about us

Forbyof Lab is an automation technology + visual communication design company based in Bangalore, India.

We are a team of trouble shooters and problem solvers - entrepreneurs who like to disrupt the incumbent processes that are inefficient - especially in the supply chain vertical. We work on business workflow automation as well as branding and communication design for clients in the areas of environmental sustainability, green energy, health food, education, science and conservation of Indian art.

Our core expertise lies in Business Automation, Brand Consulting and Visual Communication Design.

Founders

Arun Parasur

With a degree in Engineering followed by 15+ years in the corporate world of software businesses, Arun founded Forbyof Lab, an automation startup in 2016. After maturing the automation workflows, through successful pilots for large businesses like Unilever, VIP Bags, Timex & Philips among others, the SaaS product called The Right Hand Men was launched in 2022. It is targeted at the micro & small businesses - enabling them to achieve scale.

Arun is also passionate about STEM concepts, financial & business models, DIY projects on refurbishing, reviving or re-purposing mechanical/electrical/electronic tools & gadgets. His favorite authors include Malcolm Gladwell, Richard Bach, Edward De Bono & Richard Feynman.

Prachi Kamdar

With a Bachelors degree from The National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad and a Masters from Cranbrook Academy of Art, MI, USA, Prachi has been a practitioner of Visual Communication Design for more than a decade in Bangalore.

Her work includes graphic design in the areas of technology, education, hospitality, editorial and art for clients that include SAP Labs, EkStep Foundation, Tasveer Art Gallery, National Centre for Biological Sciences, IISER, and so on. Besides commercial projects, her personal work explores visual communication about - subjective socio-political views on global issues, at times intercrossed with interests in anthropology & philosophy. Being an ardent traveler, confluences of visual design across world cultures are perpetually on her radar. However, her deepest reverence is reserved for Indian cultural heritage. She is also associated with The National Institute of Design, Bangalore, as a visiting Faculty & as a co-author for a few upcoming NID Publications.

Automation

Forbyof Lab is a digital automation & analytics solution provider for large and medium enterprises. It helps businesses to identify processes that can be digitized and automated. It focuses on providing customizable workflows that automate the marketing, sales, customer onboarding, post-sale support, payments, inventory, fulfillment and more. The goal is to democratize automation as a way of executing business operations. This enables them to scale without additional overheads and achieve operation that is cost-effective, repeatable, predictable and error free. For more information, visit our automation page.

Visual Design

Forbyof Design is a Visual Communication studio that specializes in Branding and Graphic design. Projects range from the design of logo, brand communication strategy, print & publication, environmental graphics, type design, info graphics, etc. in the areas of technology, education, hospitality, editorial and art.

As a part of its creative approach, the studio explores a wide range of visual forms - from digital design to the use of traditional techniques, such as block printing, paper making, screen printing, embroidery, etc.

They undertake significant design work for the social sector, including a notable project for The EkStep Foundation, Bangalore, which required designing and defining Typographic Guidelines for their digital platform that delivered Primary education to children across rural India.

Forbyof Studio also conducts research on some indigenous Indian craft practices, documenting their history, cultural significance, and current status. This work helps establish commercial platforms and global markets for artisans through partnerships with corporates, nonprofits or brands. For more information on the design studio, visit www.forbyof.info

Initiatives

1. MILLETS & ORGANIC FOODS

The project started as a personal journey of trying to adopt healthier food alternatives to the popular culprits - Polished grains and dals, Roller-milled flours, White rice, Refined oils, Refined white sugar and chemically loaded fruits and vegetables, etc. One needs to understand that once these food products are harvested, a lot of processing and chemical treatments are done to them by the time they arrive in our kitchens. This is primarily done to extend its shelf life, prevent spoilage, make it more palatable and convenient, but at a huge cost of devoting them/stripping them off, the foods of most of their nutritional benefits, which beats the very purpose of consuming food for nutrition. Including millets, our ancestral food again in our daily lives.

We realized that though there are a lot of healthier options to the refined and processed foods out there in the market, there are some real challenges in effortless switching to them:

1. The price is higher than regular grocery and vegetables
2. There are many brands and picking out the genuine one is confusing
3. There are many online channels but comes with delivery and platform fees, increasing the budget of already increased price range, making it difficult to make a regular purchase as a permanent lifestyle switch
4. Specialty stores are far and few
5. Lack of awareness related to dangers of eating commonly available foods and
6. Taste & Recipe
7. Ease of preparation, cooking
8. Shelf life & storage

So the BIG question appeared: How can I buy healthier options by default as my regular monthly grocery list? How can it become a default practice that if I need to buy sugar for example, my most affordable, convenient options are raw unrefined sugar. How can I get access to a market that is flooded with genuine products and certified brands only. Filtered and verified against their fake competitors. Through retail channels that do not charge me extra for time or platform. From a collective of products that inform me about what all I can include for nutrition focused food. Something that my ancestors ate and is time tested, has a local name. A way where the middle men entities are minimized promising me a fair price.

This initiative is our work towards addressing the above concerns.

So what are we doing through this initiative?

1. Firstly we are identifying what foods need to be changed for health benefits and what are their healthy alternatives
2. Then research on where the alternatives are available and the issues in adapting to those.
3. Identifying genuine sellers from the flood of suppliers
4. Working out a fair retail solution for their purchase - that is easy to access, affordable, can be adopted for long term
5. A democratic intersection point for the suppliers and consumers. May the most genuine of the market gain the highest visibility and may the customers get what they are looping for in the utmost fair method.

2. Anthropology Studio

This project has been initiated to work with the regional artisans across India, with a focus on historic and cultural art and craft forms.

The intent is to contribute to 1. Conservation 2. Promotion and 3. Creating Commercial retail channels for their survival. The current collaborations include block printing with natural dyes in Ajrakhpur, Kutch, Gujarat, Jamakkalam rugs weaving tradition of Bhavani in Tamil Nadu's Erode district, to be followed by work with tile makers from Morbi, the ceramic capital of India.

A conscious effort is made to promote art and craft practices that are natural, chemical free and sustainable.

Through the course of this initiative, our aim is to 1. Meticulously track the evolution of materials & everyday utility objects in human history (in the Indian subcontinent) 2. Analyse how they transformed into becoming ‘Art’ or a form of ‘Visual Expression’ and representative of that particular culture and ultimately 3. Re-establish its relevance today - in a world that is waking up to the urgent call for sustainability.