“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead

The seeds of inspiration for a recycled seeded paper business were planted in 2009 when founder Roxanne Schumann was at a wedding and started thinking about all the lovely stationery from the event going to waste.
Roxanne teamed up with school friend Nileta Knoetzen, bought some second-hand paper-making equipment and set to work.
Working from the family farm at the foot of the Paardeberg, Roxanne and Nileta’s initial aim was to create a sustainable product that would contribute to upcycling culture and bring a little beauty into the world.
Little did they know that Growing Paper would grow into a source of permanent employment for more than 30 individuals and provide paid upskilling opportunities for countless more.

Officially founding Growing Paper in 2010, Roxanne and Nileta started creating beautiful greeting cards and gift tags by recycling post-consumer waste paper, and embedding it with seeds so that it could be planted to grow into flowers, herbs or vegetables.

Over the next couple of years, the knit Growing Paper family grew to include Franza Louw, who is in charge of administration and Christel Wessels who drive creative development.
They are supported by a hardworking team of permanently employed men and women from the local community who create bespoke recycled paper products for various commercial and artistic applications.
The Growing Paper range has also grown to include everything from wedding invitations to business cards, bookmarks to notebooks, corporate gifts and much more!

Entrepreneurship remains close to the hearts of the founders, whose aim is to stay innovative and create even more jobs as Growing Paper expands in the local and international market.
Because providing secure employment and a living salary for employees is an essential component of the Growing Paper value system, the business also provides ongoing training and life skills workshops, and always ensures to place employees in positions that they enjoy so they can excel in what they do.

Taking job creation and local support to the next level, Growing Paper has also teamed up with selected South African artists, giving them the opportunity to get their work printed on recycled seeded paper products. This has led to amazing collaborations with the likes of Paper Tales, by Monet, Pudding & Pickles and Alexander Maritz.

They say in a world in which you can be anything, you should choose to be kind, and this is what Growing Paper is all about – being kind to the environment, the community and the strong, beautiful people that form a part of it.