Sagarmatha Next
Sagarmatha Next is a Nepal-based non-profit operating an experience centre at 3,775m near Namche Bazaar that combines crowdsourced mountain waste removal (Carry Me Back), upcycled souvenir production, and an artist residency program to advance sustainable tourism in the Khumbu region.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersNamche Bazaar, Nepal
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Sagarmatha Next does
Sagarmatha Next is a Nepal-based non-profit organization that operates a multi-use experience centre at 3,775 metres altitude in Syangboche, near Namche Bazaar in the Khumbu region of Sagarmatha National Park. The organization's core operational model combines waste management with environmental art and sustainable tourism. Its flagship initiative is "Carry Me Back," a crowdsourced waste removal system that leverages the movement of trekkers and guides to transport waste from high-altitude trails down to Kathmandu for recycling through partner BW2V (Blue Waste to Value). A second initiative, "Waste to Product," upcycles HDPE bottle caps collected from trekking trails into functional souvenirs under the "From the Himalayas" line, designed by Super Local and produced by moware design. The centre also runs the "Denali Schmidt Art Gallery," one of the highest art galleries in the world, supported by an artist residency program backed by the Denali Foundation.
The organization operates a 1,850 square metre site comprising four buildings (house, learning centre, workshop & shop, café & gallery), constructed across four phases from September 2017 to May 2022 due to extreme altitude and climate conditions. Revenue is generated through a hybrid model including artwork sales, upcycled souvenir sales (priced 1,300–13,000 NPR per item), café operations, donations via the "Friends of Sagarmatha Next" programme, and corporate sponsorships (Dell Technologies sponsors Carry Me Back since Spring 2022; Kiehl's and Sherpa Watches contribute via product-linked giving). Customer segments include trekkers and mountaineers, artists-in-residence, local businesses in the Khumbu region, schools, and global art patrons and donors. All operational profits are directed toward sustaining the project and supporting the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC) for waste management in the Khumbu region.
Sagarmatha Next firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Sagarmatha Next
- Legal name
- Sagarmatha Next
- Website
- https://sagarmathanext.com
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Sagarmatha Next is a Nepal-based non-profit operating an experience centre at 3,775m near Namche Bazaar that combines crowdsourced mountain waste removal (Carry Me Back), upcycled souvenir production, and an artist residency program to advance sustainable tourism in the Khumbu region.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Sagarmatha Next industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Sustainable Tourism & Mountain Waste Management
- NAICS
- Waste Collection (56211), Remediation and Other Waste Management Services (5629), Waste Management and Remediation Services (562)
- SIC
- Refuse Systems (4953), Sanitary Services (4950)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Product Take-Back & Reverse Logistics Programs (EUAIANAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Eco-Friendly Disposal, Recycling & Donation Hauling (HSAIAOAJ), Recycling, E-Waste & End-of-Life Takeback Programs (TLAAALAN)
Keywords
Where Sagarmatha Next is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Namche Bazaar
- HQ country
- Nepal
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices2 records
Markets served
Sagarmatha Next business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Artwork Sales: Sale of unique artworks created by artists-in-residence from mountain waste materials. Artists create pieces during residencies that are sold to collectors worldwide.
- Upcycled Souvenirs: Sale of 'From the Himalayas' product line including Himalaya models, stone pendants (Renjo-La, Cho-La, Kongma-La) made from HDPE bottle caps collected from trekking trails. Also includes full product sets.
- Stone Hearts: Sale of handcrafted stone hearts carved during centre construction. Each stone heart is placed on pathways to Sagarmatha Next and represents a piece of the donor's contribution to the project.
- Carry Me Back Bags: Sale of carry me back bags and sponsorship of bags for waste removal. Contributors pay for production, packaging, distribution and collection costs to enable waste removal from the Khumbu region.
- Donations and Sponsorships: Friends of Sagarmatha Next programme and corporate sponsorships. Dell Technologies sponsors the carry me back programme. Kiehl's supported the Hand of Everest installation. Sherpa Watches contributes a portion of each sale.
- Café Operations: Café serving traditional Khumbu cuisine using seasonal local ingredients. Profits are destined to sustain the project and contribute to SPCC's waste management efforts.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Stone heart - carved stone artwork placed at Sagarmatha National Park |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Himalaya model - 3D replica of Himalaya made from 36 bottle caps |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Kongma-La stone - pendant made from plastic bottle caps |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Cho-La stone - pendant made from plastic bottle caps |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Renjo-La stone - pendant made from plastic bottle caps |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Full set - includes Himalaya model and three stone pendants |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Carry me back bag - enables waste removal from mountains |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Sagarmatha Next product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Sagarmatha Next operates an experience centre at 3,775 metres altitude near Namche Bazaar, Nepal, promoting sustainable tourism and waste management in the Khumbu (Everest) region. It runs the Carry Me Back crowdsourced waste removal programme, produces and sells upcycled souvenirs under the From the Himalayas collection, hosts an Art Residency Programme, and provides educational workshops, café services, and event hosting. Revenue from these activities is channelled to support SPCC's regional waste management efforts.
Product overview
Sagarmatha Next is an experience centre at 3,775 meters in Syangboche, near Namche Bazaar, Nepal, focused on sustainable tourism and waste management in the Khumbu region. The organization operates multiple integrated offerings: the Carry Me Back crowdsourced waste removal program, a network of upcycled souvenir products under the 'From the Himalayas' collection (Himalaya Model, Renjo-La Stone, Cho-La Stone, Kongma-La Stone, and Full Set), Stone Heart carved walkway memorials, Waste Art artwork sales from artists-in-residence, the Denali Schmidt Art Gallery and Art Residency Program, Waste Lab workshop, Outdoor Learning Workshops, Café, and event hosting services. All products and services support the mission of promoting sustainable tourism and providing waste management solutions for the Sagarmatha National Park region.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- From the Himalayas: A product line of upcycled souvenirs made from HDPE plastic bottle caps collected from hiking trails in the Khumbu region, including the Himalayan model, Renjo-La stone, Cho-La stone, and Kongma-La stone. Designed by Super Local and produced by moware design.
- Carry Me Back
- Waste to Art
- Denali Schmidt Art Gallery
- Waste Lab
Products and services
- Stone Heart Hand-carved stone hearts placed along the walkway to the Sagarmatha Next Centre in Syangboche, sold to supporters who wish to leave a piece of their heart at Sagarmatha National Park.
- Carry Me Back Bag Reusable bags for participants to collect and transport waste from Sagarmatha National Park to designated drop-off points for proper recycling.
- Himalaya Model
Quantifiable outcome
- 4,000 kg of waste transported to Kathmandu for recycling through Carry Me Back programme during pilot in Autumn 2019
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Sagarmatha Next
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Sagarmatha Next technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature4 records
Sagarmatha Next partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Denali FoundationcoreThe Denali Foundation from Houston, Texas supports the artist residency programme at Sagarmatha Next. The foundation identifies and sends artists to Sagarmatha Next for residencies to experiment and create art with waste materials found in the Himalayas. Visiting artists conduct workshops for local school children and adults. Emma Fern Curtis was the first sponsored artist.
- Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC)coreSPCC is a community-based NGO established by local Sherpa people of Khumbu. They manage waste in the region, have been contracted by Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation since 1997 to set climbing routes through Khumbu Icefall. All benefits from Sagarmatha Next are provided to SPCC to improve waste management.
- Blue Waste to Value (BW2V)coreLocal social enterprise working in waste management in Nepal for over six years. Collects carry me back bags from Kathmandu for recycling at their facility. Jointly conducted field research with Sagarmatha Next to assess waste situation and propose alternatives.
- Super LocalminorDutch product design studio co-founded by Pim van Baarsen and Luc van Hoeckel. They designed the initial carry me back bag and the first set of products made from plastic waste for Sagarmatha Next. Human-centered approach working with local communities.
- moware designcoreUpcycling brand that creates products from waste and provides job opportunities to deprived women in Kathmandu. Produces the 'From the Himalayas' collection from HDPE bottle caps. Established plastic upcycling workshop at their facilities in May 2022 and trains women groups from Khumbu region.
- Tara AirlinesminorLocal private airline that transfers carry me back bags from Lukla to Kathmandu as part of the waste removal logistics chain.
- Khumbila ConstructionminorLocal construction company based in Khumjung, Khumbu owned by Mr Chhiring Sherpa. Main contractor for Sagarmatha Next with 40 workers who spent over 5 seasons building the centre. Well known for quality craftsmanship with 20+ years experience in Khumbu region construction.
- Sustainable Mountain ArchitectureminorAward-winning team of architects and specialists who designed Sagarmatha Next. Pro-people, pro-ecology and pro-local approach. They regularly work with salvaged material and have demonstrated that scrap and solid waste can be successfully up-cycled into building material.
- Anne FeenstraminorLead architect of Sagarmatha Next. T.U. Delft 1993 Master of Architecture with recipient of Global Award for Sustainable Architecture 2012. Designed the centre taking movement through open landscape as starting point.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Sagarmatha Next competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- EcoHimal Nepal: Non-profit implementing sustainable development, infrastructure, and environmental projects across the Nepali Himalayas. Comparable for shared mission of mountain sustainability programming funded through sponsorships and donations.
- Blue Waste to Value (BW2V): Nepal-based social enterprise handling waste collection and recycling including end-processing of Carry Me Back bags in Kathmandu. Directly comparable as a downstream operational partner in the same waste value chain.
- Khumbu Climbing Center: Non-profit training facility in the Khumbu serving Sherpas and trekkers; comparable as a community-rooted, altitude-restricted non-profit that combines visitor education, local workforce development, and infrastructure on the Everest trail.
- Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC): Community-based NGO established in 1992 that manages waste in the Khumbu region under contract with Nepal's Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation. Directly comparable as the on-the-ground waste operator that Sagarmatha Next funds and partners with.
Emerging players
- EcoBirdy: Belgian design brand that upcycles discarded children's toys into furniture and homeware. Comparable as a design-forward upcycle brand monetizing circular materials into premium consumer goods.
- Elvis & Kresse: UK-based premium upcycled goods brand that transforms industrial waste (fire hose, printing blankets) into luxury accessories. Comparable for the model of charging premium unit prices for upcycled products where story and provenance drive willingness to pay.
- Precious Plastic: Global community-driven open-source platform for plastic upcycling into products. Comparable for community-built plastic-recycling workshops producing consumer goods, which is conceptually analogous to Sagarmatha Next's moware Waste Lab.
Broad incumbents
- WWF Nepal: Country office of a global conservation organization active on Sagarmatha landscape, species protection, and eco-tourism. Comparable for sustainability funding streams, donor base, and conservation-tourism overlap in the Everest region.
- Mountain Wilderness International: Federation working on waste and environmental protection in mountain regions across the Alps and globally. Comparable as an advocacy and clean-up organization active in remote mountain environments with similar thematic focus.
Regional players
- Tara Air: Nepalese domestic carrier operating the Lukla-Kathmandu route on which Carry Me Back depends. Comparable as a regional player providing the logistical choke-point infrastructure required for any mountain waste-removal model.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Sagarmatha Next social profiles
Digital presenceSagarmatha Next financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Sagarmatha Next leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Sagarmatha Next funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Sagarmatha Next M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Sagarmatha Next
What does Sagarmatha Next do?
Sagarmatha Next operates an experience centre at 3,775 metres altitude near Namche Bazaar, Nepal, promoting sustainable tourism and waste management in the Khumbu (Everest) region. It runs the Carry Me Back crowdsourced waste removal programme, produces and sells upcycled souvenirs under the From the Himalayas collection, hosts an Art Residency Programme, and provides educational workshops, café services, and event hosting. Revenue from these activities is channelled to support SPCC's regional waste management efforts.
Is Sagarmatha Next a public or private company?
Sagarmatha Next is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Sagarmatha Next founded?
Sagarmatha Next was founded in -1. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Sagarmatha Next based?
Sagarmatha Next is headquartered in Namche Bazaar, Nepal, in the Asia region.
How does Sagarmatha Next make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Artwork Sales are the primary driver. The others are upcycled Souvenirs, stone Hearts, carry Me Back Bags, donations and Sponsorships and café Operations.
Who are Sagarmatha Next's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are EcoHimal Nepal, Blue Waste to Value (BW2V), Khumbu Climbing Center and Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC). Emerging players are EcoBirdy, Elvis & Kresse and Precious Plastic. Broad incumbents are WWF Nepal and Mountain Wilderness International. Tara Air is listed as a regional player.
Does Sagarmatha Next have an API?
No public API is recorded for Sagarmatha Next.
What industry is Sagarmatha Next in?
Sagarmatha Next's product category is Sustainable Tourism & Mountain Waste Management. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EUAIANAA, Product Take-Back & Reverse Logistics Programs, with a secondary code of HSAIAOAJ, Eco-Friendly Disposal, Recycling & Donation Hauling. Its NAICS code is 56211 and its SIC code is 4953.