Gone are the days when women were considered no match for all powerful men in this world.The startup scene is exploding in India. The male dominated world was always reluctant to even acknowledge the fact that women were as good as men on parameters of hard work, intelligence quotient and leadership traits.
The new generation women across the world have overcome all negative notions and have proved themselves beyond doubt in all spheres of life including the most intricate and cumbersome world of entrepreneurship in addition to pressures of balancing work, home and family. They never gave in or gave up, and carried on to build valuable companies while also giving back to society.More and more women today are coming out of their homes to play their part in the innovation economy. And women who swim against the tide to become entrepreneurs are changing the world by inspiring others to do the same. So their success is worth celebrating. Let’s meet such Indian women who can be easily termed as role models for every Indian- both males and females in the lingerie industry.
As a sole proprietor for Silk Route Boutique Neeru Mehta works from 11am – to 8 pm. Being an entrepreneur and a full-time home maker doesn’t afford her too much time to pursue other hobbies. But she loves to read and make time for it on a daily basis. She finds that it helps her unwind after a busy day. Having done a diploma in interior design she was confident in her artistic sense and style and so decided to put that to use towards women’s fashion and needs. Since trading runs through her blood. She initially dabbled in teaching and also wanted to work with her husband in his factories as they are the official manufactures of the company Sun Umbrellas. She then went on to selling kitchen and glass home wear. But since it caused a delicate situation of breaking in terms of packaging, she later decided to peruse her own path and start her own boutique.
As a mother of two boys she didn’t want them to grow up thinking that their mother is a home maker whose place was only in the kitchen and as someone dependent on a male member of the family for financial decisions. In addition since lingerie can never be outdated, she also found that Mysore as a city lacked a space where women could feel comfortable shopping for classy stylish lingerie and that reason itself drove her to set up this store in Mysore. As the years rolled by she added maternity wear, sportswear and loungewear to her brands portfolio.
“In terms of generating ideas I find travelling to be inspiring and feel that through my store I can bring the fashion trends I encounter in my travels to this city.” says, Neeru Mehta
She is constantly on the lookout for new and exciting clothing styles and women’s accessories. The boutique is present at Address: 18, 13th Cross Rd, Gokulam 2nd Stage, Mysore, Karnataka 570002. This was launched in 2004 and the boutique got revamped in 2014.
Its hard to guess what will and what wont work in a small city like Mysore so she’s constantly trying out new things. Its the only way to differentiate herself with the competition and keep customers interested in the store. Her husbands collaboration had fell through with the Chinese and since she would visit his factories, the trade route history between India and China stuck with her and since that was her goal with lingerie, she decided to name her lingerie boutique, ‘Silk Route’.
She goes on to say, “True entrepreneurship is to have a passion for your idea that drives you to continuously innovate. It is having a good sense of finance and above all an ability to work with people. Personally what has made me a successful entrepreneur has been a good sense of style and being in tune with women’s tastes and likings.”
Her advice, “Pay attention to your gut feel and listen to it. “You also need people to grow.”
If she could turn back time she says she would have liked to establish her brand by getting into manufacturing. In addition she would have also liked to do a short course that would enable her to create her own lingerie designs.
Building awareness in the local market was definitely a hurdle Neeru Mehta had to overcome when she first started this business. As advertising and marketing are highly resource consuming, in the initial phases she had to resort to affordable alternate means in order to get the word out and increase foot falls.
“If we are talking about the lingerie business – then this field is highly competitive, unorganized, non standardised and even unscrupulous so beware and don’t blindly trust any brand.
Two,stick to your values you will build goodwill with your principals and importantly your customers.Three, always try and innovate or create newness, this helps to bring in interest so that customers are attracted.” she says.
She sometimes takes out small advertisements in the local news papers to advertise her store and brand. She also carries out pamphlets in her purse so that any chance she gets she can make sure to hand them out and spread the word. During peak shopping season she also pays for billboards in the city and standee’s in the mall.
When she was looking for store space she went around looking for rental space in the malls near her home. The exorbitant rents made turned her away from that model and convinced her that she needed to get her own space. Rather than raise capital to buy a space away from home she decided to construct the store as an extension to her house itself. That way she saves on rent and being at home gives her the flexibility to handle responsibilities towards her family as and when they arise.
