Monika Dharia never set out to build a company. She set out to solve a problem: why was every rain poncho made from petroleum-based plastic that gets used once and thrown away? Today, she’s the founder and CEO of GreenGear Supply Company, a Certified B Corporation making sustainable rain ponchos and bags for events, retail, and attractions. GreenGear’s EcoRain® Ponchos and EcoBags, made from renewable sugarcane instead of petroleum plastic, are trusted by organizations including the Philadelphia Eagles, Live Nation Canada, and the Boston Marathon.
Monika first identified the problem as an engineering student at Duke University, where daily thunderstorms and a lack of sustainable rain gear sparked the idea for what would become the EcoRain® Poncho. She graduated in 2019 with a degree in Environmental Engineering and an Economics minor and won the Sabin Sustainable Venture Prize at Yale. She went on to spend two years at Bain & Company before going all-in on GreenGear in 2022.
Under her leadership, GreenGear continues to advance its sugarcane-based materials and circularity models, pushing every generation of product toward better performance and a smaller environmental footprint.
After years of vision and work, GreenGear recently launched its social impact production model in partnership with Goodwill Legacy Group. Ponchos are now produced by a U.S.-based Goodwill Legacy Group team, giving people facing employment barriers an opportunity for steady work, with proceeds reinvested into financial coaching, stable housing, accessible healthcare and other supportive services.
For Monika, business is a tool for change: every product should protect the planet and lift up the people who make it.
