Monica Saini, Flipkart Seller from Delhi
As told to Jishnu Murali
Starting a business was my first independent step. It was a big move for me. My husband’s friend runs an online business selling mobile phones and accessories. I wanted to earn my own living too, but I was discouraged from doing so. My family too was against me leaving the house to work.
I am from a small village called Madhavgarh in Madhya Pradesh. Villages in India are still under the impression that girls shouldn’t be sent out to make a living. My husband is from Delhi but when I moved there, circumstances once again stood in the way of me getting a job. My mother-in-law wasn’t comfortable with me leaving the house to work, but she was okay with the idea of me working from home. That’s when I decided I’d start my own business.
There are many schools in my neighborhood. And the schools here use blackboards. So I came up with the idea of selling blackboards and whiteboards to schools. And bearing my customers in mind, I also decided to sell chalk and markers with the boards. I started selling on Flipkart in the year 2018. It was my husband’s suggestion — he too started to believe in what I was doing and thought Flipkart was the way to go.
I faced a few challenges when I started. I couldn’t decide where to procure the material from.
Initially, I sourced my products from different vendors. But now, I get them from one vendor. Selling online has taught me a lot about how a business runs.
I’ve learnt so much in my journey so far. I’ve become comfortable with technology — when I started out, I couldn’t do much with a computer and my husband had to help me. But now, I run almost the entire business on my own. And I’ve had to learn fast to keep up with the growth of my business. When I started selling online, I was receiving 1 or 2 orders every day, but now I have to meet requirements for almost 22 orders in a day! My growth has also inspired my mother-in-law. She now takes care of my baby while I work to grow the business.
Also read: #SellfMade – Flipkart helped this seller realize her dreams. Now, she’s helping other women like her
