Siddharth

I selected this location because it is in a market area. It may seem chaotic, but it is a public area. The outer area is far, but the market area is right here. After 10 kms, you'll find a market, and then you will reach Allahabad city, so this is the main market area. This is also Allahabad, and the main market area is about 5-6 kms away. Therefore, people from villages who don't have access to a market come here first for marketing. This can also be considered as the city market.

I thought that starting a furniture business would be a good idea. It's like using our brain - if our stomach is hurting, we take medicine for stomachache, not for a headache. So, I surveyed the market and realized that there is a demand for furniture because everything else is available except for furniture. That's why I decided to open a furniture store. I also noticed that there are good clothing shops, saree shops, and a few mattress shops, including dealers of Sleepwell mattresses. In the village, when people need furniture, they have to order it from carpenters because there are no ready-made options available. They struggle to find good furniture and end up spending more money. Considering this situation, I believed that a furniture shop would be successful. I opened my showroom on October 31, 2020, and after a month, I started the manufacturing unit, even though I had no prior experience. I knew that I would learn things gradually, and it's better to face losses and run your own business than to learn things while working for someone else. I faced some challenges at the beginning and suffered losses, but I persevered, and with God's grace, everything turned out well.

Before 2020, I was into the jute bag and grains business. Our grains used to go to the ITC factory in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Nagpur, and Jabalpur, so our grain business used to work really well. However, when the government ended the mandi samiti, the business was no longer a priority for us or the farmers. We used to send our grains to Bangalore, but a farmer cannot do that. According to the government's liability, a farmer can also send their grains to Bangalore. As a result, our trading work started to decline. Jute work has been our ancestral occupation.

Yes, it is my family business. Then, we started the jute work at a higher level. Earlier, my father used to do this work at the U.P level, but I started doing it in different states. So, we increased the jute work. We had retail and wholesale for jute. Retail was less, wholesale was more. Axis bank was about to open here. They said that they would pay 1.5 lakh rupees as monthly rent.

I rejected Axis Bank's offer. Our caste is Kesharwani; we don't want to sit and eat, we want to work and eat. Even if it is 10,000 or 1 lakh, there is Shanti Puram area, which is a good public area. We have made a lodge of 42 rooms in the main Lucknow area, so we used to run both. Our monthly income is 1-1.5 lakh. We also wanted to earn through business. We will go out once a month and take the rent, depositing it in our Bank of Baroda account. Working by yourself is something different; it brings happiness and feels like we have earned it through hard work. That's why we rejected the bank's offer and started furniture work. We benefited from government schemes for our work, specifically the PMEGP scheme. The bank provided us with a loan of 25 lakh without security, and then we started our work and received a subsidy.

There are some things that are important to keep a business running. If your language, behavior, product, and signs of respect are good, then your shop will not close. It will continue to work with God's grace, and with God's grace, it is working well.

We have to explain things to the customer and clarify any doubts. In a jewelry shop, a customer purchases jewelry worth 50,000 to 1 lakh, but they may not know about its purity. Therefore, creating trust depends on our behavior. We used to take our customers to the manufacturing unit so that they can see that the right materials are available here. We show them our work, and then they trust that our work is good. We also have ready-made furniture, but if you are building a new house and need furniture, we can provide it to you according to the interior, wardrobe, and kitchen.

We have to motivate them. If a customer asks me about the rate and I tell him the rate and ask him to take it, on what basis will he make the decision? It depends on factors such as my language and behavior, whether I am giving a guarantee, the quality of the products and raw materials, and if I can deliver on my promises. All of these factors are dependent on behavior; if the behavior is good, customers are more likely to make a purchase. If 15-20 customers come in a day, we aim to ensure that 90% of them leave with a purchase. This is our objective in our work. The language in Bangalore may be different, but we try to be familiar with their language so that they don't feel like outsiders. We aim to remove any language barriers for customers, managing the communication in their preferred way. We can explain things to local customers in our own way, but for customers from outside who may not be familiar with furniture, we explain things in their language and in a way that they can understand. This helps them feel that they are in the right place.

We build trust with customers. We assure them that if they have any complaints, we will address them within 4-5 days. If the complaint is minor, our staff will visit their home to fix the issue. If the complaint is major, they can bring the item to our store and we will repair it free of charge. We have successfully resolved such issues 1-2 times before. When customers see that we take care of minor repairs at their home, it instills trust in our service. They can then confidently say that they purchased the item from Vinayak Furniture, where their complaint was resolved. This is how we motivate customers to trust our service.

As a manufacturer of sofas, we understand that customers may not know the specific materials used in the construction. Therefore, we invite them to bring their own staff or visit our store to see how the materials are made. They can witness the entire manufacturing process and ensure that we use the right materials. For example, we use Sleepwell foam for the sofa, high-quality fabric, good springs, and durable ply. We believe in transparency, as some shops may show one thing and deliver something else. By allowing customers to see the list of materials used in their furniture, we aim to gain their trust.

In our three years of operation, we have learned that if we provide a good product, customers will share their positive experience with four people. On the other hand, if we provide a bad product, they will share their negative experience with forty people. That's why we encourage customers to see our manufacturing process firsthand.

I decided to gain customers trust like this. It is about using your mind for your business. The more you use your mind in a positive way, the more positive it will go, the more you use your mind in a negative way, the more negative it will go, if I think about increasing my business then it will increase, if I think that if I show the manufacturing to the customer then I won't be able to cheat, if I don't cheat then I won't be able to save more money but I work according to my investment and profit margin, I don't know about other shops, my investment and profit gives things to the customer what they demand, that's why we tell them to see the manufacturing, these are the things that we do.

First is customers then vendors then inventory then labors. We will see the need of the customer and according to that we'll search the vendor then I'll keep products in my shop then I'll work myself first and if I need staff then I'll keep staff.

Yes, we have regular customers. They are very nice customers. Till now, we have 40% regular customers, which we have calculated. We make Excel entries of our yearly estimated bill. For example, if your name is Priyanka Kesharwani or Priyanka Shrivastav or Priyanka Singh, this is your mobile number, you belong to Shanti puram, and you have taken furniture from me in 2021 and 2022. So, when I add the information of 2022 in Excel, the sheet will show me that you have taken a product on this date and this year. Therefore, I can know that you have taken 2 furniture items from me in 2020, 2021, and 2022. This helps me identify you as a regular customer, Priyanka ji. I see that 400 customers repeated their purchases next year among 1000 customers, which means they are our regular customers. We make the entry and provide gifts to our regular customers during festivals. We message them and invite them to come during Dhanteras and Deepawali. We give a 5% discount to our regular customers on pillow, mattress protector, and bedsheet. In Deepawali, my shop will be 3 years old, so I will see who those regular customers are who have done shopping from us in these 3 years. It might be a small chair or a big furniture item, and we will give them a 50% discount or a buy 1 get 1 free offer to increase our sales. If we motivate and give things to regular customers, they will also advertise for us. Instead of investing money on advertisements and keeping staff for advertisement, they will not go to every locality to do this. Allahabad has many localities like Taliyarganj Fafamoj, Shanti puram. I should catch the customers, give them a buy 1 get 1 free offer, and then they will feel that Vinayak furniture respects us. They will advertise this to 4 more people to purchase things from us. We are good. This is a concept to increase the business.

I decided to spend on customers instead of advertisements. It is about our thinking. We are normal people - engineers, laborers, and businessmen. We eat food according to our needs. It depends on how much you utilize your brain. How much brain am I utilizing in my business? I think about how to increase my business, so we think and discuss with our mummy, and then I decide.

There is no way to discuss business. I wake up in the morning, and I have to reach the shop at 10 am. My shop opens at 09:30 am, and by 10 am, it is ready. So, I have to sit at the counter at 10 am and instruct my staff about their work. The shop closes at 10 pm, and then I go home, go to bed, and watch videos about businessmen like Adani ji and Ramdev ji. If they can achieve high growth, then why can't we? To reach their level, we have to utilize our minds and search for things on the internet to grow our business. These things help us, and by observing successful people, we can apply their strategies to our own business. Yes, then I discuss what to do to bring growth, but I don't take ideas from anyone else; they are self-generated ideas.

I search for vendors according to customers' needs. If I have opened a utensils shop but the customers demand furniture, there are already 10-15 utensils shops. Every utensils shop is crowded, so I should also open a utensils shop. That will work. If 100 customers are going to 10 shops, then 10 customers are divided into each shop. Utensils shops and clothes shops are there in Fafamao. Clothes shops are for clothes needs, so there is a need for furniture as well. Utensils, vegetables, and general stores are required for food. There are utensils shops, clothes shops, general stores, vegetables shops, and milk shops in this market, but the availability of furniture is zero. So, I thought of opening a furniture shop. First, we will see what the customer needs. There is a furniture shop 5-10kms away, and the customer has to go there. There are carpenters nearby the customer who make furniture on order. I saw that wedding things like sarees are purchased from clothes shops. Furniture is used during weddings. There is Shanti puram colony 2 kms away, and it is a big and nice colony. I have seen outsiders visiting there and building new houses, so they need furniture. How will they go 5kms away to purchase furniture? If you are 1 km away and you do things here, those things will not be done 5 kms away. The service that you give here, 5 kms away will not be able to give that service.

How I choose vendors according to customers' needs. A customer will come here for 5 minutes, choose furniture, and the furniture will reach their house on the same day. So why would a customer go 5 kilometers in traffic for furniture? There is a question - will they provide service or not? It is far, but customers walk from this road only. They'll go to Shanti Puram through this way only. Teachers go to their jobs from here. We have a CRPF camp, so it is easy for them to come for 2 minutes and complain about their issues on this route. In today's date, nobody has so much time to go and complain. They will use it until it is fine. If it breaks, then throw it. Nobody has time to complain. Among 100%, 2-4% complain, otherwise, nobody complains. If somebody's route is this, then they think of coming and complaining for 2 minutes. They trust the nearby people. That's why I thought that a furniture shop would be best for this area. Then I opened a furniture shop according to the needs of the customers. At the start, we couldn't manufacture things. Then I saw that there are 4-5 guest houses. Without invitation, I visited the guest houses in the evening. I saw what things people give during weddings, what quality, and range those products are. Then I thought that I have to keep products in that range only. Then I met 1-2 furniture shopkeepers and asked them where they bring things from and who their vendors are. They didn't provide me with the right information. Among 10, 8 answered me wrong, and 2 answered me right. Then I started taking things from those 2, like from the local market of Banaras. Then I went to Delhi, where I got to know about gerili wood. The wholesaler is selling only for his profit. The motive of the wholesaler is to sell cheap and attractive things so that the shopkeeper will sell it at a higher price. But our concept was not that. Our concept was that the materials from the wholesaler should be good because if we are selling, that will show our reputation as well. If I give bad products, then he might take it today, this year, next year. After that, he will not take it, and he will tell 4 people. Those 4 people will tell 8 more people that our products only look good but their quality is zero. During the opening, we bought products from the vendor only for show. I also sold it to some people. I kept it for 15-20 days.

I bought ready-made furniture to launch our store. Yes, just for the opening and to attract a crowd, we did that. If a customer liked the dressing, then I would tell them that it was already sold. We could make a similar one in one week's time. I didn't sell that particular piece to the customer. What would the wholesaler give me and what would I give you? I found local laborers who do such household work and started my manufacturing unit. We started by copying their work and making our own. At first, we didn't have polishing work, so we started with mica work because we couldn't find laborers who knew how to polish. We started using mica, and then the laborers started coming by themselves for work. We didn't give the vendor's products to the customer; we gave them our own products for trust and quality.

I am aware of the quality of the vendor's products, which is why I didn't sell them. In order to meet the needs of the customers and the market, I didn't find that material to be good. For example, if there is no finishing on the car's handle or grill, customers won't find it good even if it's very nice. Similarly, if the hinges are loose or the magnet is not powerful, the material is not considered good. If you lie and sell things in the market, they may sell for a few days, but if you sell the right things, they will sell forever because people will advertise them to at least four more people. Therefore, we always aim to sell good products if we want to operate in the long term.

Yes, we prepare Excel sheets month-wise as well. We will also offer discounts to our monthly regular customers, so they feel that we are responsive to their purchases. Currently, we are not tracking monthly data, but we will start doing so. Currently, we only track yearly data. I have created a database for customer needs. For example, if a customer asks for a specific item that we don't have in our shop, I will note down their requirement and their mobile number on a daily basis. After fulfilling their needs, we will contact the customer. (showed the register) Here, I have written down the customer's requirement for a change in the revolving chair base. Initially, we used to sell chairs without the base, but now we have started selling the base as it is a customer need.

I give the bill of supply that we generate to the accountant, he makes it in the names.

The business is dependent on language, behavior and material. I will not be able to call a customer through a machine.

I take out design from Google.

Yes, my shop is on Google Maps. We have entered that the Sleepwell mattress will be found in Fafamoa, so a customer can sit at home and search where the Sleepwell mattress is available. Then they will see that the mattress is available at Vinayak Furniture, so they will come to us. I have added it to Google Maps since day 1. I see that the online market is working very well in today's date. An educated person who doesn't have much time will not visit 4 places; they will rather search for feedback on the mattress online. If I talk about the feedback of Vinayak Furniture, you might not believe it. You can check on the internet whether Vinayak Furniture has a 5-star rating or not. Then the customer will also believe that the Sleepwell mattress is good here. They will check in which area the Sleepwell mattress is available, and then they will see that it is available at Vinayak Furniture, so they will come to me. If I don't add it to the internet, how will the customer know? No, sometimes I see the reviews and ratings. I have also added my shop on Just Dial, and it is working there as well.

I have posted on Facebook 1-2 times. There is a sponsored page where we have to pay charges as well, around 1000-1200 rupees per month. I have not been consistent with it. I did it for 1-2 months initially, and then, before every month of Deepawali, I would post to promote my offer. The agent and client of Facebook approached us. Since I have knowledge about it, I thought I could do this instead of hiring a staff member for 8000-9000 rupees who would visit houses and promote the availability of products at Vinayak furniture. It's better to advertise through Facebook for 1000 rupees, where the ad will reach every person, rather than going to each house and personally informing them about the availability of products at Vinayak furniture. By advertising on Facebook, the message will reach multiple people, as there might be 5 people in a home who use Facebook, and they will all become aware of my advertisement for Vinayak furniture. I have joined 1-2 furniture sector groups on Facebook in Delhi, where we can find furniture raw materials related to hardware. Yes, it is useful. In these groups, I find good things at a lower cost.

I use WhatsApp to send photos to the customer for confirmation and to know their location. This helps us bring the furniture to the fitting location. Through WhatsApp, I can easily track the customer's current location. All these features are available on WhatsApp.

No, sometimes I check YouTube if I have to make a design for my furniture. Then I see how that design will be made and what machine is used. However, I don't do the designing myself. I select the design and decide how to work with the machines. I provide the machines to the laborers. I teach them through YouTube by sending them videos for them to watch.

Facebook is helping in advertising. Through WhatsApp, we get to know about the needs of the customers. Through YouTube, I gain knowledge about new technology. Yes, from day 1, I have felt that technology has helped my business to grow.

Cash, barcode, bank account number of Vinayak furniture are the payment options.

Yes, Paytm machine and card machine are available, a customer should not be troubled during the payment process. We don't have finance facilities like Bajaj finance. I use Phone pe, Patym and not Googlepay.

All of these depend on the customer. We will enhance our technology based on the customer's and market's needs. If we work based on outdated information, we will fall behind. We need to make changes according to your needs. Without changes, we will lag behind. We must progress according to the customer's and market's needs.

Now my brother and I are looking into it. Afterward, our sons and nephews will look into our business.

You will not get homemade food in a hotel, so their motive online is to provide products to the customers. People will not know about its quality. In my experience, you will not get good furniture online. Customers have claimed this themselves. They have said that if something is 20,000 offline, then the same thing is 19,000 online, but they provide a bad product. They will give 1000 more offline, but at least they will see it and then decide because the material is good. That's why we don't prefer online products. I don't sell furniture online.

Yes, there is a difference between online websites like Amazon and Flipkart and our shop. You will find 90% of these products online, but we sell them too. This product costs 30 rupees per square foot, while this one costs 50 rupees per square foot. The former is made of wood, while the latter is made of bhusa wood. However, the latter may not last long. It is cheaper, but customers are willing to pay 1000 more if they can get a good product from our shop.