At a Glance
Location: São Paulo, Brazil
Impact Areas: Sustainable Income, Environment
People Supported:
Women, Small Producers & Artisans, Urban
Joined NESsT Portfolio:
2015
Overview
The textile industry is one of the most significant and important sectors of the Brazilian economy. Every year, the industry produces 175,000 tons of textile waste, which causes a negative impact on the environment. Retalhar is a social enterprise that specializes in recycling used textiles to make corporate gifts and blankets. The firm offers corporations with an easy way to dispose of their used uniforms and other textiles, helping them to meet environmental regulations. At the same time, Retalhar trains and contracts women from low-income communities to produce the upcycled corporate gifts and blankets, increasing their household income and livelihoods.
Retalhar Founders Lucas Corvacho (L) and Jonah Lessa (R) met while working in the impact reduction department at Lutha Uniformes, where they identified a market need for recycling used uniforms in Brazil.
Results & Impact
10.5 tons
textile waste to be recycled
38
local women to receive income
2,956
underserved individuals reached
“Being surrounded by the expertise and experiences provided by NESsT was really important for us. With the guidance of NESsT’s professional team and the tools they supplied, we strengthened our company’s strategic concept. What we learned and achieved with NESsT will be deeply rooted in Retalhar’s culture.”
NESsT Investment
Rethalhar joined the NESsT portfolio in 2015. NESsT selected Retalhar for initial investment as part of a start-up competition hosted with the University of São Paulo.
NESsT focused its early investments in Retalhar to strengthen the team, including hiring two key positions, as well as connecting the leadership team with advisors in the NESsT mentor network to help on management challenges. NESsT also supported Retalhar in making essential improvements to the processing center, to ensure the company is poised to achieve greater sales and impact.
NESsT is now working with Retalhar to identify opportunities for growth and to expand and further develop its social enterprise model. As the company continues to scale, the NESsT portfolio team in Brazil is working closely with Retalhar to overcome the challenges of building a larger team, improving operations and managing a greater number of clients.