KOCHI HOSTS ALL GIRL ENTREPRENEUR FETE

KOCHI HOSTS

ALL GIRL ENTREPRENEUR FETE

Can women be successful in business? Those who raise eyebrows have a lot of answers lined up here. Entrepreneurship will not be a distant dream anymore for those women who would love to own a space in the world of business- this was the message conveyed by the business talents gathered at the Purple Art Fete (Purple fete), an exclusive women entrepreneurial art-craft-design exhibition held at Rotary Bhavan in Panampilly Nagar. The two-day event (May 18 & 19) organised by Banglore-based Hera Planners opened a new avenue for women entrepreneurs to showcase their talent and sell their products. This is for the first time that Purple Art Fete is being organised in Kerala. 

Rema Sivaram, one of the organisers of Purple Fete said, “It is a unique exhibition to enhance women entrepreneurs. In Bangalore, we could see many outlets like this. Women entrepreneurs from south Indian states such as Banglore, Chennai and Kochi participated here in 30 stalls.”Nandini Krishnankutty and Aparna Viswanathan were the other two organisers. Each participant in the fete was a standing example of how one might run a small-scale business successfully with minimal capital and skill. Purple fete featured a unique display of hand made, recycled, and up cycled products by entrepreneurs from different walks of life. Here, more than money, what mattered the most was creativity and effort spent on each craft. 

Saritha Ashok, a former IT executive from Bangalore, came here with her brand-new collections under the brand  'Rainbow Bunting'.  Her stall offered hand-made pouches, accessories, photo frames, clocks and other decorative stuff.“I started it as a hobby. Once I realised that there was a market for these, I  made it my profession. I require only a small sum to buy raw materials. The price of each item depends upon the amount of effort I put for making all these,” she said. Besides such expos, Saritha relies more upon new-age media promotions using Facebook and blogs. Like her, there were housewives, retired professionals and college students who had come here with their unique crafts. 

Pushpa Balan, a retired school principal who came with decorative handcrafts for houses and apartments under the brand name 'illi' said, “After retirement, I started making small decorative pieces out of used products and adorned my apartment with them. Seeing them I got a lot of enquiries and eventually I started running it as a small business. I only have to buy the angler and paint.” Her products starts from 150 rupees and her stall also displayed  kurtas designed by her daughter. Preetha, another entrepreneur came with elegant recycled plant pots and home-made pickle. Two stalls were run by Kudumbasree, the self-help group. Jwala Candles Unit, a Kudumbasree unit, brought a unique and stylish hand-made product “Ice cream candles” and “Fruit Salad Candles”. Besides these, there were stalls for clothing, confectioneries, jewellery,  antiques, accessories, glass paintings and others. The variety of products pointed to the fact that business can be women’s cup of tea.Hera Planners is a wedding planner run by Aparna Viswanathan and Rema Sivaram. Following their entrepreneurial call, the duo ventured into event management and now they pave way for those who wish to tread the entrepreneurial path. 

Prof. John Kurakar