Maria is an arts graduate with a masters degree in event management and works part-time as a Wedding Planner.Firoza is currently working on a project with an MNC while pursuing a masters degree in commerce and striving to make the small startup business 'By My Side' a big success. The sisters share the same alma maters from Christ Church School and Jai hind College in Mumbai, India
Can you tell us about your current business "By My Side" What was the idea behind it?
Firoza: We would love to share a couple of interesting incidents which culminated into the creation of By My Side. We were once shopping at a popular clothing store, frequented by teenage girls when we were approached by a bunch of girls who profusely praised the bags we were carrying and wished to gain information about where they could buy them.
On another occasion my sister's colleagues complimented her laptop bag and mentioned how they would love to have something akin to what Maria was carrying. We had requests from cousins and friends to custom-make bags for them and this gradually turned into a business venture.
Why did you name it By My Side?
Maria: By My Side, a purse/a handbag/a bag-pack is something one carries at all times when stepping outdoors. An essential object and an inanimate companion which displays a bit of your personal style. That is how we've derived the name of our company. All our bags are made of cotton material and are absolutely environment friendly without compromising on style. We have tailors with great workmanship who manufacture the bags and in parallel we are trying to harness the local talent of painters and embroidery artisans to incorporate their exquisite work onto our bags. This way we are also helping these skilled workers with livelihood opportunities.
The ideation of our company was a complete serendipity. A homegrown product which we decided to take public owing to the multitude of positive responses and encouragement that we received from friends and family. Prudence prevailed and we realised these weren't merely polite compliments but attributed entirely to the style, quality and workmanship of our bags.
Have you assigned separate roles for yourselves?
Maria's: My forte is creativity and the technical aspects while Firoza leans more towards the management. She invest time in determining the feasibility and following our business plan. Thus we strike a perfect balance. (Not so perfect on the stressful days)
Are you looking to market it globally. Any plans?
We're actively looking to cater to a larger clientele and in this wonderful digital age where everyone is so connected, expanding into the international market via Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram doesn't seem as daunting as it would have a couple of years ago. We hope with the support of an efficient courier services we will facilitate the delivery of our products to the customer's doorstep. In conclusion, stepping into the global market is the way forward and appears achievable.
What were your first jobs?
Maria: My first job was an event planner, which I still pursues in my spare time and Firoza was a PR intern.
What advice would you give to others who want a career like yours? We can sum it in two words :-
Maria - Patience and Perseverance
Firoza - Take Baby Steps with confidence
How do you work together as a team being siblings ?
What you need to bear it mind is, it's absolutely critical to work in tandem but equally necessary to have your own silos. Working with a sibling can prove to be extremely challenging. On certain occasions it affects the sororal bond that you share. The upside is you have this inexplicable telepathic connection and both of you are on the same wavelength, this makes taking decisions relatively easier.
What do you do in your spare time outside of work?
Maria: I like to read romance/fantasy/fiction novels; watch, gush and force others to watch videos of pets in amusing situations and plan weddings and other events whenever the opportunity arises.
Firoza: I am a sitcom buff, an avid reader, a compulsive Facebook checker and a slugabed. When I'm not doing any of the above I'm either hanging out with friends or enjoying quality time/annoying my mother.
What is currently in your ipod/smartphone– music?
Maria: I listen to artists like Lorde, Linkin Park and assorted Bollywood movie songs on my phone.
Firoza: To be honest, I have no space on my phone for music and currently don't own an iPod. So I stream everything from Alt-j to Arijit Singh and Coke Studio to Coldplay.
Can you finish this sentence - I believe?
This might sound a bit juvenile but when I saw the words "I believe" R. Kelly's Grammy Award winning song "I believe I can fly. I believe I can touch the sky think about it every night and day." was the first thought that crossed my mind. Which is a good mantra! Optimism is key and this is a philosophy we're learning to inculcate in life and in By My Side.
What is your Favorite App?
Firoza: The teen in me still isn't quite dormant and Snapchat continues to be my favourite app. A close second would be this expense management app. Maria swears by Google Keep and the Memo app keeps the obsessive list maker and organization enthusiast in her very happy.
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Interested in knowing more about these bags? Please send an email to bymysidebags@gmail.com.
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