There is no better investment than an understanding partner. What if your business partner is someone who knows your every strong and weak point?
Divyashree and Vijayashree are busy dressing up their career in Ernakulam. They may be pursuing different interests but they share a unique ingredient of success - an understanding and supporting sister. Onmanorama Women presents you the lives and works of four pairs of sisters. Here is the third part of the series.
Designer sisters
Sveccha Boutique has its own designer and model. Divyashree is forever on the hunt for new models while Vijayashree is happy to flaunt them.
Divyashree said she would not have dared to venture into a business had it not been for the support of her sister. “I started thinking about starting my own business after I completed my BMA from the Rajagiri College. My folks were not very excited. But my sister prodded me to start the venture. But I decided to work for two years to raise money for the boutique. After marriage, I resigned and started the boutique. My husband Vyas Dev offered his full support.”
“I loved designing from a young age. So boutique was the first idea that dawned on me when I thought of doing a business. I uploaded my designs on seven saris on Facebook. We could sell it in a week. That was inspiring to us” said Vijayashree.
Vijayashree is more inclined to modern dresses such as classy kurtis, cigar pants and palazzo, but her sister prefers simple works with few embroidery or other embellishments. Sveccha sources all its collection from north India.
The boutique has an average monthly turnover of Rs 2 lakh.
“I was very excited when my sister mooted the idea,” said Vijayashree, a final year B Com student at the Chinmaya Vidyapeetham. “She used to buy me chocolates to model for her designs. When she started the shop, I became serious about it. I started looking around for designs and patterns. Now I refer YouTube.”
Their parents Vinod Kumar and Jayashree offer their full support to the endeavor. When they started Sveccha in 2014, the sisters drew a lot from each other’s tastes and preferences. Divyashree targeted the 30-plus crowd while Vijayashree knew what the youngsters wanted.
“Vijayashree has knack in managing customers in the shop,” said Divyashree. “She knows what they are looking for. If you know that half the job is done. The customers will be happy too. Many people have told that she was doing a great job at the shop. I do not tell her that often. What if she asks for a commission for each sale?” Divyashree chuckled.
Read: Women Business News | Handful of designs: Meet the undisputed mehendi art queen of Kozhikode