Hi everyone. Welcome back to the Bilna Sandeep show. If you’re wondering, why am I in Saree today, that is because today’s guest is a very special lady today. Every time when I think of her, first thing that I remember is a lady in Saree. So welcome to the show, Ann Thomas.
Ann: Thank you, Bilna. Thank you for inviting me.
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Bilna: Thank you so much. So, to start off with, would you like to say a few lines about Craft Safari so our audience know a little bit about your business?
Ann Thomas and the Craft Safari Journey
Ann: The Craft Safari was started around 12 years back by me and my friend Geetha after we married and came to UAE. Both of us were trying to set up our homes in an Indian way, I mean being far away from India and we tried to stay close to our roots or we want our children to experience our traditions. So, when we wanted to set up our home in an Indian style, we found that we couldn’t find many crafts or many home decor, Indian home decor items during those times. And so that’s when we thought, okay, if we have this fascination for crafts, there would be other people in India, in UAE, mainly because Dubai has a very good Indian expat crowd. So, there would be other people who would be interested and that’s how we thought, okay, let’s start this business and Geetha and I thought about what our focus should be on. Like we were very particular about certain things like it should be handmade, we should work with artisans, we should promote their crafts and as time passed, we understood that every state in India has a craft or a weave or a jewellery that is unique to that state. And reasons for this were many like because of the resources that were available or the dynasties that ruled or the religious influence and as you know India is so diverse in terms of culture, language, food, it’s so different. It is based on this platform that the craft safari concept came up. So, we started with two handicrafts both from Gujarat, terracotta and copper bell. We did an exhibition that was happening that time called Diwali Bazaar by Enigma events that was in October.
Bilna: So that was the first event.
Ann: So, we sold out for that event and I think we never looked back after that.
Bilna: So, it was like a start at a home and then you moved to a proper store, brick and store business.
Ann: Yeah so, we started off with exhibitions. I mean we tried to explore the market, who our crowd would be
or what is the client who would like our product. So, we had a particular mindset which changed with time and so we did exhibitions mainly and then we thought okay and we started with the Facebook store. So, Facebook is a medium that we use to promote ourselves.
Bilna: This was 12 years back. I think Instagram was not at all there.
Ann: There was only Facebook and then we had our personal struggles too in the sense like when we started craft safari, I was one month pregnant. So that one year of trial was when I was being pregnant nine months. That was like a very productive pregnancy period. Very productive period. I mean I used to do exhibitions full term and people used to be very sad seeing me that I’m so active and I’m like I used to love doing that.
Bilna: That’s nice but it kept you very positive and active in your pregnancy period.
Ann: I had something to think about because I had taken a break from career. I had some personal issues of conceiving also so it was good to be positive about a lot of things.
Bilna: Oh nice. I think when I speak about career, you’re an instrumentation engineer.
Ann: I’m an electronic and communication engineer. I’ve done my MBA. I’m a certified IS auditor though I’m not practicing.
Bilna: But you have worked before, right?
Ann: Yes, I was working with an instrumentation company in Abu Dhabi as an instrumentation engineer and it’s because after I had my first daughter, I took a career break and it was difficult to get back. But it was my husband who actually pushed me and said that you can’t sit like this. I mean you’ve done so much in terms of so do something that you’re passionate about. And yeah, because I had my friend also who was equally passionate as how I was and that’s why we could kick start this concert.
Bilna: So that’s the story of how the craft safari was born. And now 12 years down the lane you have different sectors you have gone into, right?
Surviving the Challenges of COVID-19 in the Handicraft Industry
Ann: Yeah, so like I said we started with two handicrafts. One state. Today we cover 16 states, 65 crafts and we have travelled through the length and breadth of India to understand them and we work with artisans directly. So, it has been a very long journey.
Bilna: So, there is a purpose also behind your business, right? To bring them in for a friend and get them also business because there’s a lot of livelihoods that depends on your business.
Ann: Yes, there is yeah and because it’s all a one-to-one relation so they are dependent on us even during Covid times. I had craftsmen who were always who got back with me ma’am you need to help us you need to support us. I have social media has expanded a lot in terms of Instagram or Facebook. I mean people tend to find you but like I stick on to my older team because yeah in any craft there are a lot of players a lot of people but I’ve worked with some people I’m comfortable with them they know me I know them and I trust them completely so I don’t want to break their trust.
Bilna: Very nice so it comes I’m very like you know it’s a very nice business model that comes with a purpose behind it and you are very picky about your supply chain because you only if you know them personally you go work with them, right?
Ann: Yeah, it is very important because of what we deliver yeah at the end of the day the client our client should be happy they should they understand the purpose they understand they have supported someone so yes so there’s a lot of purpose in all that we do.
Bilna: You also mentioned about the time of Covid. Yes. How was it like?
Ann: Yeah, it was I mean…
Bilna: what lessons you learned or the challenges?
Ann: It was a breaking point in our business journey because it changed everything that we did I mean we were so comfortable so relaxed we were flourishing and yeah and Covid so.
Bilna: Did you like close down for the period?
Ann: Yeah for a few months so along with the retail store that we have we also do a lot of other activities that is we bring in artists we do a lot of art workshops so that we promote the traditional artists then we bring in the weavers we bring in craftsmen we give them a platform so that they can they can directly interact with the customers understand their taste so it’s always different when they interact and how much I tell them and it gives it just widens the horizon yeah so I had a weaver my weaver from Gujarat I mean Bhojwani weaver he’s one someone who I’m very close to so I brought him here and he had done he had even done a talk at the school at JSS international school children were I mean the seventh and eighth graders they were so absorbent of the concepts that we are delivering in terms of spinning weaving they wanted to know very good batch I should say so for him we had an exhibition we had another event and we had this talk show at the school he said his favourite was the talk show at the school I mean because he got to interact with the children and to be on stage to speak through a mic he was telling I mean he could never imagine something like that
Bilna: he could never imagine going to a different country and delivering in front of so much of big audience of kids and right
Ann: yeah so it changes the outlook I mean when and when they travel through Dubai they get a lot of ideas in terms of motives they can do in their in the colour combinations when they interact with people directly it’s a totally different market here so then we used to conduct yes so we used to put up an ad on Facebook or Instagram and sorry that Instagram was not there it was Facebook and as a group we used to travel from here yeah we used to do a three days craft tour where you we used to go to Gujarat and we used to meet artisans oh nice yeah so when Covid happened it so our tour usually happens in March okay so when we are actually ready with a group to travel that is when the lockdown happened and it was very bad in terms of like I said two three months the store was closed down and there was no cargo movement yes a lot of and because we were going for the tour so I always let my artisans know in advance that we are coming and they are ready with all their handmade products yeah so that can sell directly to them so there was a lot of backlog of the stock which was already produced which is produced so we can say April May June we yeah it was almost closer I think after that cargo started coming in July so and
Bilna: and were you confident enough to bring that cargo
The Power of Customer Relations
Ann: yeah so when we closed down like the office is in a commercial building we saw offices closing down left right front yes I know they’ve been there in our building for a very long time it was very scary yes I mean I’m my husband used to say we should be happy that we survived yes but it has not been easy yes but we are still yeah working hard towards it and I have the support of my artisans yes so when this happened we especially my Bujodi we were we did an online blocking of stock oh so like so by April we did that and I should say our customer support has also been great because they blocked saris they we had no idea when we could get it to them even then the customers yes they were very supportive to pay to make the payment and just wait for it to come
Bilna: I think it’s a customer relation that you had built over the years
Ann: they also understand appreciate that we do they totally understand because of the interactions that we have with them
Bilna: you have a personal connection with a lot of your customers yes that’s amazing
Ann: so, I mean that is a very big thing for the artisan also for the weaver also that even though there was no business money was flowing in because of the sales that we could we could promise yes yeah and when in July suddenly when market opened up the courier charges were like too high yeah it just skyrocketed but our people were very understanding
Bilna: okay so they were still ready to pay higher prices
Ann: ready to because they were interacting directly to with the artisan see we opened up that platform for them to directly pay the craftsman because at the end of the day we wanted them to be supported yes yeah so because if we survive, they also had to survive yes yeah because life was very difficult even in where they were
Bilna: and did it also open up a new hemisphere of online classes I think you were also doing some online classes
Ann: we adapted immediately because we like I said we have a Kerala mural artist in our team and we had a Kerala mural workshop so we immediately went online though the results are not as good as we want though I would say that helped survive yeah but our students were always happy they were just looking for that online support and so we immediately went online we went full fledge on our workshops from US UK wherever people were willing to take it up yeah so we also adapted quickly as quickly as possible because yeah
Bilna: that pivoting was important
Ann: yeah, because yeah, we also had to survive and like I said when I saw businesses close down around me it was not a very easy thing to see or hear and what they say you know they’ve been there in the market for a very long time so we had to survive not only for us but also yeah and for also the people whom we support
Bilna: yes, it’s just the whole supply chain that gets affected when any business closes down so it’s not just your livelihood it’s a chain of people that gets affected and you made it possible for all of us congratulations on that because not every business survived
Ann: yeah, I know
The Impact of Instagram and BNI on Craft Safari
Bilna: there are a lot of them who had to go through a lot of things and now coming to your journey as an entrepreneur I think I met you probably three years or four years three years back right when you first joined our Instagram course that was when I first came to know but I had never seen you yeah right it was always online interactions even then most of the time I think the camera was off so I didn’t know what looked like okay so even your Facebook profile I think you had the photo of a model
Ann: yes, I was never in front of the camera I was always behind
Bilna: yes so that’s a huge transformation then I think when after that you joined our Homepreneurs Club yes even then I didn’t meet you and then I invited you for one of our BNI meetings as a visitor that I think that is the first time I never had seen you on camera also so I didn’t know what Ann Thomas looked like so but after that I have seen the transformation of you as a business owner like not the not your business but as a person right then you took up the role of president in our BNI chapter yes and after that I have seen you show up a lot on your own business channels on reels you’re speaking how has that whole experience been
Ann: so, till COVID happened I only had to hide behind the brand yes, I mean no one knew I mean always it was my models like you said who was a face of the brand so I should say my funny things used to happen people used to ring the bell I used to open these to be disappointed they’re not seeing the model and they see someone totally different
Bilna: they thought that was Ann Thomas
Ann: yes I used to go for functions where my customers used to invite me and when they used to say this is Ann Thomas and he said oh I thought it was an older person I mean not older a taller person so it’s like how do you know she’s tall because she’s never there you’ve never seen Ann so that was never important I never wanted to be in front of the screen I didn’t want people to see me backstage I was doing a lot of work and my artists were promoted my models showed off my brand very well so it was never important but I think COVID changed all that and like you said I mean that’s when Instagram came and I was so confused on how to tackle it and that is when you came as a saviour I should say when Bilna came I used to see your YouTube channels I used to go through your Instagram posts and we have a small branch in UK also handled by a friend of mine called Rejini yes she also joined our course so I pushed her to join I said Rejini join it and keep me informed also yeah so she was the first one who joined and she gave me very good reviews she said and you also need to join in and I think that personal one-to-one experience is very different yeah so that’s how I also joined in and then so I think your sessions was a push or something yeah it was our lifesaver that time because Instagram was something very new and you forced me to do a lot of things which I would have otherwise not attempted yeah so coming to the limelight was one of them
Bilna: yes, yeah so has it impacted your business after you started
Lessons from Leadership: Applying BNI Insights to Business
Ann: yes, I mean yes it does I mean the reels where I am in front and where I explain about the products
is always has more reach than any other post I mean that will connect with the founders yeah they do they do and then it was because of you I came to this platform of BNI I was just telling today also if it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t have ever known about BNI and six months after joining like you said I took up the president’s role I was able to manage yeah my business and BNI so it has been a great journey a great learning experience for me yeah I mean I think anything that we go through we learn we have to think that we will pick up bits and pieces which we can apply in life earlier whether it be a good experience or a bad experience all of it
Bilna: I think after you take up a leadership role in BNI or any of the platforms where we are working on networks one thing, I have seen is like we implement a lot of it on our own business after that yes have you implemented any of the lessons
Ann: so, I think I mean because I was already 12 years old, I already had a system in place yes, I fine-tuned in with that
Bilna: probably in terms of the emotional intelligence
Ann: yeah I mean because actually see I was like a one army person yes behind my brand in Dubai at least it was because of the sessions I had with you I came to understand is important to add then yes I had a person at the store also but to have the social media team to have a person to manage my social media page the ads or the content writer I mean that team I developed yes it is because of the inputs I got from the Homepreneurs Club and all the sessions that you had taken all the talks that you had conducted yes so I could form a team like that and I have learned a lot over time I mean like I said I’m from an engineering background when we have a WhatsApp group I’m the only one who’s updated see what is happening you are the tech person yeah I’m the tech person there they are though they are all working in their engineering fields so when threats happen I soon got into threats so I mean so they know like if they want to get back on the latest what’s happening they can come to me
Bilna: oh, very nice and when it comes to delegation recently you had a big vacation also right you travelled yeah how was that experience like to move away step away from business at least physically I know online we still stay connected.
Delegation and Traveling: Balancing Business and Family
Ann: so delegation is something still I need to tackle yeah I’ve had my ups and downs over there also so I think even before this I used to travel but for a very short period short period like I used to manage like two months in July two months in august so that I don’t miss both the months but yeah this was totally two months totally I was away we have had our ups and downs over there but like I said it’s always anything is a learning
Bilna: yes, everything that happens is a learning but I think you got the courage to it’s not going to fall down or collapse
Ann: yeah, even in terms of like I said I was a president when I took my break so I could manage I was even those roles as well so yeah, I so at the end of the day that’s it I mean we can manage it yeah
Bilna: it’s all about letting go a bit of things yeah and again you also mentioned about the experience what happened in the UK when you travelled about losing your phone yeah how was the learning curve because when you shared that story with me, I was like oh my god what if I lost my phone because all of us business owners, we are so dependent on our device in our hand yes how was that.
Lessons from Losing Data: Importance of Backups
Ann: yeah no that was a very I mean it was the lowest point in my life I mean if I would not have taken the decision to get out of it no I would have really fallen into it because it was I mean I can’t think I could never think of losing my phone I mean and that also at a location so far away from home thankfully because I had web.whatsapp I regained that’s the first thing I did when I checked in do I have my web.whatsapp okay so that gave me some solace that I can manage but still it was one of the lowest points in my life I would say
Bilna: because losing all the data
Ann: I mean it is at that moment no we can’t even comprehend how much we have lost as days passed really, I could even as on today I am understanding the losses that have happened because of data loss is a very big yes yeah it is not that lost I lost a phone it was and I might have neglected a lot of things yeah
Bilna: what were those learnings and what would you have done differently
Ann: so, one thing is making sure that there’s always a backup so when I shared this with a friend a friend of mine told that every month, he takes a backup on his hard drive and he locks it in his locker I always felt that was too extreme but he says and you are the situation that you are in don’t you think that is a better thing to do okay yeah
Bilna: so, he takes a backup every month
Ann: he says yeah and he locks it in his locker
Bilna: so that important is data right
Ann: yeah that important actually I mean being the role that I have or the business that I do it is very important I mean so many loopholes that I saw is that firstly all the accounts were so two level three level authentication happening without my phone it is very difficult to break through yes yeah especially when I was in UK so I came back that’s when I got into my Gmail itself okay yeah it was so difficult all protected well and the thing that I noticed I did a lot of discussions on WhatsApp okay even in terms of when we like we take up a lot of art installation work now and any kind of negotiation any kind of rates I mean without official I mean we used to avoid official emails and all the discussions used to happen on WhatsApp which is a very I mean it I did okay so uh one thing I do now is that I write it down okay so I think it is important to maintain that go back to the habit of writing down things yes so luckily we had a big project that time and just that because we were working a lot on the rates I had written that down okay so you had an idea yeah so I had that otherwise it would have been very tough so I actually started maintaining the diary after you took a session on keeping a planner just before new year yes the goal setting workshop we had yes so just before that December I went and brought a planner luckily because that was there that was there so but I understood that where I fell back on a lot of things especially my heavy dependence on WhatsApp yes yeah see when such situations happen how do we get out of it so yeah
Bilna: I think that’s a huge learning curve for all of us
Ann: and you know with each day it’s a new issue that I face yes in terms of
Bilna: you are still recovering from it
Ann: yes, and actually I had changed the phone only in February luckily, I had not changed my bank okay RSA secure ID yeah
Bilna: so, it was all on the old phone which you had
Ann: yes, and my cctv camera I mean at the store installed luckily
Bilna: so at least you had that back up but did you have that phone with you in the UK
Ann: Yes, because that my daughter was handling that phone so we had that phone and because salary transfer a lot of things everything is on that yeah yes so I don’t know I mean I just have to be careful with my phone there is one lesson learned and a lot of data I think it’s always better to write it on especially passwords because we deal with a lot of passwords because I used to save my codes and passwords in my email and when I couldn’t access that in UK that is when you realize okay it’s time to yeah go back add to a little bit of writing
Bilna: I think everyone listening this should take this break at this moment to go back and get all the backups done
Ann: yeah, it is very important very true because and 12 years of data is not a small amount of data in terms of photos or anything that you do
Bilna: very true very true and also over this 12 years journey right you started off at home and then exhibitions and then you move to the brick and mortar store yes right how was that experience because it was an investment to put things in a store there’s a monthly rent to pay and then later probably you started hiring people to stay on in the store as well so all these are investments and especially women I lot of them are very scared to put money into their business what is your take on it and what would be your advice to people on this
Ann: so that initial stages when before deciding to have this tour like I said we started off with exhibitions from home finding the right clientele also took us time yes actually to understand who our right clientele would be what we thought was very different from what response that we got and so that time my partner Geeta was at Gises and I was always in Jebel Ali side of town because my husband worked in Abu Dhabi so it was very quiet in my side of town and at Gises we started we just put a Facebook ad and that is how we started we started it with once a month and twice a month we put it every week and we could see once a month twice a month exhibitions like a weekend exhibition we used to do it at Geeta’s house
I mean social media was enough or the online presence was enough to invite customers over we explored that very early I should say in our business and as time passed Geeta shifted, she migrated to Canada okay and I had decided okay I if I’m setting up a store it will be in Gises okay yeah
Bilna: because you had all your client base
Balancing Business and Four Children
Ann: yeah when Geeta had shifted we had for a very short term shifted to Springs I was staying in Springs then I had clientele coming from Gises okay yeah all the way to Springs it was not a small thing to do actually so I had decided that whatever I’m doing I’m doing it at Gises and then I was I conceived a third time so again a break and I have had my times of sleeplessness when I think this month this is my target my this much money I should earn so I have had nights of sleeplessness but I have understood that there’s no need to fret yeah you do your part if you’re a person who believes in God pray about it and then things will fall in place manifest for it yeah so it is I mean it is basically that I have understood I mean no matter how much tensed you are or how much you cry over it or you lose your sleep over it it’s not worth it actually yes things no you just have to work hard and like I said if you are a person who pray you pray about it and then things will fall in place all in the positive angle so actually when I was ready to set the store that’s when I knew I was pregnant again with my third child I mean it was an unplanned pregnancy and I was actually there were periods of low during that time when I felt oh god I was planning a store and I’m not able to do it immediately actually it’s one of my customers who told me when I shared it with her she told me and it must be with this baby you will grow further
Bilna: oh, nice as the baby grows your business will also grow
Ann: yeah she says no maybe when she comes in you will make bigger progresses so you need to think like that which I said which I thought yes so the only thing that I had to wait for the nine months and again a three months gap to revive my health so when she was three months old that’s when I put up the store so it was with her I went to get my license and I chose a place I was still breastfeeding I mean those stages where when I look back I mean I’ve gone through a lot so the first thing when I took up the store the first thing I shifted in was a baby coat because into the store yeah into the store because I had to feed her okay
Bilna: and you were sitting at the store
Ann: I was sitting at the store when I started off initially and she was also there I had to feed her she was only three months old and the way I shifted things I mean I used to keep all the things in the car feed her because I only have two month two hours gap immediately rush to gussies unload everything come back for the next feed so I mean even the people who have seen me my security and all whenever a staff comes he says ma’am has really worked hard I’ve seen so I used to go with the pram with things yeah but no I mean that zeal and that energy was there that time it all comes with that fire from inside to make it happen I mean I want to do it so that willpower know is
Bilna: I remember you telling this story of even lifting like yes hard lifting the things yourself yeah I used to lift 30 kilos of brass and all that because I didn’t want to wait for anyone I didn’t want to depend on anyone whatever I do I mean I have to do it there is my hook or crook I’m getting it done and you did it and then I had in the sense my husband was always supportive my mother she was always encouraging me like do it do it
Bilna: that’s amazing
Ann: yeah, I mean that support and then I had my house help she was also supportive so I mean I think that we need it is good to have that network of people who will support you positively there can be negative periods also but then you will you’ll be able to overcome it yeah
Bilna: now you know when I first listened to your story I was so inspired because I’m a mom of two kids and I keep cribbing oh my god I don’t get time for my kids and business you know I go into a lot of low modes mom guilt you know all of it and when I spoke to you and when you told me you have four kids and how you manage your whole journey and I even remember you sharing about you teaching your daughter on zoom calls from your store can you share that experience as well
Ann: so I always had wanted to have a big family so I mean four children was always there in your mind somewhere okay my plan I have not thought of marriage but I’ve always thought of four kids four kids so if you meet any of my friends in engineering my engineer friends they always knew that I always wanted four kids so a big family was always a big dream for me yeah and I have had my ups and downs over there also like I had a miscarriage and all that but I mean different I mean we go through a lot of hormonal things even pregnancy is not easy every pregnancy yeah it’s different yeah I mean there are also ups and downs hormonal changes happen and our body changes body changes health impacts yes and when business is there we think a lot about that also yeah but I would say for me by God’s grace because I had set my mind on it okay see I’m going to do it I want my kids I want my business I am going to handle it okay
Bilna: it’s like five kids one is your business
Ann: yes so I think it is that positive outlook or the positive attitude that helped me and thing is that when it comes to my kids I don’t compromise on their studies for me that is very important because down the line it is their future and because my mother has always been very supportive for me so I always felt that I should be supportive to my kids and I should give them a very strong platform, confidence because they are going to be on their own in life and whatever teachings they get from here is what they’ll pass on yeah
Bilna: yeah so, they always know that mom can do it so I can also do it
Ann: and I tell them if amma can do it you can do it exactly yeah it was like that for me for me my mother also if my mother could do it I can do it yeah so I felt it was very important to pass on that positivity to the kids yeah to the kids so in terms of my kids studies I mean no matter where I was in UAE by noon I always reached home I go pick up my kids so I didn’t put them on the bus just to be there to be there with them yeah so I had I mean so whatever physically I need to do I do it by noon and anything of business comes online and after that and but there would be stages where I have to leave my kids then they manage it because I already set that platform for them a confident platform then they know how to do it themselves they’re very independent yes then they I mean when they have to be independent they can do it so my elder one was in grade 10 the 10 board exams for the Indian syllabus is very important yes you would be knowing and I actually took a one and a half months break from business oh yeah in it was this in February so I was thinking if I was working I would take a holiday so actually took a break actually my business went into autopilot mode yeah when even though I was not posting anything on Instagram or on Facebook I had customers coming back
Adapting to Technology for Remote Work
Bilna: oh, that’s amazing clientele that you have built
Ann: yes so I mean it was not that even though it was so yeah so my performance manager he says ma’am you’re in auto pilot mode it’s not that you have closed it down because you’re there people will always come back so I really took up that one and a half months of break so that it could be with my daughter give her the support that she needs and I think at the end of the day she passed with very good marks and for me that is a crown for the year for all the hard work done and actually I didn’t that so it was in February so when I came resumed on April 1st it was a season time because Vishu was coming up but I just resumed it was it was like it was just turned the switch on and yeah we were back in business oh very yeah my staff was not happy that I had taken the break but I mean certain times yeah but certain times you know we have to take that strong decision when it comes to all comes to your priorities at different points in life yeah it is your priority basically yes so yeah with the kids and they also understand that I am in this line of business they adjust whenever they want they need to yeah I’m there for them wherever like during covid times especially during covid times staff had taken like she was actually scared to come to the store I used to go to the store several days so I used to because by then kids got adapted to teams and zoom so whatever I need to teach I used to have a whiteboard with me teach them from the studio they used to learn from their question answers I need to ask these to come online study so we just streamlined everything
Bilna: it’s a high-tech family
Ann: yeah, so um so one of my friends Jamshida she’s also a BNI member I met her in front of the operation theatre at well care I was waiting for a friend and she was waiting for her husband so when she looked at me, I was actually asking questions to my daughter and she asked me are you a teacher is right no I’m not a teacher
Bilna: I remember Jamshida sharing this with me this is how I met her
Ann: yeah so, I mean wherever I thanks to this online thing we could adapt even because the children adapted quickly, I think that was a boon for all of us yeah
Bilna: it is how you use technology to make use of the things right
Ann: yeah, we have all these things in mind so whatever situation we are in just try to use the technology or whatever is possible no and everyone will adapt things done yeah whatever way
Bilna: you know listening to this I’m getting goosebumps because it’s very inspiring I’m sure everyone listening will also like there are a lot of moms who listen to our show so you know a lot of them okay I have kids I will not have time for business and you have proved it like
Overcoming Mom Guilt: Balancing Business and Motherhood
Ann: yeah, it is just your mindset basically don’t think one will hamper the other business will not hamper your life with children nor your children will hamper your business
Bilna: it’s about how you manage it just manage
Ann: just think you can do it together you have to handle it together if you need everything see at the end of the day many years down the line all these things are important for you yeah your career is important or your children are important everything I mean you can’t say one above the other so but when you look back no I mean what you would need is that yes I have done a good job yeah I have walked that path and I have conquered it I mean that’s what how we all want to feel at the end of the day
Bilna: I think that is huge inspiration for everyone listening because now there’s no excuse yes if Ann has done it, they can also do it so they just get on your put on your shoes and just get to work
Ann: there are people tell me I’ve got small kids I said yeah even I’ve got four kids yeah
Bilna: so, you have done it so it’s like everyone should be able to do it it’s just about prioritizing the right things at the right time right and also one more thing about the sari because every time when there’s an official event, I always see you in sari okay what inspired you to go by the is it because you started craft safari you went into that or were you always like that
Embracing the Sari: A Symbol of Confidence and Power
Ann: so even from college days I mean I think we always liked important functions we always wanted to drape a sari and I should say like my mother has been the inspiration over there because I have seen my mother only in a sari my mother was an English teacher in an Arabic school
Bilna: oh, okay and still she would wear sari
Ann: so she retired after 28 years of teaching and to an Arabic school she always was in a sari very properly tip top draped and she was always a she is always a lady of confidence so she so to teach in an Arabic school is not easy yes I’ve been there yes the children are quite different yes but two different cultures yeah different cultures yeah but she always commanded respect and she always instilled good values in her children I have seen it and she was always a favourite of her children for the parents a moment I always remember is that when I had come for holidays during my engineering days I had gone to my mother to Kharfor in Ras al Khaima and parent had come with a child and spoke seeing that it was a teacher they spoke and how confidently she spoke
Bilna: oh, your mom speaks Arabic
Ann: very fluently very confidently I was like is this my mother I mean I went like that so confidently she was speaking Arabic she picked it up because she picked it up on the job right on the job she learned Arabic the alphabets when we were in school like I said my mother was very instrumental in teaching us so she picked up the alphabets when we were in school because she had to teach us and so she knew how to read she knew how to write she how to speak and very confident so for me her attire always attached confidence and strength so and when my saree is always strength and confidence yeah so because that’s what I saw when my mother was going on a Europe trip I had cousins calling from all sides of the world telling wear jeans wear skirt my mom was like no I’m only going in a sari so I’m like it’s a foreign place this was 10 years back today we still have a good Indian community in UK in Europe but I was like this was 10 12 years when I’m like am I in a sari to UK no I’m confident in this I’ll so every day she used to wear very well draped saris with good jewellery and very good pictures I’m like okay this is how we should go for a trip so when you look back no very good for photos she went as a group trip and she was saying there were a lot of ladies who attempted the jeans first time and they were not confident okay and when they saw they’re like okay we could have done this we could have just worn sari right and there were people who said every morning we were looking out to see what you wore and what jewellery you have so all those gave me an impression that it attached to confidence and a lot of positivity what my mother always used to impart very confident lady she is so when I got into craft safari and because I worked with a lot of handlooms yeah I mean I have understood their plight I’ve really travelled understood I mean the kind of knowledge and know-how that goes into weaving a six yards is not a small thing and these are people who don’t have formal education but they have a skill that has been passed on from generation so I think I attached a lot of value to what they were doing so that’s when I decided okay if anything official let it be a sari and I mean our president’s prime minister’s always went around in a sari so it was always confidence and power that I attached to the attire so maybe that is why I love
Bilna: so you know when it comes to sari right I’ve seen a lot of women are not so confident in sari a lot of Indian women including myself sometimes because it takes me a lot of time to drive but today I made it a point because when I know Ann’s coming she’s going to be so I too want to wear sari you know it feels gives me that boost up and but a lot of women sometimes they are not confident in sari and just like you said like your cousins were telling your mom right you’re in a foreign country what will others think when you’re wearing a sari but when I saw you attending BNI meetings attending all the LT forums everywhere in sari and it was completely different concept like everyone actually remembers you for sari and they are embracing your roots and there’s a message behind that as well how you respect the weavers and everybody that is working behind it so again how has it impacted your business like you know because people remember you go to a meeting they’ll definitely remember you because you were in sari and you’re the only probably only person in sari in the room
Ann: so because I travel a lot there are a lot of weaves that I’m exposed to so each time I wear a sari I make sure it’s a particular weave also and it’s nice to know that people identify it oh nice so when I went for LTO forum I wore an ikat sari and I had Shaili telling me oh you’re in a lovely ikat I was so happy that she identified that it is a ikat that is a very big thing so I think when I we when I wear a particular weave it’s also a promotion for the weave yes he kind of the topic becomes a sari nice yeah and a lot of people have told me in Dubai I mean do you have opportunities to wear I mean do you wear from my background my kids are the fourth generation in UAE so my grandparents my parents my and I’ve only seen them in sari and so I mean that question doesn’t arise for me yes yeah so it’s basically your confidence
Bilna: and how you use that right like it’s about your confidence you wear what you like
Ann: yeah it is basically that and nobody will judge you otherwise I mean I think there’s only positive thoughts only inside us that we feel but it’s good thoughts or positive vibes when there’s a lot of people in Vienna have appreciated and let’s say that how can you I said that we can wear I mean there’s nothing wrong I mean like I said no what I have seen my mother do yeah so I should also say my father was working in the government he was a government doctor all his colleagues during that point of time were in sari so yeah all the gynec I mean all who had important posts Indians they always were in the sari or our teachers were always in a sari so for me all that is confidence, power so I think that is what I want to imbibe when I drape a sari
Bilna: very true very nice and before we go into the closure of the episode, I also want to ask about partners you have a partner in business right and how is it like you know because it’s your friend that you got as a partner so there is always the risk of that relationship when you go into a partnership mode how is that experience like how do you pick the right partner
The Importance of a Support System in Business
Ann: so I think when we started off itself Geeta was always there for me though she migrated to Canada important decisions or anything I’m going to discuss I just go back to her yeah and it is also I think the attitude and the person that she is yes a very warm person very positive person whenever I feel low she picks me up when she feels low I pick her up and I during our engineer during our MBA days actually she’s my MBA we weren’t that close actually so only after we embarked on this journey we became really close and when I’m not in one of my good moods she knows it and she behaves accordingly and when I know she’s not in a good mood I know how to I think so it is a chemistry yeah it is a chemistry between both of us yeah
Bilna: how did you identify it would go well in the beginning was it an intuition
Ann: no, it just we only had each other when we were here okay yeah, I mean for me a close friend in Dubai only she was there from my college days and I she only had me so I think that just I think we never thought whether we would gel I mean we never thought about all those 12 years back
Bilna: okay it was not like a plan
Ann: yeah, the thing is that we had the same passions we had the same likings we were sure about certain things like I said even in the handloom industry you have power loom and handloom yes yeah so, we were sure that we will do only power loom yeah, we were we were sure about certain things okay
Bilna: and you were aligned
Ann: yeah, we were a market is a flood of a lot of things so we were very sure of the products that we would take or we both enjoy a lot of things together so I think we were like twins I don’t know even twins wear this close yeah, I don’t know but it just happened and for me she moving away was a very big thing emotional thing to add I think you would understand that also no
Bilna: yes, I understand
Ann: yeah, but she was always there for me though she’s in Canada the time frame is very different yes but
Bilna: you still manage to keep in touch always
Ann: always every decision is yeah, every decision no anything that even in terms of the logo we just revamped her brand we had a new logo. I just went back to Geeta. Geeta, so many options, what do I select. She says Ann select it. Then I know whatever she says is good. She has goodness in her mind, goodwill he has in her heart. I know I can go back to her.
Bilna: Nice
Ann: So, I think I don’t know, may it be luck when I think now having her is like having a diamond. Maybe I’ve not appreciated as much only when you asked, I’m appreciating it. So yeah, getting the right person
Bilna: having that right person who can understand what’s going on in the business
Ann: I think yeah see, when you both are aligned with the things in business know, there’s a lot to people who wanted to partner with me after she left. But I’m like, both of us give enough space for each other. See there’s a lot of things are there; business things are there. So, we kind of work down things over there and I don’t need of another partner. Yeah, so it just worked out.
Bilna: And last question for today. What would be your advice for the other women who want to start a big, not a very small business, somebody who really has a vision to grow big. May be start small but they want to really grow big, what would be your advice?
The Power of Positive Thinking in Entrepreneurship
Ann: I think, make sure if you need help from home. People are there to ask it, just ask it out. See you can’t do everything on your own. It will just break you down and it will just put down. If you need help, ask for help whether its your parents, your spouse, your partner or you need house help, just ask for it. That support system is very important. So, I think you create that support system first or eventually create it and then just take the leap okay.
Bilna: Leap of faith
Ann: yeah, leap of faith. So, I had read once in a book called ‘Power of Positive Thinking’ when there is a beam comes towards you know, you just have to throw your heart to that beam and your body will follow. So, it is just throwing your heart, just following your dreams. Just take that leap, it will happen eventually. I mean there’s a lot things like emotionally you have to be positive like if you have prayers ahead, pray about it, things will just fall in place.
Bilna: Amazing! Thank you so much Ann for being on our show. Thanks to our listeners. Do not forget to like, subscribe and if you’d like to know more about Ann, we will be leaving all her links to her business as well in the comments below. Thank you so much!
Ann: Thank you!
Ann Thomas’s Links:
Ann Thomas: LinkedIn
Craft Safari: Instagram, LinkedIn
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