Learning the skill

I was fifteen years old when I learned. I started working in another shop and learned from there. Nobody teaches you, you have to learn yourself. If I hire a boy, even I won’t teach him. He will have to watch and learn.

When I was young, I worked in a textile shop. I had to apply what I had learned. I also worked in other shops to gain more experience in this business. Specifically, I worked in a textile shop in Banshankari. My responsibilities included cutting and selling garments and attending to customers. I worked there for a year before starting my own shop.

I spent 6 months at the BDA Complex where my friend taught me. During that time, the fee was around 5,000 rupees, and I paid it.

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.

Actually, I follow my father's formula only. Whatever he taught, I do and buy that. It means taking less credit and accepting lower margins. I don't aim for excessive profits. My principle is not always to seek a 20% profit. I am satisfied with making 10% or 15%. My main criterion is that customers should be happy. I eventually want to expand my business, but I have reached this point slowly due to the prevailing environment. When I opened the shop, the environment was quite dull. Now, with the presence of malls, there is a rush. People were not aware of super net and pure fabrics. I introduced and explained the benefits of wearing them. They are better than cotton. Now, even other castes like Thakur are also wearing them. They buy pure fabric clothes from me and they like it. Previously, they used to prefer cotton, but cotton becomes soft after washing and requires ironing before wearing. It is not suitable for wearing outside, and people don't even wear it during puja. Super net fabric has workmanship. It can be worn outside and gives a royal look. So, I convinced people to start with something low-priced, and now everyone buys it. My business has expanded to other castes as well. Previously, only the Khandelwaal community used to buy clothes from me. Now, people from other castes also purchase from me because they don't know about pure fabric. They are only aware of what is available in Surat. What I sell is different from what is available in the market. You won't find the clothes that I sell anywhere else here.

I don't believe in this (laughs). I don't believe in all of this. I feel there's nothing like a man and a woman. Whenever problems arise, it doesn't see anything. Money is the biggest thing. Every relationship is connected through money. My husband never stopped me. I go alone to buy clothes. In-laws told me in the beginning not to go alone. How will you do that? My husband told me to do it and be independent. He only supported and taught me. I didn't know about Paytm; he taught me about that. You should do it on your own, what if I am not there tomorrow? He told me that. He taught me how to withdraw money from ATMs; I didn't know all of this. He opened an account in the bank and asked me to do things on my own. Now I make payments online. Earlier, I used to take cash. He used to appreciate and encourage me to go. Do it on your own. Yes, my husband has supported me a lot.

Yes, I used to feel scared in the beginning. There’s a metro in Kolkata and I used to take that. I didn’t know how to take the metro. But I learned quite a lot. Now I go alone everywhere, I don’t need anyone. My sister-in-law taught me in the beginning who lives in Bengal. She told me about the shops and we used to go together. And used to purchase everything on our own. But now she is also busy. So I manage everything on my own. She told me about the markets and told me about the retailer and the wholesale shops. First I didn't use to buy from wholesalers, I used to buy from retailers and used to sell it for Rs 100 more. But slowly I started learning who is giving cheaper or at a higher price. I figured this out slowly and found the main wholesaler and who is the biggest one. Now I buy from wholesalers only. Earlier I used to save Rs10 now I save Rs 15/20. Ma’am I got to know by going there and I used to ask those shopkeepers about wholesale shops. But you have to buy inventory for Rs10 lakh and you can’t take the stuff for less than that price from a wholesaler. You don’t get inventory for Rs 1 or 2 lakh. It starts from Rs 15 or 10 lahks. But in the beginning, you have to make them your customers as well. So slowly I started from 2 lakh and they used to listen to me.

The ones who are the middleman/broker, are in the market and they help connect us to the wholesaler and tell them that she is taking now but will come again as well and become your permanent customer. That’s why they used to give us in lower price as well, less than Rs 5 lakhs. Yes, they used to take me to the wholesaler shop. But I used to buy when I understood and I don’t buy if I don't understand. Brokers also have their profit. They will take from me and from shopkeepers as well. So I started with them in the beginning. I saw that I was getting the same rate that was there outside as well. Then I used my brain and reached there.

My father wasn't convinced in the starting. I learned all the things myself and then he thought that yes I can give him the business so he handed over me. It took three or four years, when I was in college, I used to come to the shop, but I didn't pay much attention and just passed my time. Then, in 2016 and 2017, I started focusing on the business while I was pursuing my post-graduation. I have an MBA, and the things I studied in finance were already applicable here, such as making bills and calculating taxes. I also started going to a Chartered Accountant (CA) to learn more about these things. He would explain those concepts to me, and I would study them as well. It was helpful in both ways. I could apply what I learned practically here and it also enhanced my understanding in college. As a result, my focus increased here, and I received assistance in other areas. I was able to gain a better understanding of finance because both aspects were integrated. The problem in our education system is that we focus on the theoretical part but lack practical exposure. For example, when I was pursuing my graduation, the balance sheet I was taught at that time had changed after 2005. The balance sheet I studied in 2017 was outdated, yet I was still learning the same one. In fact, that balance sheet no longer exists in today's time. These are the issues we face.

I connected with my suppliers early on by training in another shop. There's a shop in Patti called Raju Provision. They have the same shop. My uncle lives in a remote village. I informed him about my plan to start this business. He said it's a good location. I expressed my lack of knowledge about the business. He suggested that I come and observe his shop. He mentioned that I can get certain items from there. I mentioned my plan is not to start from there. The challenge is that all the products need to be paid in cash. If someone doesn't know you, they won't give you a loan. As a newcomer in the market, the market in Pratapgarh is very tough. Previously, we used to operate on a cash basis. However, now we receive orders and get paid within a month. We are receiving support.

I faced a lot of challenges. I faced with regards to RTO then availability of spare parts. Which spare parts I should purchase and which I should not purchase, which vehicle’s spare parts are running regularly and which are not running. There used to be rate difference in companies’ spare parts then discount and everything. I faced some problem but I covered it fast say within 1 year.

On Youtube I search for the problems that are experienced in the vehicles on YouTube. Many times we are not able to detect the fault in the vehicle but on YouTube expert mechanics post many videos regarding this, so I watch them. There is one expert of Delhi, I don’t recall his name now, I follow him on YouTube. No. I follow one expert of Kolkata, he is from Hyundai showroom. One expert of Delhi named Ravi Konda, I follow him. He posts many videos regarding the cars. No, he doesn’t show the solution of the problems, he shows how to detect the problem in the cars. I myself see the video and then show it to my staff also. They don’t have android phones so they are not able to watch the videos in their phone. I also show them(the staff) latest news related to current affairs, new news has come up of Nitin Gadkari that diesel vehicles are banned; in Delhi they are snatching vehicles that are 15 years old from people. I show them EV vehicle news.

I mean, you may face some problems because you don't have experience in the beginning. Then, you have to ask around. I mean, you have to ask other shopkeepers or other people whom you know and who know about this field. You have to ask them. I mean, like, there are some medical representatives who work for some companies. You come to know them, so I can ask them what I should use for what disease. Earlier, when I had no experience, but now I don't need to ask anything because I know everything now. I know which medicine to use for what disease and all.

I mean, you also gain knowledge from it, as you are actively doing something and engaging in marketing. By selling a product, we can learn about the preferences of our ladies, including their expenses and interests. For example, there are women who are unable to visit a mall due to their household responsibilities. So, we can provide them with the products they desire at a minimum price. In some cases, an item that costs 200 rupees in this shop may cost 450 or 500 rupees in a mall. Therefore, by offering them products at affordable prices, we can fulfill their needs. If we provide them with an item that usually costs 400 rupees for only 200 rupees, they will certainly appreciate it.

Starting any business comes with its own set of challenges. For example, when I started my business, I faced the challenge of not having much knowledge about clothing. It was easier when I was selling online, but when I opened a physical shop, I had to figure out where to buy the clothes from. Initially, I faced some difficulties in this aspect, but I started going with my husband and eventually learned to do it on my own. Now, I run the business independently and feel confident in my abilities. Although it was a little challenging in the beginning, I can now handle anything at any time.

I didn't have any fears when I opened the shop because we had already wanted to start such a store, so we were already familiar with everything. So, there were no such fears. The only thing I was scared about was the rates because they keep changing all the time, which was a little confusing for a month. Later on, I started to note the rates on a daily basis and began checking and recording them. Other than that, it was all easy.

Since I have already worked in such a shop, and I used to go to my brother's shop earlier, selling the items was not an issue, and it didn't take long to understand how to operate the shop correctly. I had to know what kind of customers come and what kind of items they demand, which I was supposed to know, and that took around 3 months. So, after people started coming regularly within 3 months, I came to know about them. Some people would come once or twice and then wouldn't come back. Some people would come and see the items, so I got to understand all of that. I learned what they were buying and what kind of items they were asking for. For example, some people would ask for Semiya, and they would ask for a specific brand. By knowing that, I would come to know that this particular client would ask for this brand only.

The experience of running a fancy store over there is very different from this one. In the fancy store, you have to display all the items and let customers select what they want, then give it to them. But here, you have to give customers whatever they ask for. So, if I had any doubts, I would ask people around. In this area, there are a couple of grocery shops, so I can find out if any new items have arrived in the market and what the prices are. In the fancy store, customers have to search through the whole collection of fancy items just to buy one thing, but here we need to give customers whatever they ask for.

I learnt business-related strategies it on my own. We don't need to learn it from anywhere.

What I like about the business is that I can easily connect with people, and we can face many individuals, which allow us to learn various things. Having a basic foundation in business is essential, as it helps us face any challenge. Each customer reacts differently, and in the beginning, their responses used to trigger my emotions. However, I've learned how to handle it; perhaps it's common sense. Initially, I didn't know how to manage situations or customers.

It was slightly difficult to sell things and maintain the accounts. Now I have gotten used to it so much that I can handle accounts easily. Earlier, writing the accounts was very difficult for me.

I learned about business. Since I started working from childhood, the owners used to teach me the tricks of the trade. They taught me how to interact with customers. I learned everything from that training. We have to learn to do business from the ground up. Whatever you learn in your early days will help you succeed in the future. Now, business is becoming more challenging. People are demanding things by looking at the internet. We may have something in our shop, and they may ask for something else. So, it is difficult to do business. Earlier, when we didn't have what they asked for, they used to buy whatever was available. We can also earn well.

When I started business my brother-in-law was already in this business and he showed everything. He ordered first.. When I worked in a shop, I came to know the places where my owner would get materials. When I was working they would come to collect the amount from my owner. He will ask me to give them water or tea. We will mingle with them like that. I will talk to them. Suppose if the owner is not there he will ask me where the owner is and I will say the owner went outside. I will say I will bring tea and give it to him. There will be conversation. I already know the address. When I went to his shop he knew that I worked in my owner’s shop.