PETALING JAYA: Noraishah Osman, a single mother of three with an entrepreneurial spirit, is contributing to the preservation of the environment one recycled bottle at a time.
To mark International Mother Earth Day, which is today, she and three other women are managing a kiosk selling eco-friendly cleaning products in recycled bottles of all shapes and sizes.
“We encourage people to play their part in reducing the impact of fast-moving consumer goods on the environment by applying the three Rs – reduce, reuse and recycle.
“We are reducing the number of disposable plastic bottles by reusing and recycling them,” she told FMT.
Noraishah, better known as Kak Nor by the B40 folk of Lembah Subang, has had to endure hardships to make ends meet since the death of her husband in 2015.
“My children are all grown and living their own lives,” she said. “I knew I shouldn’t depend on them only for my livelihood, so I started my own home-based business selling baked goods and ventured into this business of selling cleaning products.”
Kak Nor and her partners at the kiosk are also regular volunteers for the Lembah Subang Food Bank programme, which has been running since late 2018.
They encourage food recipients to bring their own bags to reduce the use of plastic bags. And in their business, they encourage customers to bring used bottles to pour their Kitarefill cleaning products into.
Kitarefill, a detergent bulk store established in 2012, provides a means of prolonging the lifespan of plastic bottles by reusing them.
“Customers simply have to come up to our kiosk at NZX commercial centre with empty bottles, and we fill them up with the cleaning liquid of their choice,” Noraishah said.
The detergents they sell include dishwashing soap, laundry soap, a floor cleaner, a hand wash and a hand sanitiser.
“We also provide bottles to customers who do not bring their own and advise them to bring these bottles with them when they return for refills,” she said.
They charge by the kilo, excluding the weight of the bottle.
Noraishah said the business, which had a delayed start because of the pandemic, took off last month with regular customers coming from the public housing project (PPR) in Lembah Subang.
“It has been a slow start, but we have loyal customers in the community and we hope to see more people opt for our eco-friendly and sustainable products,” she said.
“Some may say that the profits are low and that it is not worth the trouble, but I look at how this will benefit us in the long term.
“This is about creating a place that is free from pollution and is safe for future generations. And we are doing this one recycled bottle at a time.”
To support Kak Nor and her enterprising team, head over to the Kitarefill Express kiosk at NZX commercial centre, Ara Damansara. Do not forget to bring your own bottles. - FMT
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