UNAIR NEWS – Packed schedules made some people miss some of their plans. Therefore, some people wrote their daily activities using paper-based planners.
However, the use of a paper-based planner is not sustainable because when it has exceeded its use it will be thrown away. It inspired Stefanny Elly, a student of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP) UNAIR, to develop acrylic-based planners that prioritize sustainability development.
Stefanny shared how she started her business. It was inspired by her difficulty in managing time between organization, job, and classes. Therefore, the idea of making a daily acrylic-based planner with sustainability concept is started. Acreelic started in 2020 as a replacement for a more economical and environmentally friendly paper-based planner.
“Usually, planners used books and sometimes it could not be found when we forgot, that’s the first of thought on how to make a practical and more cost-effective planner compared to using papers that must be refilled and wasting many papers which is not sustainable,” Stefanny stated.
Acreelec, Stefanny continued, at first was just a planner. Then there are more requests to make graduations, weddings, and hampers souvenirs. Sales turnover from Acreelec in 2020 ranges from 20 million, with total orders reaching 500 pieces.
The struggle Stefanny often faced was from fierce competitions and limited of time. There are lots of acrylic business competitions and sometimes more creative, and most of them build up their businesses full time, in contrast to Stefanny.
“Meanwhile, I am a student with various activities in and outside campus, that’s why sometimes it’s not optimal. On the other hand, there is this feeling of fear of not being able, but fortunately, in joining PMW (Student Entrepreneurship Program, ed) activity, I’ve been given tips and directions on how to handle that problem and other problems while developing that business. They gave funds and mentors too, so it is more directed and more focused,” she said.
In the future, Stefanny wanted to export her products because the market in Indonesia is abundant, and the international market has a bigger chance to expand.
“Do not be afraid to try because we don’t know the result until we try,” she concluded.
Author: Ananda Wildhan Wahyu Pratama
Editor : Binti Q. Masruroh
