KL NEWS NETWORK
SRINAGAR
His five-year stint (2009-2014) in a local movie theatre didn’t leave any Bollywood impact on his life, neither had it any effect on how he wanted to earn his livelihood. But the way he left the seemingly glamorous world of running a theatre store and start hardware cum sanitary outlet is rather interesting.
Avinash Pal Gupta worked as a store manager in a local theatre in Jammu city years after he completed his secondary school education.
Some staffers of the Jammu and Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute (JKEDI) would occasionally visit the theatre on weekends to watch movies. As the frequency of visits increased, Avinash and the JKEDI employees became friends.
“One day they asked me about my job in the theatre. I said I was satisfied with my job but would like to start a business venture of my own. That’s where it started. I came to know that these young cinema enthusiasts were actually working for JKEDI- entrepreneurship development institute,” recalls Avinash, who is in his early thirties.
After a bit of research about the activity he would chose, Avinash enrolled himself for the three-week training programme at JKEDI, Jammu to do ‘something better’ than 7 AM to 11 PM job. “During training I realized that I needed to enhance my capabilities in varied business functions in order to successfully operate my own start up.”
“I had five years of exploring different aspects of theatre store management but I desired to tackle larger challenges. I wanted to become an entrepreneur in my field and leverage my technical expertise along with a business education to create profitability and resource efficiency for my own start up. However, there were certain reasons which motivated me to opt for hardware and sanitary items dealership,” said Avinash.
After training, an amount of Rs 8 lakh was released in favour of Avinash under State government’s Youth Start-Up Loan Scheme (YSLS) to help him start his entrepreneurial venture.
With initial investment of 8 lakh rupees, Avinash set up M/s Sai Kirpa Enterprises at Ghou Manhasan, Jammu, which generates a sales turnover of Rs 65-70 lakh annually. He has employed two more people.
But the success and position which Avinash is enjoying today did not come easily. Avinash had to face tough days initially amid strong market competition.
“The sales were too low initially and it would give me sleepless nights. Things improved slowly as the time passed,” says Avinash.
Today M/s Sai Kirpa Enterprises especially caters to border areas of Jammu division and now the hardworking young man from Jammu city has bigger plans. He intends to create his own brand in hardware and sanitary soon.
“I have decided to open a chinaware showroom soon in Jammu to have a brand of my own,” says Avinash.
(This profile of the entrepreneur was done by J&K EDI and released to press from JKEDI Sempora.)
