From an ordinary teenager to the owner of a prestigious bag company , a woman who has done an exceptional job through sheer hardwork and dedication . An award – winning entrepreneur and a role model to aspiring entrepreneurs , she is all about art since a young age and that ignited a spark in her for creating a spectacular and successful brand called Baggit . A believer of beauty without cruelty and the winner of ‘ Women Entrepreneur Award , 2015 ‘ for her excellence in the field of entrepreneurship and leadership . Lovely and gorgeous , founder and CEO of Baggit Co. , Nina Lekhi , speak to our host Subhi Gupta about her entrepreneurial journey.
How did you come to take up this entrepreneurial road?
I never wanted to be an entrepreneur in the first place. I happen to be a bag lover but becoming an entrepreneur or a Baggitian was absolutely an accident. I failed in my first year of college and had to prove myself after that. I had to take up something bigger than myself. I was fond of bags and began designing bags to exhibit them. Then, I started stocking my bags and selling them from bou tiques. Gradually, large – format stores began stocking up my handbags and “Baggit” became a hit among women.
How do you relate Baggit as a vegan, sustainable and pocket – friendly brand?
When you really care about the environment, fashion comes from a sense of responsibility. Vegan fashion is not a trend. Caring for mother Earth and understand ing the footprints that we are leaving behind.is something that Baggit believes in. Cruelty – free fashion stems from compassion, peace and love for all. Having the power to be able to produce 4 lakh units per month and putting them all up into the city of Mumbai and expanding more into the world gives us a sense of responsibility towards the environment. All our products are sustainable and bio – degradable
How have your designs evolved over the years capturing both Indian and International markets?
So to begin with, I am a designer myself Not only do I curate bags, in fact, I use every single bag. Also, we have a beautiful design team with us just like other teams in sales, marketing, HR and more: all the things that a company requires. The transformation is such that when I started about 30 years ago, we used to make only canvas bags. But now we have grown our window to all kinds of consumers so variety is there.
A believer of beauty without cruelty and the winner of “Women Entrepreneur Award, 2015′
Tell us a bit about the work culture at Baggit that has led to the positive growth of this enormous brand. My husband and I follow Siddhi Samadhi Yoga. We have im bibed some of those habits into our business culture as well. Our entire Baggit team (1000 people) follow the SSY program. We go for a silent retreat in nature once in 3 months. I think it is therapeutic and bonding that helps create love and enjoy ment in the work culture. We all meditate in the office as well. This is the culture of Baggit where we understand that every thing that we do outside emanates from what is inside of us.
Rapid-Fire
Three things from your bucket list
Travel, travel and travel….!!!
If you were a dish, which dish would you be? Ragda-patties and Kulfi Falooda
If not Baggit, what would you name your brand?
Mohenjo-daro
Your toughest decision ever
To get married
Your Inspiration
My husband
SILLY RIDDLE: What would you call a room with no doors and windows?
A mushroom!!!! (Hahaha!! Giggling)
Advice to the aspiring entrepreneurs out there. Do what you love. Give it all you have. Keep the vision and make it happen.