2. After quitting her job as an actuarial analyst,
Kaviya Cherian rediscovered her passion for the
culinary arts. In 2020, she founded Green
Heirloom, a brand of cookware and stoneware
fashioned by contemporary artisans from across
India. Its products range from cast-iron pans and
clay curry pots to bronze serving platters. The
cookware creators modify traditional cooking
designs, such as roti tawa'a large, flat pan made
for making roti bread--into lighter and smaller
sizes for modern kitchens. Since its launch, the
company's revenue increased three-fold,
according to Cherian.
3. Kaviya Cherian from Cochin, Kerala, launched Green
Heirloom, a traditional cookware business, after
experiencing the difference it makes to the taste of
the food being cooked.
No matter how much She try, the taste of my
grandmother’s cooking (tin vessel) is something she
can never replicate using her regular vessels.
A year-and-a-half, She was working as an actuarial
analyst in Mumbai but she didn’t find the satisfaction
in that job. She quiet her job in January 2019, Kaviya
moved back to Cochin, Kerala, where her parents
lived and subsequently visited Thiruvalla, where her
grandparents lived.
4. But while most traditional houses still use such
cookware, Kaviya found that they were not
easily available in shops. It was this realisation
that led to Green Heirloom being established in
August 2020. “The health benefits of using this
cookware are also tremendous.”
One of the biggest challenges Kaviya faced was not
being able to travel to meet the vendors making
the cookware. She says, “Just before the launch I
had to make do by speaking to them on voice calls
and doing video calls with them from June 2020. I
had to make sure that I was getting the right
products to start with. With things easing up a bit,
I started travelling to meet the vendors and
physically checking the products I was retailing.”
5. Kaviya mentions that she started with an initial
investment of about Rs 3.5 lakhs and says, “I tried to
work within the budget I had set for myself. With the
help of YouTube tutorials, I made my own website to
begin with. Once business started picking up, I made an
investment in revamping the look of the website.” The
cookware that retails at Green Heirloom comes from all
across India.
Green Heirloom retails products made out of clay, cast
iron, stoneware and bronze/kansa items. One can find
tawa, kadai, skillet, appam pans, mortar pestle, bronze
uralis and even bronze puttu makers.
6. Green Heirloom is a unique platform that brings to you sustainable
and eco-friendly cookware from artisans and creators across the
country. Making a purchase on Green Heirloom not only assures you
quality and a treasured asset that can be bequeathed to generations,
it also helps you to do your bit in sustaining many communities who
rely on this traditional occupation. We reach out to these artisans,
involve and engage with them at each step of the way, to bring you a
product suited to your precise specifications while also ensuring that
the artisans are rewarded adequately for their efforts. So the clay pot
that your food is cooking in is not only synonymous with good taste,
it is also reflective of the legacy of a community that strives on this
art.
7.
8.
9. In the olden times, people in rural India used to cook in
clay pots or handi, which was healthy and flavoursome.
Earthenware had always been an intrinsic part of Indian
households and Ayurveda suggests cooking in clay pot.
Why Deep Burned/Blackened clay pots?
Deep Burned Clay pots are made using a very old
traditional pottery technique. A normal red clay pot is
kilned once, but deep burned pots are put in the Kiln
twice.. The second time, potters bake the pots stacked
together with wood and sawdust at a high temperature.
This blackens the pots and also makes it very strong and
durable. Deep Burned Pots can withstand very high
temperature and last longer.
10. Soapstone is dense and absorbs heat slowly, but once heated, it stays warm
for a long time. Soapstone is also porous. So once your food cools, the
soapstone keeps it cooler still by letting the cool air in through its pores. This
makes refrigeration unnecessary unless it’s peak summer and it’s hot and
humid. In normal temperatures, you can just store your food in your
kalchatti and it’ll remain good even after several hours. The beauty of
soapstone is that it can be used directly over flame, over coals, over fire and
also on toaster grills and in the oven. You can cook with them over various
mediums without worrying that they’ll break or melt. Besides, it is also rich
in magnesium, a vital mineral that is obtained from foods like legumes,
pumpkin seeds, tofu, whole grains and dark chocolate. Our soapstone
cookware is handcrafted by traditional artisans.
11. Kaviya Cherian, “GREEN HEIRLOOM” have acheived many
success in her entrepreneurial endevors journey, that she
has faced many challenges, such as, she started her business
in the time of lockdown June 2020, that made her to not to
travel for visiting vendors and she made her deals through
voice call and video call with the vendors.
It is important note that failure is a natural part of the entrepreneurial
process, and many successful experience to set their achieving goals.
failures can provide valuable learning experience, helping entrepreneurss
refine their strategies and ultimately grow stronger.
12. I am the founder of Green
Heirloom, a sustainable lifestyle
brand that champions local
artisans and promotes eco-
friendly living. Before embarking
on my entrepreneurial journey, I
spent time working as an
actuarial analyst at Icici
Lombard, where I was a part of
the personal accident actuarial
department.
