Welspun Group announces the winner of Disruptor, an innovation challenge for the new-gen ESG thinkers

Mumbai : Welspun Group, one of India’s fastest-growing global conglomerates, has announced Team SharX from Xavier Institute of Management (XIMB), Bhubaneswar as the winner of its ESG innovation challenge – Disruptor. Team SharX will receive seed funding of INR 10 lakhs from Welspun Group for their business proposal that focused on an overarching ESG narrative with an effort at tackling fashion’s adverse effects on the environment, sustainability and more. The winning team was among 100 teams shortlisted in this competition.

Team SharX, with XIMB students Lohitya Shreya Vinnakota, Hridaya Ramanarayanam, Akash Routray and Popuri Ravi Sankar as members, built on the concept of circular economy and proposed a solution to reduce fast fashion wastages while promoting rural women’s welfare. They were announced as winners following four rounds of the competition, which included submission of the idea, masterclasses with Welspun leaders, the qualifiers and a final presentation.

Speaking on this, Ms. Dipali Goenka, CEO & Jt. MD, Welspun India Ltd. said, “Through the course of Disruptor, we were privileged to hear from some of the brightest young minds driven by their passion to make a difference. These are the real agents of change who stand to propel India towards a sustainable future. We’re excited to laud SharX as this year’s winners, who were exceptional in demonstrating their vision to disrupt the current order and build value, based on ESG indicators. We found their idea and advanced approach to combat an environmental issue through e-commerce unique, scalable, and embedding the values of the circular economy at its core.”

Disruptor, a first-of-its-kind competition by Welspun Group in partnership with Dare2Compete was launched in August 2021 as a platform for young entrepreneurs to present path-breaking ideas of sustainable Environment, Social and Governance business solutions. This programme, under Welspun Group’s Welocity initiative, is a celebration of the spirit of entrepreneurship as the organization continues to recognize ESG as an inextricable part of today’s evolving business landscape.