Wheedle is a mission-driven platform that tackles multiple challenges simultaneously. It reduces the financial burden on parents; promotes environmental conservation and minimises waste. Validation matters a lot in this pre-owned product space. Wheedle has received an independent Environmental Impact Assessment by Impact Forecast. The platform was rated “Valid, Positive, and Significant.”
- Starting year of the firm – June 2021
- Is it profitable now? Not yet. On a grant by IKEA Foundation as one of the 3 winners of circular economy startups in Bangalore
- Difference between the original price of products and your products – min 50%
- Operate in – Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pune
To ensure a high trust factor, the firm has an obsessive focus where all products undergo a rigorous verification process that include a detailed image analysis, video call demonstrations, comprehensive quality checks and a final “parent-approved” filter.
Breaking Social Barriers
Second-hand shopping in India has long carried a stigma. Wheedle is changing that narrative, transforming it from a compromise to a conscious choice. It’s not about buying used—it’s about making smart, sustainable decisions. What’s more, Wheedle is in the process of reimaging second-hand shopping as a premium experience.
Wheedle’s vision extends far beyond a transactional platform. It’s about creating a circular economy for children’s products and empowering parents to make environmentally conscious choices.
In a world grappling with climate change and resource scarcity, Wheedle represents more than a business. It’s a movement. A statement that says: we can consume responsibly, we can be smart, we can be sustainable.
Environmental Impact Highlights (2022-23)
- Total Emissions Avoided: 2,167 kg CO₂ equivalent
- Net Emissions: -1,752 kg CO₂ equivalent
- Per Product Net Emissions: -5.74 kg CO₂ equivalent
- Total Products Traded: 305 items
- Preventing emissions from 412 round-trip flights between New York and London
- Stopping 412,000 km of petrol vehicle travel
- Offsetting the annual carbon footprint of about 51 individuals in India
The Birth of an Idea
In the fast-paced world of parenting, something doesn’t add up. Parents spend lakhs on essential baby products, only to discard them after a few months of use. The traditional model is broken: buy, use briefly, waste. Wheedle saw this problem not as a challenge, but as an opportunity for radical change.
Founder Snehal Chaitanya’s journey began with early collaborations and ecosystem support. The team’s time at NSRCEL (NS Raghavan Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning) was pivotal, providing crucial insights into running an impact-driven business.
Experimental Approach to Impact
Wheedle’s path was marked by diverse engagement strategies. They included workshops on circular economy in preschools and schools; collaborations with Bangalore Apartment Federation for collection drives; experiments with shop-in-shop models in thrift stores and an innovative approach of listing unsold inventories from first-hand marketplaces.
Wheedle’s roadmap is collaborative and ambitious. It includes expanding city-wide networks, developing more robust verification technologies, dreating educational programs about sustainable parenting and building partnerships with child-care experts and environmental organizations.
Damini Arora, Founder and CEO at Meraki Digital
