admin When we talk about entrepreneurs, we highlight their wealth and fame while we forget about the real change they are bringing to society. The way they transform the employment structure of society and bring changes in the lives of multiple people at the same time is often neglected.
Monika Singh Shekhawat, Co-founder of X5 Retail, hails from Prayagraj where her family is indulged in the agricultural sector. She always had a firing desire to do something beyond the boundaries and had always been an out-of-the-box thinker. She has been earnestly working hard to make entrepreneurship easy for craftsmen in rural and semi-urban areas to considerably reduce the risk factors, making it negligible, and increase the overall revenue generation voids in craftsmanship.
With multiple achievements under her belt, she is transforming the lives of thousands of people with her work and in the process inspiring women to become self-reliant.
Creativity and Productivity Traits in Childhood
“I always thought of self-improvement and used to pursue things out of my comfort zone, even when I was a kid,” Monika claimed. She added, “I was an aggressive child and used to often take non-conventional approach while dealing with objectives. This habit has been with me since then and is a valuable addition to my skills.”
She always looked for creative ways of solving the routine problems and this artistic flair developed with time, got her to notice many opportunities.
Untapped Business Opportunities
She has a Master’s in Business Administration and was always looking for a space in the entrepreneurial environment for an establishment which is less capital oriented but can become a life-giving venture for multiple entrepreneurs.
Conviction in your success and logic in your experiments is all you need to succeed.
She eventually stumbled upon one such opening in the fields of Indian rural crafts. She found out how the craftsmen living in the villages and towns were more susceptible to unemployment as their craft was to be supported by a distribution chain. It was a very risky and expensive deal for any craftsman to buy a kiosk as a distribution medium. This opportunity was noticed by Monika and she worked to exploit the void and help the craftsmanship a much less risky venture for the artists. She bridged the gap by providing modern retail space (Kiosks in Malls) to these craftsmen/entrepreneurs.
Quality Team Building
Monika believes, team building is like building pillars. They are very important.
“You have to keep it as the prime objective of the organisation. You can’t compromise with it. It should be the strongest part of your company. And the key is to lead from the front so that employees follow you rather than forcing them to work. My company’s ethos is very simple–Work hard & party harder.
“A good team can make ordinary things wow, and an ordinary team can make wow things ordinary,” said Monika.
Equality in Job Opportunities
Monika believes in Equality and Feminism and proudly states that she has an “all-women Business Development team” which is a terrific initiative she has taken as an Entrepreneur. At her workplace, there is no discrimination whatsoever and women are trusted with every job available.
While telling about the work culture, she said, “We believe money is the by-product of hard work and you can only work hard enough for a job you are deeply passionate about.”
Learning is a Lifelong Process
In the conversation with our team, she got candid about her reading habit.
“I am fond of books since childhood. I am an avid reader and you can always find me reading one thing or the other. Books are a great source of knowledge. You can learn so much from it. It keeps us humble by giving us the reality check that there is so much more to know and learn. I believe. Learning is a lifelong process and isn’t limited to schooling. One should always learn as much as possible. It is not only important but a way of living.”
Future Endeavors
Pradeep Singh Shekhawat, Founder, X5 Retail, is her husband and together they have planned to enter the Wedding Planning and Organizing sector. Again, for her, creativity is the key component in managing any business. They aim at creating ‘themed’ Destination Weddings and making the wedding the best time of life for the bride and groom. The Themes are Royalty Weddings (Palaces / Forts / Havelis, Castles Overseas), Nature Wedding (Tiger Sanctuary / National Park Luxury Camping, Valleys, etc). With intentions to excel in every category of a Themed Destination Wedding, they have started–Wedding Secrets. This is the Project to be watched in 2020.
Word of Advice for Young Entrepreneurs
“I have been grinding a lot to reach where I have reached. It is still a long way to go, but one thing is going to be constant. I am going to stand back and fight every time life knocks me down. This is the essence of all the successes I have ever achieved.” She is one of the better Women Entrepreneurs from India who is doing her bit to bring solutions to the budding entrepreneurs and creating jobs while pursuing her dream. She is an opportunistic leader who has creative takes on problems ahead of her and is looking at the future with an optimistic perception.
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