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Taking the plunge...
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Driven by the "urge to spend time usefully", most women entrepreneurs have started business enterprises. In the second part of her series on women entrepreneurs, KAUSALYA SANTHANAM traces a few more success stories.
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SUCCESS IN business can not only make you financially independent but also give you the strength to overcome setbacks in life, say many women who have had problems in their married life. For those hemmed in by domesticity, a business offers an avenue to operate from home and meet a variety of people, not to speak of the money it brings in for the extras or to supply the educational needs of children. The number of women selling saris successfully is amazing considering the number of textile shops there are in the city selling the same kind of saris. What gives the women an edge is the discerning eye, personalised attention to customers and a collection that is picked to suit the taste of their select clientele.
Shyamala Ejji, who has an outlet for polycot, silk cotton and cotton saris, has been familiar with tastefully designed handloom textiles from childhood since her aunt, Parvathi Natesan worked with Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay at the Crafts Council of India. Shyamala set up her business in 1987 after her children grew up. The business grew rapidly and she holds exhibitions throughout the country.
"Follow your dream and things will fall in place. Once you have something of your own to do, people respect you and don't take either you or your time for granted", says Bhamini Narayanan, co-director of the Shilpi boutique, who believes that a shop should be an extension of your personality. You have to believe in what you are doing and the need for it. And that you can make a difference," says the entrepreneur who along with her partner has made traditional textiles an essential part of the wardrobe of the classy woman of Chennai.
The satisfaction got from doing something you like and seeing your creativity flower is a reward in itself as Gopika Varma, a member of the Travancore royal family, has discovered. Trained in Mohiniattom, Gopika came to Madras attracted by its cultural richness in music and dance. As a setback in health put a temporary stop to her dancing activity, she decided to set up a printing unit.
Now she designs and supplies cotton and silk textiles to major shops. "I do what I feel comfortable about. This activity helped me when I didn't have a child for a few years after I got married. Now my son is four but I continue to work at my unit. I want to spend my time usefully, not fritter it away at clubs."
The same reason — to spend time usefully — propels many women belonging to the middle class too. Anita Hegde, who did a course in designing in Singer's at Mumbai before her marriage made her shift base to Madras, found time lying heavy on her hands and began making baby clothes and salwar kameezes. Now she is a member of MOOWES (Marketing Organisation of Women Entrepreneurs (Regd.) Madras).
Janaki Ananth, president of MOOWES, says its main aim is to aid women in marketing their products through exhibitions. One of its major annual programmes is Shakti, a women entrepreneurs' exposition comprising workshops, seminars and sale of their products. MOOWES consists of 50 members, mostly housewives, who wish to spend their time profitably. Janaki herself is actively involved in designing and manufacturing a variety of cloth and jute bags.
According to the members of MOOWES, the Government of Tamil Nadu, unlike the Governments of neighbouring Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, has not helped women entrepreneurs in the same way. Land and funds for construction of buildings have been provided in Bangalore and Hyderabad. Other entrepreneurs who occupy the sheds at SIDCO (Small Industries Development Corporation) point out that water supply and electricity remain a problem.
The industriousness displayed by the women can be really impressive. Rajalakshmi Vasanthraj simultaneously runs a gift shop, a beauty parlour and conducts lessons in the making of soft toys and sundry handicrafts in the premises of her large house in Adyar, working even on Sundays. Her grown up sons encourage her and are a source of support.
For women like Vatsala Subramaniam, husband and son are part of the enterprise she started in 1985. Finding that fine broken wheat (rava) was not easily available in the market, she decided to take up the manufacture with the raw material supplied by a cousin from Coimbatore. That decision changed the family fortunes and helped it turn around a bad financial corner.
Some women take to unusual and even pioneering ventures. Durga Prasad's is a great ride to success. She began teaching women to drive two wheelers on her old vehicle as she found from personal experience how much it empowered her. Now her phone never stops ringing as queries from driving aspirants pour in. Her driving school is the only one run by a woman out of the 26 schools in Adyar. Durga who comes from a traditional family in Kumbakonam and who got married at 17 after completing her PUC, now has 12 persons working for her.
There are opportunities all around you. Just be bold and take the plunge, says a successful woman. You can open small eateries serving just rava idli and pongal offering a healthy atmosphere for young people to hang out in and chat, serve pathiyam food for those who want it, offer door-to-door delivery of starched saris for Rs. 10 — just about anything that has a demand. Set your sights high. The sky is the limit - stretch out for it and catch the glitter of the silver in your hand.
(To be continued)
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Some tips
EXPERIENCED ENTREPRENEURS provide the following tips to those who wish to enter the field:
*Start small. Grow gradually. First get the cash flow rolling.
*Be prepared to take risks if you want to make it big.
*Be ambitious. Contentment does not make for a good entrepreneur. The killer instinct does.
*Be sure to maintain quality. If you do, you can succeed.
*Don't short-change the customer. But don't under price too.
*Don't look for concessions all the time because you are a woman. You should fight it out, be prepared to travel, work long hours.
*Don't rent a place. Start from home if you can and don't buy too many machines initially.
*Cultivate PR skills; you need to get along with people.
*Take up ventures that are relevant and not outdated.
*If you want to run a business, you should have grit. At the end of the day, only practical skills matter.
*Don't depend for everything from accounts to marketing on the men in the family. Learn to be self-reliant. Believe in yourself and what you are doing.
*Don't be daunted by failure. Learn from it.
*Be ever vigilant for "even if you blink, sales fall."
*Be knowledgeable about what's happening around you. Read the newspapers regularly and learn of the schemes for entrepreneurs and developments in the field.
*If you are doing well, look at your passbook and the growing FDs regularly. Nothing can be a greater fillip to hard work and redoubled effort.
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