“The strongest action for a woman is to love herself, be herself, and shine amongst those who never believed she could” with this quote
Eleven years ago, a 23-years old software engineer quit her job to fulfil her dreams and took a turn to the clothing industry. Nidhi Yadav, who worked at Deloitte, Hyderabad, quit her job. To make her dream true, she decided to go to Italy to pursue a one year course in Fashion, Buying and Merchandising at Polimoda Fashion School Florence, situated in Italy.
It was a turning point for her future without any doubt she took a quick decision, and for making future in the fashion industry, she went to Italy, and now her company turnover is more than ₹137 crore. Her company name is ‘Aks‘.
Early Life – Nidhi Yadav
Nidhi was born in a lawyer family in Indore, M.P. She completed her studies in Indore in 2004. After completing her studies, she realized she was not happy with her work, so she decided to quit her job and pursued a one-year Fashion Buying and Merchandising course from Italy. Nidhi got married to Satpal Yadav, an MBA from IIM Kozhikode.
Her husband encouraged her to set up the business. In prior days she started her business from her 2BHK flat and used to keep their stocks in home only. Her idea was to start her business like Zara, but her husband worked at Jabong as an operation manager, so he suggested starting something ethnic wear like Lehengas, Kurtis, Anarkali, Maxi Dresses, and Traditional Suits.
Nidhi launched AKS as an online brand. Priorly, Nidhi used to manage all the work of her business by herself. She introduced her products through Limeroad, Jabong, and Myntra as well. The delivery boy took products from her home.
In the beginning, she brought her clothes from Jaipur with her husband. Three units of Jaipur agreed to produce her custom-made garments. Her daughter was seven months old when she launched her online site.
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Aks – Business Model
Nidhi Yadav started her business with ₹3.5 lakh, and now she built ₹137 crore women’s wear. In 2014, she established Yuvdhi Apparel as a sole proprietorship that will be turned into a private limited company after some time.
To extend her marketing, she released her new designs every 15 days. In 2014 people were aware of online shopping, and that was the time her business rapidly grew. During pandemic times, she developed a mother-child line.
Her crew consists of five tailors and a team of designers. Tailors work on respected designs and make sample items that will supply to the partner’s factories at Delhi and Jaipur. All the fabric is imported from Surat, Ahemdabad, and Jodhpur.
Challenges Faced By Nidhi Yadav
When Nidhi started her online branding, people were not interested in online shopping. They had trust issues. But Nidhi didn’t lose hope and continued her business. In prior days she kept her stock in her flat, but in 2015 she took a basement on rent.
Nidhi Yadav mentioned in her interview her export industry was going down because they used to give credit 30 days, but it increased to 60 to 90 days with time.
Conclusion
The business idea of Nidhi is straightforward and attractive. Her struggle was not easy, but she kept believing in herself and set up a new example for the next generation. We all should learn from her and work hard for our dreams.
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