At the first look, you may not find an entrepreneur in any one of them. The four daughters also have never let their father feel that he doesn't have a son to look after his business. In fact, they have gone a step ahead by setting up their own business venture in the Capital, called La Brallentine, selling bric-a-brac for homes, instead of sticking to the family business of retailing Italian marbles and lighting fixtures. The four Mittal sisters can often be seen moving around the 1,000 sq ft-showroom of La Brallentine, attending to customers, answering their queries and helping them experience how their purchases will look like through a point-of-purchase (PoP) display.
La Brallentine showcases a wide range of objet d'art, gift items, glassware, bedroom furniture, marble statues and other home accessories. "All products, starting from tea-sets to beds and marble statues, are imported, yet they are all competitively priced," says Ms Jyoti Kesri, 32, the oldest of the four sisters.
Except for Ms Vandana Mittal, 24, the youngest of them, all are married. Ms Swapna Jain and Ms Bhavna Gupta, 27, are twins, and both of them have done a course in fashion designing. Similarly, the eldest sister is an interior designer and the youngest is an MBA.
Setting up the business of objet d'art, gift items and home decor items was by default for these sisters. "Initially, we planned to start a business in fashion designing and fashion garments. But that particular business has become so designer oriented these days that unless you are a big name in fashion designing, you cannot sell a piece of your garment," explains Ms Kesri.
She adds: "However, thanks to our family business in imported Italian marble and designer lighting accessories, we got enough exposure to foreign countries. Our father and uncle used to take us with them on their tours abroad. From there we used to bring in these lovely artefacts for room decoration. These were loved by our friends and relatives. So, we decided to try our hand in this business? And you can see what we are now."
They started their business in December 1999 with an initial capital of Rs 25 lakh which their father lent them. Now, La Brallentine does a yearly business of over Rs 50 lakh.
Of course, money is not the only reward. Doing something by themselves is a greater prompter. Says Ms Kesri: ``Unlike earlier generations, things are different for us. With greater access to education and opportunity to travel abroad and finally opening up of the economy have paved the way for Indian women to become more enterprising."
Copyright © 2001 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
