Coming from a corporate background in technical fields, Sakshi Kohli, Founder and Owner, Divas is a young and enthusiastic entrepreneur. Her store is a one stop shopping destination for every kind of fashion lover. She says that it has everything that a young heart desires! In an exclusive conversation with this young star, Business2Business explores more on her entrepreneurial journey, her challenges, route to the market and a lot of more exciting insights:

The journey: Sakshi shares, “I am an engineer by educational qualification. Having worked in my field for a few years, I realized that my entrepreneurial skills and creative abilities were compelling me to follow my passion, which was to set up my own enterprise and help girls and women make a fashion statement that is more unique and attractive.”

Differentiating factors:  When asked if she could describe that look and what type of customer does it appeal to while purchasing, Sakshi shares, “We celebrate the ‘Diva’ that already exists in every girl or woman, which only needs to be carved out, for the world to appreciate her beauty and femininity. We do this by offering the right kind of styles that accentuates their natural elegance and blossoms up at every occasion they dress up for. In addition to all the other services, we also offer a free specialist styling advice to everyone who steps in. This helps them in picking up the best. Not many stores offer such facilities!”

Route to the market: “As of now, we majorly invested in a designer store that is very stylish, eye catching and impressive. It speaks volumes about our standards in terms of the choice of outfits that we stock. It expresses style and eminence right from the time the customer enters our store. We are in the process of adding a lot more to it,” says Sakshi. She adds, “Also, word of mouth has helped us a lot. All credits and thanks to our happy customers who have helped us in expanding our reach through referrals. Social media channels like Facebook and Instagram have also helped a lot. We make sure that we display our latest collections here from time to time. We also stay in regular touch with our existing customers through messaging services that inform them about offers and new stock arrivals. As far as going online is concerned, we will definitely consider that as one of the options to expand our business in the future once we are convinced about the customer demand for the same.”

Chandigarh over Delhi/Mumbai as a location: Sakshi shares, “Chandigarh is an evolving market, which has enthusiasm about looking fashionable and trendy. The people here are willing to explore new destinations and new styles. This is very inspiring as an entrepreneur, as it offers me an opportunity to bring forth my creative ideas to style girls and women. We believe that looking fashionable may not always mean a uniquely styled top or a dress, but is more essentially about the way in which even a usual top or dress can be worn and carried that makes a thousand faces turn around. This is what makes all the difference between a Diva and any other girl/ woman.”

Common mistakes that women make when selecting clothes for themselves: “Each individual has a body type of their own. Whilst, a certain dress may enhance the cuts and curves of certain body type, they may not necessarily adorn another body type. So, knowing your body type is crucial to making the right choice of style of clothing,” shares Sakshi. She adds, “Also, learning about the effect and impact of colors is equally essential. Knowing that colors can not only complement one’s tone of the complexion, the fact that they have the potential to understate or overstate one’s figure is quintessential.”

Customer Service as a differentiator: While there’s been a heavy emphasis on customer service recently, Sakshi shares, “In a business, the customer service element is very important, which primarily is about touching customers’ lives by making them feel valued. For me it is about understanding each customer’s specific requirements, choices and preferences and help them to make the right purchase. It means meeting their expectations and ensuring that customer leaves with a pleasant, comfortable and memorable shopping experience.” She adds, “We   take a lot of pride in how we make our customers feel. We allow them the space to express their needs and make best endeavor to meet their expectations by helping them to choose the right outfit that accentuates their look and attitude. We are also very patient when it comes to handling customer grievances.”

Challenges faced: Sakshi shares, “We, as a new enterprise had stepped into an already established market that hosts older players in the field of fashion clothing for girls and women. Being a new entrant, we were faced with the challenge of building clientele like any other new business.” She adds, “However, with our quality standards in place and a decision to offer nothing, but the best to our customers, we stock an exclusive range of clothing that speaks of superior quality materials, chic designs and latest style at prices that mean value to our customers. So, whilst we did not necessarily attract a clientele that is ready to compromise on the quality and style for a cheaper price. Yet, thankfully, we have been fairly successful in our efforts to set high standards. In the process, we have received immense appreciation from our customers who were keenly awaiting a change from what was already available, and are delighted to find something new and unique every time on their visit our store and at a great value for their money.”

Advice for young women planning to be in the creative field: My best advice for aspiring business women is to pursue their endeavors in the area of their interest and passion. Secondly, patience, perseverance and a decent amount of capital backup goes a long way in weathering the storms that any new business enterprise faces in its infancy.