“Mere colour, unspoiled by meaning, and unallied with definite form, can speak to the soul in a thousand different ways.”
― Oscar Wilde
“Varnanggall”
is doing just that- romanticizing the souls of many a customer with a
beautiful sprinkle of colours that bring a smile to the faces of happy
customers just by looking at the sheer fabric and the beautiful motifs
that can bring almost any dull day to a stop. Yes, it can just brighten
up your day.
An Indian
art brand spreading the expression and good cheer of vibrant colors and
beautiful Indian motif, Varnanggall – a start-up by Lavanyaa K R, a lady
who had the courage to venture out of her warm cocoon in order to
justify her desire, a desire to reflect her notion of art into a canvas
that would change the dimensions of being beautiful for many!
Startoholics caught up with the lady behind the cheerful explosive art pieces for a small interview.
Lavanyaa K R, Founder of Varnanggall
Could you shed light on your life before Varnanggall? What was your previous work?
I was
working with IBM India Pvt Ltd for about 8 years dealing with strategic
business/technology issues and getting to the bottom of it – status
calls, escalations, production issues, customers and all that jazz!
What motivated this start-up?
From the
period of being a kid I was very passionate about Indian art – bright
colours, patterns and shapes. I grew up closely observing my dance
teacher’s bright and vibrant attires. But in the due course like most of
the others I did get subjected to various academic pressures and life
styles where I had to gradually park aside the real passion and
interests in me. Before I let it slip between the cracks it was time for
me to act on! Well it took me 25 long years to recapitulate the real
craving and the capping satisfaction in my life, and that’s when I found
my true calling – “Varnanggall” to put my overriding obsession and
energy into viable products and spread this visual art to a bigger
community.
How did you take your first step towards Varnanggall? Did you receive any funding from angel investors?
Some of
the massive factors to consider while erecting a start-up are market
study, audience and promotion! First thing was to set up a platform –
online vs. in store. With the confined investment in my kitty it was not
feasible and practical to set up a store,so I opted to merchandise on
Facebook to reach a wider range of audience globally! The next component
was the kind of products – products that I find it difficult to find in
the market! So why not just make it myself! And lastly my savings from
the IT days were the angelic investors! As it was a start-up I invested
just enough money (neither underfunded nor overfunded) to turn realistic
ideas into products and run a scalable business model.
What differentiates Varnanggall from the rest?
This is my favourite question.
I’m
definitely not going to explain the exteriors of my creations; I will
leave it to the onlooker to differentiate Varnanggall from others!
Every
creation that I make is given 100% attention right from the inception to
the delivery and that’s why Varnanggall is not on a mass production
spree or hooked onto a rat race!
Varnanggall
is not a commercial business; it is a very small venture which purely
runs based on deep devotion and commitment for art. The money that is
paid by the customers is utilized to produce various unique creations
back to them!! All the creations are handmade and home grown.
Hashing
out all the customer needs/details and coming to an agreement has made
this brand very customer friendly. It is strongly believed that colours
can influence one’s psychological and emotional moods and Varnanggall is
right on it!
What
challenges have you faced in your entrepreneurial journey? What has
been the toughest decision you had to make lately, if any?
I always
dreamt of working for myself but it was just the timing that had to
favour me and especially when I had bloomy days at work I used to
question myself “what the hell am I doing in this place?” I think the
toughest decision for me was to quit my IBM job. Beyond a point it was
just impossible for me to balance my primary job and Varnanggall. There
were days when me and the Varnanggall team spent sleepless nights over
the weekends because of the time constraint I had.You know, think about
getting a handful of money in an air conditioned environment to a
situation where you don’t know if you are going to go under a loss,
break even or make some profits and keep hunting for fabrics in areas
which you have never been to even in your wildest dreams!
I feel
that at end of the day it’s all about burning bridges to reach your
goal. Thanks to my experiences/exposures at IBM for teaching me how to
be on my own feet and inducing the professional character.
Sourcing
raw materials and finding the appropriate labour was one of the biggest
challenges. I was always used to buying my clothes;accessories in some
of the arty stores so never had the knowledge of fabrics, cost and the
source. Unlike Mumbai, Calcutta and other cities Bangalore still lacks
the pool of raw materials and labour required to make some of the
unusual creations. It took me a while to research all the congested
markets with really narrow roads and tiny footpaths in Bangalore, talk
to the shop keeper(s) and build a rapport. Thanks to my Husband and
sister who helped me in every step of my research and study.
Another
delicate challenge was the mind-set of some of the customers, as they
wouldn’t trust your work and the costs because you are the “new bee”.
But they wouldn’t mind spending the same amount of money in a shopping
mall or high end stores because it’s already established. Everyone
started small one day and made it big, and how true is that!
What are your plans for promoting Varnanggall? Also, do you have any tie-ups?
Varnanggall
is going to celebrate its first anniversary in October 2013 and to
celebrate that I’m planning for a live exhibition of my creations in
Bangalore. This is exclusively organised for my Varnanggall community in
and around Bangalore!
Besides,
I’m working with few artists/classical dancers to adore my creations, so
that’s on the pipeline too! Varnanggall is also going to participate in
some of the notable art exhibition(s) soon!
There are no tie-ups; it’s all the Varnanggall team!
Do
you have a photographer who takes care of the Varnanggall page that
shows the latest creations? (Because the pictures are amazing and so are
the locations!)
Thank you
for the compliment, the photographer is me! I strongly feel my pictures
should talk to my brand – Classic, Ethnic, South Indian and still CHIC!
Any plans of opening a store or do you think that the online version is good enough?
That’s
positively in the pipeline; I just need to figure out the logistics and
other essentials. 70% of my customers are based abroad and they prefer
to see the collections online, having said that it would be wrong to
ignore the 30% as India is still not into an online shopping culture,
they would physically want to check what they are buying. So, I might
settle down for a facility with a workshop and a store for now, that way
it will be great to catch up with my customers!
How many products have you sold in India and abroad till date?
Like I said earlier 70% of my products are sold abroad and 30% in India.
What more do you wish to include to take Varnanggall to the next level?
I
sincerely thank all my customers, fans and supporters for all the love
they have been showing to Varnanggall. You know in today’s world it’s
all word of mouth, and your customers are an integral part of your
brand’s promotion – they can either make it or break it!
So, I
would definitely need this continued support and love from my
Varnanggall community to keep this brand going and the one it’s going to
become.
Finally, what advice would you like to give to other young entrepreneurs?
Focus on
your goals and interests; don’t get into the game of competition, fame,
popularity at the very initial stage. They will follow as you keep
showing your good work, see things beyond your nose and stay grounded.
Life is too short not to feel this good..!!! So Come on in and explore the exclusive and alluring “VARNANGGALL”! – Lavanyaa K.R.
“Gratitude doesn’t change the scenery. It merely washes clean the glass you look through so you can clearly see the colours.”
―Richelle E. Goodrich
―Richelle E. Goodrich
And that
was what we did -brought you closer to a bouquet of colours awaiting you
to smell the fragrance of a brighter existence! The person behind this
start-up definitely needs an applause for making the decision that
changed not only her life but is also changing the wardrobes of many
women all over the globe.
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