When I heard that the Green Shop had opened its first outlet in the city, my first response was, “About time.” Run and managed by the Last Forest Enterprises, the marketing initiative of the Kotagiri-based Keystone Foundation, the store stocks products sourced from local communities across the state and country.
The Coimbatore shop is managed by the petite, soft-voiced Shanmitha. An Economics graduate, she worked with Keystone Foundation for two years and found “many people from Coimbatore, Erode, Salem and Tiruppur came all the way to the Nilgiris to visit the shop.” Though many of these products are available online on the Last Forest website, Shanmitha found that “people like to taste and smell items like honey and balms. Many want to see and handle what is available before they actually buy.” And thus the Coimbatore store was born.
The first thing that caught my eye was rows of Last Forest Honey but a closer look showed that there was much more. Balms for the lips and body and soaps made of beeswax, Seabuckthorn squash, different kinds of jams and pickles, millets, spices, rock salt (both crystal and powdered), ceramic ware, essential oils…. Metal bells, trays from Auroville, note pads of handmade paper and paper and cloth bags complete the ensemble.
Shanmitha shows me a container for the largest honey bottles. Covered with tribal paintings and stories, it can either be re-used to store other items or as a decorative item.
Another great idea is a tasteful gift rack comprising five test tubes, each filled with a spice and closed with corks. The rack she shows me has cardamom, mace, cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg but “this can be customised,” she smiles.
Health food forms a major chunk of the products. Flax and fenugreek seeds, amla candy, dry amla, powders like methi, black jamun, cinnamon and gurmar, jaggery, bamboo rice and millets … “The millets are seasonal,” says Shanmitha. “So you won’t find everything through the year. Since we procure from local farmers, it depends on what they are growing in that season.”
One room is devoted to textiles. Handloom saris and garments from the Hyderabad-based Abhihaara and Toda stoles and shawls are tastefully displayed. The saris are hung on a wooden log tied to the ceiling with ropes made of coconut fibre. Ikat dominates the show but there are other kinds too, Shanmitha assures me.
The one common factor for all these products is that they all come under the Fair Price principle. Shanmitha agrees that cheaper options are available but points to two factors: quality and sustainability. “When you see a woman work for 12 hours to weave that cloth and then the effort to make natural dyes or the struggle the honey gatherer goes through to get enough to fill that one bottle, it is worth every rupee,” she says firmly. “Also we ensure that everyone in the production chain – from the primary producer to the transporter – gets a fair price.”
So if you have a yen for organic and sustainable items and wish to support local communities, head for the Green Shop.
Let’s share
There’s more to this Green Shop than just these products. On the first floor are other initiatives planned.
Sharing Library: The first room has two racks with different genres of books displayed. Shanmitha hopes that this will grow soon into a proper library. “People can borrow the books for free and, if anyone wants to donate, we’re more than happy to receive.”
Swap Clothes: The other end of the room has a bunch of clothes hanging on a rack. Say, you have clothes that still look new and nice. Instead of junking them, leave them here. Someone else may like to use it. But no old, faded or torn clothes,” she says sternly.
Build a Community: There’s a larger space that Shanmitha would like to use for people to just sit, chat and share stuff with each other. “We have so many retired people in this city. And they all have something for us to learn from them,” she says wistfully. “I hope this can be a venue where we create a community of like-minded people.” Once she has the space opened up, she would like to host cultural events as well.
B for beeswax
Gathering honey is a seasonal occupation, says Shanmitha. The communities also follow the principle of sustainable honey harvesting, which means they leave enough for the bee to rebuild the comb. So the women have been taught to use the wax from the comb to make candles, balms, soaps, etc. This ensures that they have a steady income through the year.
One unusual product is the beeswax wrap, which can be used to cover items in place of aluminium foil and plastic cling wrap. “Just make sure you don’t use it on anything too hot, as it melts,” warns Shanmitha. The best thing about this wrap is that it can be washed and reused.
Info you can use
The Green Shop is located in 28, Valluavar Street, Tatabad, Sivananda Colony
The store is open 10.00 am from 7.00 pm from Monday to Saturday. For now, it will be closed on Sundays
For details, call 0422-4348277 or email coimbatore@lastforest.in
