At BrilliantRead Media, our aim is to bring to our community some of the unique and compelling stories from the start-up ecosystem. As part of this endeavour, we invited yet another passionate entrepreneur Pragya Saxena Mohan for an exclusive interview with us. Pragya is a Leader, Mentor, Seasoned Entrepreneur and Skincare Consultant. She is the Creative Head and Founder of Swara Bliss. Let’s learn more about her inspirational journey and her advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Pragya:
We are aware of your contribution to the ecosystem, talk us through your background and your journey as a women entrepreneur, please;
To begin with, I always had this love for our natural beauty and kitchen hacks. I did my schooling from Holy Child School. My base for doing something as a women entrepreneur was rooted in my schooling, after studying in an all girl’s school with strong values makes one more firm in life goals. Opted for biology in class 11th to mark a difference in that field.
Further, I studied BSc in Microbiology. and then I did MBA (Biotech) from Amity University. During that time, I realized how important is nature around us, how the natural world is so wide and magical.
Personally, I prefer a healthy lifestyle, less chemicals in my products and natural remedies. And with my studies in LIFE SCIENCE, I learned how I can work on mild preservatives and chemicals to make sure I could create products which are more natural and free from harsh chemicals.”
The idea behind establishing ‘SWARA BLISS’ was in my mind for a long time. With the right attitude and support from my family and friends, I started floating. It’s all about your clear calling and efforts towards it, makes the difference.
What attracts you towards entrepreneurship instead of a corporate career?
Who doesn’t want to be the owner of his or her own venture? I had this notion for a long time. It was inculcated by my father from an early age. My father had an entrepreneurial mind. He was very tactful and taught me at an early age how to be independent and not to rely on support.
When I grew up, I realised to make my dream happen, I have to work double-time to achieve it. But then skincare happened because since childhood I have seen my family into natural healing, Ayurveda treatment, and a more natural way of living. That inspired me further to explore the beauty of nature.”
And my idea of business includes not only helping ‘MOTHER NATURE’ but to present a different picture of “BEAUTY” altogether for all the genders.
‘Swara Bliss’ is such a unique name; talk us through more about it, please. Our audience would also love to know what kind of problem you are solving with the help of your startup?
As you know we are just getting into the waters, things are still not very rosy but we have such a great team to keep us floating. We see the problems as a new opportunity, which helps us learn new ways and techniques. We are mainly trying our best to keep the packaging as minimal as possible.
We avoid plastics and also work on recyclable packaging. We try to adopt only zero-waste processes. We are working on more eco-friendly packaging, we are trying our best to ensure less use of glass and plastic. It is a long way, but we as a small business start-up are already focusing on this aspect as well.”
Problems are many, like any other business we do have our share of good days and bad days and then extremely bad days. It is not a rosy picture. But overall people are shifting, our customers are getting more intelligent while making their choices. So we hope soon people will start valuing quality.
During this COVID-19 crisis, what are the measures you have undertaken to continue your business without disruption?
With the changing dynamics, we have kept ourselves updated. The freelancer model ensures each and every work can be handled remotely, where we don’t need to do physical meetings.
Also, the less is more is a good model for us to work. Like we make small batches of products, we prefer quality to quantity. We ensure that less staff at work facilities should maintain social distancing norms.
Secondly, every aspect of the business is online and tech-enabled to ensure automation as much as possible.
How do you manage yourself and keep on going despite the challenges? What drives you?
What drives me, well it’s the love, which keeps me on my toes. Love my family shows towards my dreams their firm belief in me and my passion for my work. And my Late father always wanted me to set up my own factory and start my work. So it’s like his dream and my passion.
Then I have the core belief that science + nature both are amazing, we have so much to explore and experiment with. India is rich in so many herbs, Ayurveda. We try our best to make use of modern and old school recipes. We can do wonders in this field for the people. With my knowledge in this area, I want to bring the best for our clients.
In my free time, I try to travel, spend time with my family, and try to maintain my work-life balance as much as possible.
In your opinion, what is more necessary: An idea or a good team for a successful startup?
In my opinion, one is mean and the other is an end. Both are important just like two sides of the same coin. We need a good team to make our idea work well.
You are always positive and motivated, what keeps you going?
This venture is like my baby, I nurture it with love and care. And as I said earlier I love my work. Anything you do in life has to have a passion for and should not feel like a burden.
My passion, my love for my work, my dream and my family support system keeps me on my path.
We would love to know your advice for all those starting out as an aspiring women entrepreneur?
The right attitude, right mindset working works wonders.
Be decisive in your decision-making. Each day brings new responsibility and challenges and faces it with an open mindset. Make use of your resources wisely. Be specific as possible about your client’s demands and what demographic behaviour they show.
In today’s world Online presence and how we handle our social media is a major factor. One should always evolve along with new world norms. Hence for upcoming entrepreneurs, I suggest, pay attention towards your Brand image from the budding stage.
Rest, always be ‘BOSS LADY’, remember success definition is different for all. at the end of the day when you sleep, you should be happy. That is more important than anything else.
BrilliantRead is committed to bringing stories from the startup ecosystem, stories that reshape our perspective, add value to our community and be a constant source of motivation not just for our community but also for the whole ecosystem of entrepreneurs and aspiring individuals.
Note: If you have a similar story to share with our audience and would like to be featured on our online magazine, then please write to us at [email protected], we will review your story and extend an invitation to feature if it is worth publishing.
