Sheela Kochouseph, 40, Founder V-Star Creations
- Base Ernakulam, Kerala
- Initial capital Rs 20 lakh
- Turnover 2018-19 Rs 102 crore
- Subhead 16 Exclusive Brand Outlets (EBOs) and 6 concept stores
- Subhead Over 1,000 direct and indirect employees
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For a 40-year-old from Kerala, striking a separate path from her successful husband was a little less challenging than setting up a lingerie business. 바카라But when I make up my mind about something, I don바카라t concern myself with what other people might think. I just move forward,바카라 says Sheela Kochouseph, founder of V-Star Creations, one of the largest innerwear and lifestyle garment brands in the region. She was undeterred by questions raised over how her move to strike out on her own in the innerwear business, which featured advertising campaigns that many considered 바카라vulgar바카라, would 바카라reflect바카라 on her husband, Kochouseph Chittilappilly, who had founded the electrical appliances major V-Guard Industries. 바카라I did nothing wrong,바카라 she says. 바카라I had a product to sell that had to be showcased and we had no choice but to use models. In fact, we brought some elegance and class to the whole thing.바카라
As demand for quality lingerie grew, with more customers willing to pay a higher price for comfort over functional wear, so did the brand. It took V-Star a half-decade to break even and then to corner the market. Much of its success was owed to the popular brassiere products in the women바카라s innerwear line, then branded as 바카라Vanessa바카라. A men바카라s undergarment line, branded 바카라Valera바카라, followed and grew into a success, despite V-Star바카라s reputation as a women바카라s lingerie maker. (Both lines have since been rebranded to V-Star.)
A strong independent streak has defined much of Sheela바카라s life from her early years as the second-youngest of 12 children in a small town, helping support her mother following her father바카라s death in her teens, to her varsity-level hockey star days and everything since. Her Kochi-based company, which joined the Rs 100-crore turnover club over the last fiscal, began in 1995 as a boutique store selling readymade ladies garments. 바카라It was my first venture and there was stiff competition from outside Kerala. Initially, sales and marketing were big challenges and over-politicisation and work culture in the sector did not help,바카라 she says.
Initially bankrolled by a Rs 20-lakh loan from her husband, with the understanding that no additional capital from the family coffer would be forthcoming, V-Star now has some 16 exclusive brand outlets and concept stores across South India. Sheela had to find skilled labour, work with low margins and locally sourced raw materials, and keep abreast of the latest fashion trends. 바카라There is a lot of variance in style preferences even across the state바카라from full-sleeve or sleeveless kameezes to tapered or frilly salwars. It was a lot to keep up with,바카라 she says. The company today employs nearly 1,200 underprivileged women in 16 manufacturing units across the state that churn out more than 15 lakh products a month. Adopting the model set by V-Guard, these units are set up in charitable institutions and convents. 바카라Nuns oversee the women바카라s work and welfare. We provide all the materials and training so as to maintain the quality customers have come to expect. We also contribute to the workers바카라 ESI and provident funds,바카라 she adds.
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