut down one unit and continue with just one.

Speaking of her early struggles, Ritu notes, “Handling the male crowd, especially workers, was the most difficult task. They were used to male bosses, so my voice did not carry weight. I had to build a reputation, but there were still times when I had to call my husband to make them understand what I was expecting.”

Paperdom stationery made from recycled textile waste and banana fibre; notebooks, planners and more designed for those who care for the planet

Ritu and her husband, Chitresh Jain, are now proud parents of their eight-month-old daughter, Rumi, named after the poet Rumi, whose writings inspire her. Outside work, she enjoys swimming, adventure sports, and café hopping.

Her message to budding entrepreneurs is simple and grounded: “I don’t think I need to give any gyaan to the current generation. They are clear in their head about what to do and how to do it.

“I think my generation and the one after created awareness and made conscious choices, which have paved the way for the next generation of entrepreneurs.” - ©TWL