“The more you learn, the more you earn-they say and in my trunk, it is the same. The more I seek to learn new things, the more knowledge I earn which is the most precious thing. I’ve completed my degree in B. A. Fashion Marketing from the London College of Fashion, University of Arts. I’m very keen to learn new things and get a whole new experience. This trait led me to work with many renowned brands like Selfridges & co., Diesel, and London Fashion Week in my college days.
GranMade was born in 2017 as a part of my Social Enterprise Business plan submission in college. The very idea of starting GranMade is rooted in the basic question of my grandmother, ‘What should I knit for you to be comfortable in the cold?’. It was then when I thought of the latest potential of our old ladies in hand-knitted accessories. Thus, GranMade, as a social enterprise was born where we make fashion accessories and winter essentials.
GranMade has continuously strived for achieving its primary goal of accessorizing life by empowering our old ladies. They knit our products and give our customers disguised love and nostalgic touch through our hand knitted products. These products hold the artistic power and love of the sweetest grandmothers of the country. We received appreciation and recognition in the UK. We were also published by the University of Warwick Ethics and enterprise research 2017. GranMade became runner up at the Green Gown Globe Award 2017 as my final project submission.
Our artistic network of old ladies is sprouting but it is not as easy as it seems on the surface. There are a lot of backbreaking challenges that we go through. The constant challenge of growing and maintaining the network of artisans is what keeps us on our toes. Going from door to door in remote areas and asking old ladies to knit is a lot hectic task. Especially due to COVID-19, a lot of my peers and myself are feeling ambiguous.
The goal is to stay focused, keep on working, and be more positive. Visiting the soul of our country and seeing the untapped talent of our old women is quite an eye-opener. GranMade is a complete homegrown brand with everything from raw materials to printing tags made in India. I’m always working hard to show our best potential so that everyone can see the artistic versatility of our country. Keeping a check on artisans, production, and sales networks proves to be quite hustling. But above that, I love the challenges because it makes me do better and work harder.
With GranMade, I got the opportunity to make a way into the business world. I also travel all over India for contacting ladies from various backgrounds. I get to know about the beauty and warmth of our country. Being able to successfully convert my business plan into reality and seeing the artistic beauty in our country is what made me realize the true potential of a brand like GranMade. I envisage GranMade to be a leading brand one day. Ensuring GranMade accomplishes its highest potential, enlarging our network of artisans needs consistency and patience to which I believe I’m quite determined.
Who says business is a manly domain. My power puffed old ladies are already doing wonders in our business with GranMade. I just want to say to achieve your goal, one must be focused and positive in every situation and only that gives you the strength to overcome all the challenges.”
Instagram: @granmadein
*The views expressed in the above article are of the writer and not Winged Club.