Discover the innovative journey of Born Good, a pioneering brand in the realm of home cleaning. Founded by Mohit Belani, Born Good’s commitment to plant-based ingredients and non-toxic formulations has revolutionized the cleaning industry. With a wide range of sustainable products, Born Good ensures effectiveness in cleaning and prioritizes environmental sustainability and consumer safety. Through partnerships, certifications, and continuous innovation, Born Good aims to educate consumers about the benefits of non-toxic cleaning practices while expanding its reach globally. Join the movement towards a cleaner, safer, and more sustainable future with Born Good.
Conducted by Raamesh Chandra, Editor
Raamesh Chandra: Could you start by introducing yourself and briefly describe Born Good and its mission as a provider of plant-based home cleaners, emphasizing its commitment to non-toxicity and effectiveness in cleaning?
Mohit Belani: My name is Mohit Belani. I was born and raised in Bangalore and founded Born Good. Born Good is an innovative, eco-conscious brand that offers a complete range of safe & sustainable home cleaners. While traditional cleaners contain ingredients such as sulphates, phosphates, acid slurry, ammonia, etc, Born Good has substituted all these toxic ingredients with plant and mineral-based ingredients that are not toxic. Our products are, therefore, safe not only on clothes and skin but also on all the surfaces they clean, making them safe for kids and pets. They are non-polluting to our environment (lakes, water bodies, and soil). As we control the manufacturing and R&D, we’ve formulated our products to deliver a cleaning experience that is at par or even better than traditional cleaners. We’re driven by the fact that we’ve created products that enable people to make a small yet significant contribution towards a better planet every time they use our products.
Raamesh Chandra: What inspired the creation of Born Good, and what values or principles drive the brand’s focus on plant-based ingredients for home cleaning products?
Mohit Belani: I previously worked in the textile industry and had a front-row seat in the manufacturing process of denim and other garments. The manufacturing process is very polluting and consumes a lot of water- it takes approximately 3800 litres to make a pair of denim jeans (from the cotton crop to ready-to-wear jeans). I was motivated to create a solution that made clothes last longer and helped reduce fast-fashion consumption. The solution we came up with was a detergent that not only makes clothes last longer but is also plant-based and far safer for the environment. In my research, I found out that in addition to traditional detergents, other home cleaners like floor cleaners, toilet cleaners, etc., also contain neither safe nor eco-friendly chemicals. There was a definite gap in the market for safer yet effective home cleaning solutions – the genesis of the idea that became Born Good.
Raamesh Chandra: How does Born Good ensure the efficacy of its plant-based cleaners compared to traditional chemical-based alternatives while maintaining its commitment to non-toxicity?
Mohit Belani: Efficacy is as essential to us as being plant-based. As a brand, we must balance being plant-based and creating a product that cleans well. When it comes to formulating an effective cleaner, it comes down to choosing the right ingredients after extensive R&D. Surfactants or surface-based cleaners are vital ingredients in our products, and we have found that coconut-based surfactants (though a little more expensive) provide a balanced, safe yet effective cleaner. We also extensively used bio-zymes, fragrances from essential oils, and vegetable oils derived from plants or minerals. We’re also the first in India to have USDA-certified our products. This certification process objectively quantifies how much of the product is from plants and how much is from synthetic sources. Most of our products have a USDA BioBased score of high 90’s. Traditional cleaners have scores that are in the 40s.
Raamesh Chandra: Can you provide insights into the development process of Born Good’s cleaning formulas, from selecting plant-based ingredients to testing for effectiveness and safety?
Mohit Belani: It boils down to finding a balance between being effective and plant-based. We work closely with our suppliers to choose the suitable ingredients for our cleaning surface. Raw materials for clothing care are different for a hard surface like a floor or dish. We choose different fragrance notes for each product that are more contemporary and give a pleasant feeling at home. Each new formulation is tested in our lab and by external 3rd party labs for efficacy against traditional cleaners. We also send samples to the USDA program, and if the product is below our plant-based threshold, we go back to the formulation and improve. Having in-house R&D and manufacturing is what sets us apart from other brands.
Raamesh Chandra: What sets Born Good apart from other home cleaning brands regarding product range, sustainability practices, or packaging?
Mohit Belani: Our product range is vast, innovative, and sustainable. We’re the only brand to offer innovative products that solve genuine customer needs, such as our fabric wrinkle remover, which removes wrinkles from cotton garments with a spray. We also have our Colour Protect and Anti Microbial Liquid Detergents, formulated to protect dark clothes from fading and keep away the funky odour in your workout clothes. In addition to product innovation, we’ve also innovated on the form factor. We have a range of concentrated cleaners where the customer has to add water to the concentrate at home and ‘make’ their cleaner. This is a sustainable option as we’re not transporting what is mostly water across the country, and it encourages our customers to reuse older bottles. We’re launching our tablet range soon and will start with detergent and fabric whitener tablets. They are convenient to use, more economical and don’t contain plastic packaging.
Raamesh Chandra: How does Born Good address concerns about sustainability and environmental impact in its production and distribution processes?
Mohit Belani: Our manufacturing facility is registered as a ZDHC facility. This means there is Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals. Further, all water we use goes through a 7-step ETP and 3-stage RO process and is ultimately so clean that we use it for gardening. Via our concentrated range, we can provide 1 Liter worth of cleaners in a 100ml-pack—meaning we use less packaging and save on carbon emissions from transporting what is otherwise water. This is a very sustainable option.
Raamesh Chandra: What strategies does Born Good employ to educate consumers about the benefits of plant-based home cleaners and encourage the adoption of non-toxic cleaning practices?
Mohit Belani: With the proliferation of clean-label brands in skincare, cosmetics, and now even F&B, the Indian consumer is aware of the importance of not having toxic ingredients. Unlike many traditional cleaners, we call out our ingredients on the packaging or link to the ingredients via a QR code. We are also the only brand to have our products USDA certified and share the score of each product on the label and the product pages online. Being transparent about our ingredients builds trust.
Raamesh Chandra: Can you discuss any partnerships or collaborations Born Good has engaged in to promote its products or further its mission of providing safe and effective cleaning solutions?
Mohit Belani: I’ve spoken in detail about the USDA BioPreferred program and would like to highlight two other programs we participate in that we are very proud of. We have partnered with The Disposal Company, and through this partnership, we recycle 100% of the plastic we sell. We work closely with them to ensure that if we have sold X kg of plastic, we go into landfills, collect X kg of plastic, send it to recycling centres and get back X kg of plastic inputs. And this is what makes us a plastic-neutral brand. The other partnership is with Cruelty-Free International. They are a UK-based organization that supports us by auditing our supply chain and manufacturing processes to ensure we do not test on animals or use animal byproducts. I am happy to say that Born Good has been pet-friendly and Cruelty-Free since its inception.
Raamesh Chandra: Is Born Good funded? If yes, at what valuation?
Mohit Belani: We are funded but do not share valuation details.
Raamesh Chandra: Looking ahead, what are Born Good’s plans for growth and expansion, and how does the brand envision continuing to promote non-toxic, plant-based cleaning alternatives to consumers?
Mohit Belani: From a product perspective, we have some very innovative products coming up in the next quarter. We will be the first Made In India brand to launch detergent and fabric whitener tablets. We’re also going to launch our aromatherapy range of foaming handwashes shortly. From a distribution point of view, we’re in all established marketplaces and on our website and are soon beginning our offline journey. We’ve had lots of interest from companies representing us in international markets, and we might launch in a couple of other countries, too.
