One Minute Sari: A boon for novice wearers
Hyderabad: Wearing a sari or learning how to wear it in a way that makes you stand out from the crowd is an art. And it was something that entrepreneur Neha Tandon Sharma initially dreaded wearing. Being used to wearing western attire in boardrooms of a corporate company, Neha found wearing a sari particularly challenging […]
Hyderabad: Wearing a sari or learning how to wear it in a way that makes you stand out from the crowd is an art. And it was something that entrepreneur Neha Tandon Sharma initially dreaded wearing. Being used to wearing western attire in boardrooms of a corporate company, Neha found wearing a sari particularly challenging and reserved it only for special occasions. It became a bigger problem when she moved to Raipur with her husband, an oncologist.
The couple was looking to buy land and construct a hospital. This meant regularly meeting different people to take their project forward. Since it was a tier 2 city, Neha often had to wear a sari for such meetings.
“When you have an early morning meeting, getting ready in a sari isn’t easy. I found it really difficult to get the pleats right every time. After many instances, I started looking for ready-to-wear saris and didn’t find any in the market. So, I took out some saris from my closet and took them to the tailor. I gave him a rough sketch of what I had in mind. The sari he made was perfect and I could wear it in a matter of minutes without much effort,” said Neha.
Following her experiment, she realised what she had made had a lot of potential since many women face a similar predicament. She rolled out her innovative product called ‘One Minute Sari’ under the brand name ‘Isadora Life’ in 2019.
And the saris aren’t limited to just cotton, there is silk, crepe, chiffon, organza, tie-dye, net, bandhani, satin, etc. The saris come with an in-built petticoat that can be adjusted with hooks. The waist size ranges from 24 to 52 inches.
“Sari is a product that is passed on from generation to generation. It’s not like a trouser that you wear for a couple of months to a year and discard. It will remain in your closet for years to come. Weight fluctuations are bound to happen, so we provide 8-10 hooks to adjust the size and a longer pallu. It’s like a wraparound skirt, you tie the skirt in such a way that the pleats come in front,” explains Neha.
While most saris are priced reasonably, her net, satin, organza saris cost more since they are slippery and require more time at the sewing machine and an experienced hand.
So far, her clients seem to be from metros like Hyderabad, Delhi NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru that make up 40 per cent of her revenue. “A lot of women who buy our saris are professionals in medicine, civil services, corporates around the age of 25 to 33 years,” adds Neha.
Usually, it takes them 8 to 15 days to deliver the saris. A big believer in women empowerment, she employs women from nearby towns and villages in her company.
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