Tag Archives: Muslim Women Entrepreneurs of Hyderabad – Telangana

BCA First-Year Student Syeda Fatima’s Start-Up Making News in Hyderabad, Southern India

Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

Syeda Farhath Fatima, Founder and CEO of Pluslove.in, is a role model for many young people. She is currently a first-year BCA student at Saketa Degree College and a member of incubator cohort A-23.

Plus Love is a plus-size-focused clothing brand based in India. “WE CREATE, CRAFT, AND CUSTOMIZE CLOTHES.” At Pluslove.in, they are dedicated to providing an exceptional and empowering fashion experience for individuals of all sizes. One standout feature is their custom design service, allowing you to become the designer of your own fashion journey.

The Interesting Journey of Entrepreneur Syeda Farhath Fatima

In today’s world, it’s challenging to find plus-size clothing. Syeda noticed her loved ones who were a little overweight struggling to find the perfect fit, and she thought, “Why am I not doing anything for them?” or as the saying goes, “Jaha chah hai waha rah hai” (Where there is a will, there is a way).

“Business Development Service EdVenturepark opened an application for cohort A23, and I applied for it. Alhamdulillah (praise be to the almighty), I got selected. I knew about EdVenturepark since my time at Code for India Foundation, where I was learning data analysis with machine learning. So, yes, I’m a data analyst too. My journey started during the 3-month cohort at Code for India when I completed my course in data analysis. Then I applied for the EVP pre-incubation program. A person like me, without business knowledge, still had that spark to do something for people and solve their problems, which led to the creation of the clothing brand Pluslove.”

“It is true that everyone has problems, and it is also true that every problem has a solution. If this is the reality of life, then why not focus on solutions rather than problems.”

Pluslove.in is a size-inclusive clothing brand where you can find your perfect fit. They provide stylish, designer ready-to-wear clothes. They create, craft, and customize just for you. Their goal is to see smiles on their customers’ faces and boost their confidence. They believe that what we wear can make us feel better, more comfortable, and more confident.

One of their standout features is the customization service, allowing you to become the designer of your own fashion journey.

Challenges Faced on the Journey

Syeda faced numerous challenges while building her brand, such as being unfamiliar with the textile industry and struggling to find fabric and tailors. She was the sole person responsible for end-to-end tasks in the company and had to oversee every aspect.

Throughout this journey from a raw idea to Pluslove.in, her mother (Ammi) provided immense support and encouragement. She is deeply grateful to her mother and her family members, especially her aunt, siblings, and her mama.

Syeda also mentioned Meraj Faheem sir, who gave her the opportunity at “EdVenturepark” where she fulfilled her dream. Her dream and passion to solve people’s problems in finding their perfect fit were supported by Ilyas sir, who was always there for her when she needed help, and her friend Huda Hajera, her entire EVP team, and her fellow A23 cohort mates.

She expressed her feelings of joy, saying, “I’m very grateful to have such people in my life. Thank you, everyone, for being a part of my life.”

Soon, they will be launching their catalog and opening up opportunities for designers, tailors, and B2B collaborations.

Their mission is to empower women by providing employment opportunities without the need for education certificates or degrees, focusing solely on skills that enhance creativity and innovative ideas. Training facilities are also available for students and others.

For more details or inquiries, please contact +91 9390782010, Email ID: farhath@pluslove.in

source: http://www.thehindustangazette.com / The Hindustan Gazette / Home> News> Motivational Story / by Shifa / October 26th, 2023

Hyderabad siblings create ‘Dovely’, bike taxies exclusive for women

Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

Hyderabad siblings create Dovely, bike taxies exclusive for women
Team Dovely (from Left to Right Mohammed Obaidulla Khan, Zainab Khatoon, Uzma Khatoon and Masarrat Fatima)

Hyderabad:

How often do casual conversations on women’s safety get realised into full-fledged businesses focusing on women empowerment? One such conversation led to the creation of the ‘Dovely’ app by-city-based siblings Uzma Khatoon and Zainab Khatoon.

Concerned over women’s safety, Uzma and Zainab thought of coming up with a solution to address the issue. The Dovely app provides a bike taxi service exclusively run by and for women. Apart from ensuring women’s safety, the entrepreneurs also aim to make women financially independent.

The four-person run application comprises founder Zainab who is a final year B. Pharmacy student, Uzma, a final year B.com Computers student, and Masarrath Fatima and Obaidulla Khan who are final year B. Tech students.

As of now the platform has 20 riders and over 400 users and functions through its website and connects riders and passengers through WhatsApp.

The app is still undergoing improvements. “We will be able to develop a full-fledged app only after we reach a certain milestone like 200 rides,” said Masarrat.

She further added that the company can’t risk putting up the app on the app store or the play store since users may face challenges as it is manually operated at present.

Speaking to Siasat.com the founder and CEO of Dovely, Zainab Khatoon said, “The idea to create Dovely first struck me and originated from a conversation between me and my mom, who wanted to visit my granny and was looking for cost-effective and safe rides.”

The idea only came into existence following an unpleasant autorickshaw experience, aimed at ensuring women feel safe and secure during their journey.

“The idea struck me once again while I was travelling with my friend in an autorickshaw when the driver looked at us from the rear view mirror making me feel uncomfortable,” Zainab added.

“We sat down with our parents to discuss the name of the company. After going through about 400 names, our father came up with the name Dovely,” said Chief Operating Officer and co-founder Uzma.

“Apart from providing rides for women, the app also allows women to connect with us as Dovely partners. To access information regarding the platform one may visit the Dovely website. At the time of filing the story, Dovely successfully completed 37 rides,” Zainab said.

Addressing the query regarding profit sharing, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Obaid Ulla Khan said, “Currently all the money earned is being kept with the riders themselves, and we aren’t earning any commission.”

Bootstrapping for funding Dovely:

Running a startup is not an easy task and requires consistent funding. However, Obaid believes in “Bootstrapping”, where entrepreneurs fund their own ventures. “Even if we approach venture capitalists at this stage they would set milestones based on which they would provide the money, hence it is better that we set a milestone for ourselves before we reach out to investors.”

“In order to pitch the business idea, we are collecting all the information ranging from the number of riders to the number of users along with the IDs of our riders in an excel sheet, this will make it easier for us to attract investors,” he explained.

With regards to the credibility of the riders, Zainab said, “I personally handle the onboarding process for Dovely. As part of the hiring process we ourselves take long distance rides with the candidates to test their driving skills.”

On Safety

Shedding light on the steps taken to ensure the safety of the riders and passengers, Uzma said, “One of us is constantly checking on the live location from the beginning to the end of the ride, and the riders are only supposed to switch off the live location after completing the ride.”

Adding to Zainab’s response, Obaid said “More than the candidate’s driving skills, we focus on their behaviour since we want to provide the best possible service to our customers”

Addressing the query on whether riders have to be logged in for a specific period of time on a daily basis, he said, “Keeping in mind the household responsibilities of our partners, we don’t have any specific login timings for now.”

A few Dovely partners were also present during the interview and they shared their experience with Siasat.com. Nahera Lohreen, one of the partners said,” The first ride was a bit challenging since I was hesitant as to how it would go, but after a while, I felt comfortable and it has been a great experience.”

Nahera is also the first partner to be roped in by Dovely.

Zareena Begum, another partner with the firm said,” It is a great opportunity since it gives us financial independence and I was looking forward to such an opportunity”

Speaking of future plans, the company’s CEO Zainab said, “As of now we are focusing on a minimum of 10 rides per day, we will gradually expand into three and four-wheeler markets.”

She further said, “Apart from bike taxis, we are planning to deal with transport and logistics which will also be led by women. The greater vision of the company is to empower women across India and make them financially independent.”

www.dovely.org

source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> News> Hyderabad / by Mohammed Baleegh / June 19th, 2022