Jewellery is an influential part of our lives if we want to look good. It looks even better if you jazz up your look with jewellery that matches your clothes. Women have always appreciated and valued jewellery, even in ancient times. That’s why, if you want to stand out at your upcoming significant occasion, look no further than the exquisite finger ring sets from Aamukhi, a jewellery start up.
Jewellery enthusiast Adima Ambekar is the founder of “Aamukhi.” Even though she considers herself a tomboy, finger rings helped her develop a passion of jewellery. She managed to launch this huge initiative while managing her alternative profession. Her product delivery is not just limited to Nashik, but even to other parts of India, the US, and other countries.
Let’s get started with her tale of becoming a young entrepreneur!
When did you start your business? What is the background story of ‘Aamukhi an Introduction?
In 2017, while I was in my second year of LLB, I started my own business. As someone who loves finger rings very much, I came across a few pages on Instagram where I checked out jewellery, and that’s how I came up with this idea. In order to understand what the trends are, what people like, and what I need to do based on them, I spent almost 2-3 months researching from Kashmir to Kanyakumari.
The name of the brand originally wasn’t Aamukhi but rather “Dresses 9 to 9,” which depicts the attire you wear from 9 Am to 9 Pm because in the beginning, I had the idea to launch a clothing line, which has a good market overall. However, as I already mentioned, I had a personal interest in finger rings, and because both my mother and sister thought it was a brilliant concept and fully supported me, it gave rise to “Aamukhi.”
How did you come up with the name for your company?
As an entrepreneur, my brand is definitely very close to my heart. Like that, my firm and its name have a special meaning which is closest to our hearts. Aamukhi refers to the first page of any book or the first bell in an Indian drama when the curtain is initially drawn and the play begins.
Regarding the 18.9, my sister was born on the 18th of May, and May is the 9th month, so that’s how we came up with this name.
Apart from finger rings, what type of jewellery do you sell?
With the launch of a jewellery brand, the brand consists of a variety of jewellery items. It includes almost all kinds of jewellery that a woman would wear to look elegant. All kinds of jewellery are available in my store, including earrings, necklaces, rings, bracelets, and much more.
While I started with very basic jewellery, such as light weights that we usually find on streets, when I delved deeper into this field, I discovered I needed something that is highly appreciated and that is not available in Nashik. Even though I currently sell light-weight jewellery, my original goal is to sell unique pieces that are better than light-weight pieces. I’d rather go with something more subtle.
Why did you decide to become a business owner?
My father was also an artist, so it was something that I wanted to accomplish if I could get his work because I wanted to build my own brand. He was really interested in metal embossing, which is a difficult art form, and that is what inspired me to wonder whether I could use his expertise in something so that the people would value his art form and get something special.
That’s how I completely feel about turning his creative form into jewellery and forming a firm for it.
I would like to know more about the logo design as well. You have a very unique logo. What does that design mean?
Yes, I created the name that appears in my logo. The design and pattern were really finished in three months. I rewrote that name several times in an effort to find the ideal style and aesthetic.
Initially, peacock designs trend were popular in earrings and other jewellery at the time I launched my firm. That was one of the things that inspired me to create this logo because, as you can see, the letter “Mu” in “Aamukhi” has a bird in it, thus the idea came from that trend. Additionally, as women will wear the jewellery, the name of the item, which shows a lady, has been carefully crafted to incorporate an eyebrow and a smile.
People were mad behind all these aesthetic designs and the natural elements in their pieces. So that was my biggest inspiration, which took me almost 3 months to finalise the logo. My artist friend finished the rest of the work after I had created it myself.
Where are your products produced? Do you handle all this on your own or is there any team behind?
Depending on my customers’ needs, I primarily obtain them in Delhi and the remaining in Jaipur, North India.
When it comes to business management, I can assure you that I am solely responsible for delivery, order taking, packing, and social media marketing. I’m attempting to complete every task as a one-woman army. My sister does help me with this firm, but her main contribution is as a financier.
How did you manage to continue your business during the COVID-19 Pandemic?
During the pandemic, business was greatly impacted, yet I still received a significant amount of response. I considered continuing this thing because it’s a pandemic and people aren’t ordering, and while it did happen, very few customers joined, which encouraged me to continue operating this business.
It was surprising to me that I was able to make deliveries by myself at that time while Covid was at its peak, because there were ten clients who placed regular orders.
My friends and family tried to hold me back from doing this, but I had no choice. All of this and taking chances are necessary for my survival.
Do you have an alternate career apart from this one, and what are your typical responsibilities as a business owner?
There are numerous responsibilities; there is not just one. You must manage everything, complete every task, and keep order. The biggest responsibility and challenge of doing everything on your own is maintaining a high level of consistency on social media. Because if you run an online business, there is no other way to connect with customers.
I am a lawyer by profession, so scheduling time for every little thing like captioning an Instagram post or something is a big responsibility in and of itself.
How is ‘Aamukhi’ different from other such brands?
In essence, Aamukhi offers really special quality, and I can promise you that it is difficult to find this kind of quality anywhere else. In addition, Aamukhi’s designs and patterns differ since it offers silver-plated items with unique and patented patterns. Naturally, quality matters, and maintaining quality is our key goal in building a strong brand. Additionally, I check the quality of each and every product myself to guarantee that I give the best possible product.
I write four lines of social media captions and try to arrange them in a poetic form. These poems give the product show a more personal touch to reach the audience. The reason I have not hired anyone else is that I have set some high standards.
What are your sales strengths and weaknesses in a business?
As I previously mentioned, I only started in 2017, so my strength is in gaining customers, maintaining their trust, and earning their appreciation. Prior to that, I had a very small number of customers, but they stuck with me and helped spread the word about me, which led to a significant growth in sales for a very small, local firm like mine. My clients’ affection and approval are, of course, what make me strong.
Speaking of weaknesses, there are many of them! One of my earlier weaknesses was how I handled social media and maintained consistency therein. Because no one in my family or circle of relatives has ever considered starting a business before me, I am the first to do so. So sometimes I struggle with not being able to do it all on my own and juggling multiple jobs at once without sacrificing quality.
Tell us about a mistake you have made at work and how you learned from it.
I still make mistakes. The very first mistake that I made was that I was a student and had finals going on, I couldn’t deliver the product to the customer. I requested the manufacturer to directly deliver the product to the customer only once, and that was also the only time in which my customer discovered a minor problem and demanded that I deal with it rudely. This was both my mistake and a lesson to never do something similar without double-examining the item again.
The mistake that I feel is that the benchmark that I have set for Aamukhi. Of course, it is because I want to make Aamukhi an extra ordinary brand, but it’s not simply the content I’ve chosen; there are also considerations for the pictures, personalised captions, and other aspects. Because of my past experience with a similar problem, I am afraid of letting the standard slip if I let anyone else do it.
Making every decision on your own is a further mistake. You need to be able to depend on someone, which I don’t have and which wears me out.
What is your opinion on men’s fashion? Have you produced anything for men or do you have any related plans?
I do, in fact, have some plans for men’s fashion. I saw a guy wearing a brooch at one of the weddings, and I thought, “Why not start making something like this?” Because a brooch can be worn by everyone and has some natural materials.
However, that time as well, the plan was to create a wooden brooch instead of a silver or metal one. That is a sustainable option.
On the other hand, relatively few men believe that they need jewellery. They need it, yet they don’t feel it is necessary.
Tell us about your favorite experience with a customer.
I used to work with an NGO that sells wooden or bamboo rakhis while I was working on Aamukhi, so I do that. So I gave one of my customers a rakhi, and she tied it to Lord Ganesh during the “Ganpati season,” which was an amazing gesture on the part of my customer and gave me joy and happiness.
The same customer loved my rakhis so much that she repeatedly requested them in large quantities. That was a token of appreciation I received from my customer. This experience is really close to my heart.
In Conversation: We all know the social media game is so strong these days! Even if your brand is really worth it but you don’t showcase it on social media, it doesn’t get any value.
So, which social media channels do you use the most and which produce the best results?
I began with Instagram and now I also have a Facebook page. Many others advised me to start using Facebook as well, since it would help promote my company. I personally don’t use Facebook, and I’m the only one who manages everything. A pandemic hit later, and as you mentioned, how things would be managed and how businesses would run is why I started it in order to survive in the business world.
In terms of results, since it was created on Instagram, it has a lot of features that are beneficial for promoting businesses like ours, so it generates the best results.
How do you handle business stress?
When you create something on your own, stress is a natural part of the process. Of course, it’s frustrating in a company like this! Stress is a part of the process when you’re building something on your own. The most important thing is that when I am frustrated, my mother and sister soothe me.
I started Aamukhi as a support system, but it has now become my baby, and I view it as my primary responsibility. I want Aamukhi to be a big and authentic brand, and making that happen is undoubtedly stressful. It is difficult at times, but I manage to stay motivated and see a future picture of my brand. That gives me new energy to keep going, and it is how I deal with stress.
Was there a time you wanted to quit? And how did you deal with that situation?
There was a point when I said to myself, “No! I can’t go on with Aamukhi” because I’ve seen businesses quote double pricing that isn’t even worth it, or defraud people financially and still get a good amount of audience. That was extremely frustrating, and these things drive small business owners like us out of business because we charge a relatively low price for the same products and still don’t get good results.
But my parents’ teaching always stopped me from quitting. They always say that ‘whatever you start, no matter how small or large, you should never give up in the middle. Allow it to move at a slow pace, but never give up’.
I do the same, whether my business is slow, has slow outcomes, or any other obstacles in the way, or I feel like quitting, I take a short break, but do not give up!
How challenging is it to be a female entrepreneur?
I have good experience with this because when I was starting out and as a newbie, there were a lot of women manufacturers who guided me thoroughly, just like their family. As a female entrepreneur, I never had any problems because everyone I met was supportive. Men, as well as women, greatly helped me in my early stages.
But when it came to customers, I had a few difficulties simply because I am a woman. In one of my experiences, when compared to my male friend, my customer’s expression was too rude to me. She was very unkind to me, whereas when things got out of hand and I asked my male friend to assist me, that customer’s tone changed dramatically. This is how most people perceive women.
What advice do you have for anyone who wants to start a retail or jewellery business?
Do extensive market research. That is what I did. Learn what your customers truly need.
Also, if your business is online, keep your products on display in case someone wants to see them. I used to not do it because I would order it according to my customers’ needs, but having some samples on hand can help you grow your business. You can show your customers something to avoid the on-time hassle.
Not keeping samples with you limits your customer base, so start your new business with these few things in mind.
What are your company’s goals? What can we, as an audience, expect in the future from Aamukhi?
I’d like Aamukhi to expand into sarees, purses, and other personalised manufactured items. It will take some time to achieve this long-term goal. But now, having mentioned a Rakhi and a brooch experience, I’d like to work on it and bring it to market.
Aamukhi will introduce you to some metal embossed rakhis, original Afghani jewellery and a wooden brooch that you will absolutely adore!
What would you say about Indian Style Divas and our initiative?
In reality, it’s a fantastic initiative for small businesses like ours. There are very few platforms where such small businesses get media attention, and you provided us with one. I’d just like to say thank you and best wishes for your wonderful initiative!
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Author: Renuka Indurkar (SunshineWrites)
Welcome, I'm Renuka. Your Sunshine. An Arts student majoring in English, I am currently in my third year. I have always been passionate about reading and love exploring various genres. I believe my words convey my emotions well. As a writer, I specialize in writing about the Lifestyle niche, which encompasses fashion, movies, entertainment, food, travel, and more. Please go over my articles and let me know what you would like to see more of. Please allow me to provide you with the best possible service. -Your Sunshine Renuka
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