Entrepreneurship Education / Activities
Eye for Opportunity…EDII Alumni Do it Again
In the recent COVID 19 crisis, EDII alumni have proved that they possess it all to turn crises into opportunities. Four such ingenious alumni have turned COVID warriors and producing protective gear for front line workers.
The entrepreneurs, who were previously in the business of manufacturing medical or pharmaceutical items, have successfully converted their units to produce essential medical protective gears such as protective face mask, gloves, surgical gown, shoe cover, waste bag collection and so on.
Dr. Sunil Shukla, Director General, EDII said, “The students and alumni of EDII have found the opportunity in this health crisis and turned their business profitable. We are delighted that in such situation, our alumni and students are contributing to society through their products for battling COVID-19 and creating tangible assets and employment.”
These inspiring entrepreneurs show us that there is always a glimmer of hope even in the midst of the darkest times and a progressive entrepreneur never forgets to see this and the opportunities that rise amidst this.
Abhishek Pipaliya,
An alumni of EDII’s PGDM-BE course runs his business under the name Bhanu Industries located in Ahmedabad.
They have been into chemical business. Looking at the need of the hour, they have started manufacturing Industrial sanitizers, Home Sanitizers and Hand Sanitizers. With a degree in Chemicals, he possesses vast knowledge on the usage of chemicals requirements and put that into use. Their company has been mass producing and providing sanitizers at almost one fourth price of the market value to industries, residential and office spaces. The hand sanitizers use Ayurveda method which has proved effective. Different manufacturing units in Vatva, GIDC areas and residential complexes have approached them. Apart from manufacturing sanitizers, they are also providing 3 ply disposable masks, N95 masks, infrared thermometer, battery and hand operated pumps for dispensing chemical based sanitizers. They employ modern technology and usage of chemicals which are not harsh. They are helping industries and societies at large by making them germ free.
Shravan Raghavan,
An alumni of EDII’S PGDM-BE course.
Chirag Enterprise is a Chennai based enterprise set up by Shravan Raghavan. He is involved in digital marketing and wanted to create an ecommerce platform since long. His father, an entrepreneur, was working with European clients. There was a sudden downturn in this area on account of the pandemic. Also, his father’s clients across Europe reported how distressed they were. All this set Shravan thinking and he decided to set up an e-commerce website on COVID relief items to get online presence and to reach out to masses. The products are sourced from small traders across Tamil Nadu who are manufacturing masks, sanitizers. The IR Thermometer has been procured from Delhi. Shravan has also begun providing COVID relief kits to hospitals and industries in Tamil Nadu since the need is growing at a large number. Also, the online orders are seeing a surge but the catering is limited to Tamil Nadu due to lack of logistic support and access to other states. Shravan has undertaken social media campaigns, resulting in increased sales. Shravan looks forward to strengthening his website even after the pandemic is over, by catering to certain life care, essential items.
Nikita Dattani ,
She hails from Malegaon, a small town in Nashik, Maharashtra. Growing up, she learned about her family business, which multiplied over the years, and also drove her to pursue a Bachelor's degree in Finance. During her second year at EDII she was inspired by a guest lecture from ATIRA on Nano-Fibers. She was intrigued about the technology and developed ‘Mysstre’. It was a difficult task as she was not from science or engineering background and that’s where the entrepreneurship institute helped in terms of mentoring and with SSIP prototype funding of Rs. 40,000. EDII extended support in prototype development and also facilitated market promotion. MyssTre manufactures and sells nanofiber-based virus protective sustainable face mask and scarf. The company has sold over 75,000 masks and scarves till now. Currently, the startup is anticipating an annual revenue of over Rs 80 lakh. In the first year, with the help of funding, the startup was able to break even.
Hetika Shah ,
She comes from a small town called Halol in Panchmahals, Gujarat. Growing up she has learned and seen her family business over the years. The art of Industrial Machinery Business is what drove her to pursue Mechanical Engineering for Bachelors Degree. She was also working on industrial safety equipment under the firm known as Sanctuary Innovative Safety Equipment Ltd. The firm currently manufactures and sells nanofibre-based virus protective sustainable “4S SHIELD”. Hetika spotted a need amidst the present crises and floated her plans to set up a mask manufacturing firm. She received EDII training and mentoring in prototype development, and SSIP funding of Rs 1 lac. The unit was set up in flat seven days with EDII’s involvement in market promotion. The product is sold to pharma and manufacturing industry frontline users.
