Gita Ramanan, 35, Co-Founder & CEO Design Cafe
- Base Bangalore
- Initial capital Rs 1 crore
- Total funding $35mn
- 2018 order booking Rs 60 crore
- Employees 700
- Clients/Projects Over 5,000
***
When 22-year-old architect Gita Ramanan stepped into a meeting room one afternoon to make a presentation to 18 men seated around the table, she was asked: 바카라When is your boss coming?바카라 Having recently been selected from among 150 entrants for a competition to design a complex of 800 apartments, she gently broke it to them that she was in charge.
Thirteen years later, she still reigns바카라at Design CafĂ©, an interiors firm in Bangalore with over 700 employees and 5,000 clients that she founded with her partner Shezan Bojani. 바카라At first, whenever I went to a site, there were men with 20 years of experience who constantly tried to assess what I knew. It바카라s a rite of passage for female designers,바카라 says Ramanan.
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바카라Initially, it was hard to convince investors that I was heading the firm. So we sent Shezan for the first set of meetings. Only when they showed interest would I come in the picture. Many women cannot progress when they hit a glass ceiling and if sharing my expÂerience helps them, I must do it. It is hard for women, especially in the real estate industry, though we are now being taken more seriously as professionals.바카라 But the gender issue does not really Âaffect her. 바카라I come from a family with educated working women, so I don바카라t think of myself as a female entrepreneur.바카라
Ramanan believes in 바카라democratising바카라 design바카라her initial lofty mission바카라and using optimum material. 바카라I still don바카라t know why certain Italian kitchens cost Rs 15 lakh, but I do know that I can give you the same finish for Rs 3 lakh,바카라 says the woman whose startup offÂers personalised design solutions for homes at affordable prices.
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Ramanan realised that there was some level of standardisation and factory production for commercial projects, but not for residences. 바카라You can get 100,000 sq ft done up in 30 days, but 1,000 sq ft cannot be completed in even 120 days,바카라 she says. The prices for homes were equally flabbergasting: 바카라I kept wondering, what were they putting in it? Besides, I couldn바카라t afford the houses I was designing. I saw in that an opportunity to build a large business.바카라
She also saw that at lower budgets, customers were getting homes that did not serve their needs바카라Italian kitchens with no provision for stacking kadais and thalis, cookie-cutter drawers that could not bear the weight of their contents and lack of space to store essentials such as brooms, wires and other stuff that is stashed behind doors when visitors arrive.
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바카라If you want to design a guest room, for instance,바카라 she explÂains, 바카라you need to know how many visitors will come and how often. I used to design high-end homes with this level of attention to details, but I realised that many could not take advantage because it was too pricey.바카라 Yet she knows there바카라s a limit to affordability: 바카라We don바카라t have a solution if you want to get your home designed for less than Rs 5 lakh,바카라 says Ramanan.
How did she transition from high-end to affordable homes? 바카라There are many ways to cut down costs,바카라 she explains. 바카라For insÂtance, we discovered that a leading retailer does not manufacture their products, so it바카라s cheaper to source from producers. We found a brand that uses eucalyptus wood, which is naturally termite- and borer-resistant, thereby leading to savings on protective coatings.바카라
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She also ensures optimal usage of raw materials. Everything comes in standard sizes바카라plywood, laminate, glass and marble. When one designs odd sizes, the leftovers go to waste. Contractors charge customers for the entire material, which raises costs. 바카라Our software helps us utilise scraps for smaller things like ledges, shelves and coffee tables. Your interiors should work for your lifestyle, at your price point,바카라 she declares. In an industry notorious for delays and maintenance hassles, they promise a 90-day turnaround time, no cost escalation and warranty for 10 years.
Ramanan바카라s company has taken over each aspect of design and execution. Initially, they used the spare capacity of other factories. But that did not give them control over quality and timelines. So they began procuring materials, set up a factory and hired installers, carpenters, painters and other staff. 바카라Everyone went berserk,바카라 laughs Ramanan, 바카라but the move paid off.바카라 They now deliver around 150 projects a month.
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She explains how Design CafĂ© was the culmination of a decade바카라s experience, including course corrections. After they were selected to design and execute an apartment complex in 2006, they set up a firm. But the promoters ditched the plan as they could not find enough buyers.
바카라After that, we worked on a salon, schools, offices바카라Š,바카라 she recÂalls. 바카라But although many architects like us start their own practices, we were never trained in running a business바카라understanding pay roll, profit & loss accounts 바카라Š.바카라
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That prompted her to enroll for the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Entrepreneurs Programme at Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. 바카라I learnt things which now seem basic바카라what바카라s a business plan바카라but out of that experience was born Design Cafe in 2011.바카라 She specifies that the firm was distinct from her latest venture, but she retained the name because their investors preferred it. It focused on residential and hospitality projects바카라Gold바카라s Gym and Au Bon Pain were some of its clients.
In 2013, they launched and ran designkhoj.com, which failed becÂause they 바카라were trying to do too many things바카라. Although the earlier Design Cafe was a success, they shut it down to focus on interiors for budget homes. With US$500,000 in angel investment, they launched the portal designcafe.xyz (now designcafe.com) in 2015. They set up experience centres in Bangalore and Mumbai; outlets in Pune and Hyderabad are in progress.
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For all her achievements, there바카라s something Ramanan still lacks바카라her parents바카라 approval. 바카라I am the black sheep of my community. For a long time, my parents never told anyone I had started a firm바카라you are supposed to work in companies. What they find really cool are my gold medals and degrees from ISB and MIT, but even then they tell me, 바카라That uncle바카라s son, after a medal from IIT바카라Š바카라,바카라 she laughs. 바카라Even for their house, they took advice from my sister, who has no design background. It keeps you humble.바카라
