Mahalakshmi's Story
I’m Mahalakshmi, and I come from a family of strong business women—my mother and mother-in-law both run their own businesses. But unlike them, I never really got involved in business myself. I would help them out whenever they needed, but I focused mostly on taking care of my family and working with Narbhavi Trust, where I engage with children and help manage the trust's activities. Honestly, I never imagined myself running a business, and I didn’t have any experience with it.
At the trust, they appointed me as a self-help group coach, and at first, I was lost. I was technically part of a self-help group before, but it was inactive and only existed in name. I was doubtful that this would be any different, and I wasn’t confident it would work out. But we had no choice but to accept the position, so we began exploring options from our office.
During a market survey, we noticed something interesting—whether it’s summer or winter, there’s always a demand for tea. It seemed like tea was an “evergreen” need for people in the market. This gave me the idea to start a tea business. Still, I wasn’t sure of myself, since I’d never worked outside the home. But my mother, mother-in-law, and husband encouraged me to try. They reminded me, “We’re not doing anything wrong; we’re just testing our abilities and seeing if we can earn from it.” Their support gave me the courage I needed, and I decided to give it a try.
One of my proudest achievements is that I became the only woman tea seller in the market who does door-to-door delivery. I faced resistance—many male tea sellers tried to discourage me from continuing. But my customers valued the quality of my tea, and they chose me over others. It’s challenging to run this business with all the obstacles, but I keep going. These days, my customers wait specifically for me to deliver tea; they don’t want anyone else’s. We’ve started getting steady contracts, and the support from shopkeepers has been so encouraging.
Today, many people in the market know my name, and to me, that recognition is the greatest achievement I could ask for.