There are some
people with an eye for creativity; they see the potential of even the simplest
of things. Where we see a simple hoop earring, these young creative talents see
what they can make of that modest hoop. These young minds then take their creativity
one step further by going the commercial way with the help of social media and
word-of-mouth.
Aparna
N P from Taleigao works from her office or her tiny bedroom. Her hobby turned
into a passion when she was gifted a jewellery making kit for her birthday. “I
started making small jewellery items for my friends; then their friends took
notice and were interested in the concept. It is easy to source material as I
can get it either from the Panjim market or I ask my cousins in the US to ship
it to Goa,” says this Class XII student from Don Bosco Higher Secondary School,
Panjim.
She
uses material like beads, metal chunks and wire jewellery to create artistic
wonders. “I am very fond of arts and crafts and I learnt watching videos on
Facebook and YouTube. I have my own Instagram page, Artcravings, where a lot of
customers view my works. I receive orders from outside Goa and they have the
option of paying using Paytm and I ship the items. For custom made products, I
require more time and usually complete the order in a week,” says Aparna, whose
favourite creation is a colourful happy jar.
Gauri
Chari from Margao and Sneha Naik from Aldona came together to form Perky Little
Things almost two years ago. These talented girls started out with decorated
candles and have created home décor products as well as items used in
commercial set-ups. “We started Perky Little Things in 2015 when we were both
sharing a flat in Panjim. We were working for different companies at that time but
we knew each other and started bonding over our art. Sneha is still with the
same company but I took a break around a month ago. I now focus my time on
building the brand,” says Gauri.
The
duo has an Instagram page, Facebook page and their own blog which they use to
update their latest ideas. They have also been a part of five pop-up bazaars.
“Since we both were working, we used to plan our products accordingly; we had a
good enough collection to present at the bazaars. We’ve noticed that even if
customers don’t immediately buy the products, they request custom made items,
so it was a good venue for us to create a name in the market and share our
business cards,” adds Gauri.
Both
work together on generating ideas and research about different items. Since
Gauri now has the time, she is able to focus on the social marketing for their
brand. They specialise in dreamcatchers, candles, hand painted lights, laser-cut
hand painted items, wedding décor and painted wooden logs. “We also make jewellery
and crochete bralettes,” says Gauri whose products start from Rs 100 onwards.
Started
in June 2016 by Sara Kirlapalkar and Mallaika Kamat, Alokik Goa is a handmade
art jewellery venture that is now moving forward with new ideas. Both girls were
classmates till their Class XII ISC Board Exams. “We are now looking at
sustainable jewellery and working with bio-resin to use real resins as crystals
with silver or copper caps,” says Mallaika, a first year student at Chowgule
College, Margao. “I am not a metal smith but I have build the whole set up from
my bedroom and I think we are the first in India to try this unconventional
method which requires copper electroforming,” she adds.
They
set up the year-old brand through social media and as they gained followers,
they ventured into pop-up markets and have been part of ten markets so far. “In
the beginning it was nice, but gradually, sales went down. We realised that it
was the same people who were visiting these markets and they would probably
avoid buying the same thing again. Now, we are focusing on the international
market and through social media marketing, we have been receiving orders. We do
all-India delivery and all the products are available online,” explains
Mallaika, who handles the creative experimenting part while Sara keeps a check
on the accounting and stock keeping; both girls run the business together.
