Hello friends! I’m
back with another story from #thebrigadethatbuildsbrands series. We’re
featuring Air Force wife Sanyukta Bhardwaj today and her ‘Apple of My Eye’ – a handmade
children’s room linen and art venture. I’d like to mention that we will also feature veterans, veteran ladies and Veer Naari’s as well as Armed Forces wives, who have set up
interesting businesses and brands. If you know anyone we can feature, drop us a
line (contact details below).
#thebrigadethatbuildsbrands #milpreneur #MilSpouse #smallbusiness #workfromhome #workathome #selfemployed
Now, on to our chat with Sanyukta.
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| Sanyukta Bhardwaj - #Milpreneur |
C. Please tell us something about yourself – what do you do,
where are you based and how long have you been a fauji wife.
S. I’m an Air Force wife, stay-at-home parent and an
Architect by education. Currently based out of the outskirts of Delhi NCR and
have been married to my man in blue since 10 years.
C. What has been your business or creative journey been
like: how & when did you start your venture?
S. The venture honestly started by chance; it all started
when I was packing the hospital bag for my yet to be born son. Being an
architect and a daughter of an artist (my mother), I have had a flair for
painting, so both of us decided to hand paint and stitch linen for him. Post
the birth I happened to show all the hand painted stuff to my fellow Air Force
friends. And they motivated me to start this venture when they mentioned how
such kind of linen and accessories are not available and even if it is, it
costs a bomb.
So that is how ‘Apple of my eye’ was conceived and formed. My
very first order for customized bedding set was from the same dear friend (an Air
Force wife herself).
My mother and I run this venture together. I mostly do the
PR, managing the Facebook page, handling client orders, and my mother does the
execution or field work ( since she is stationed and I move from place to
place) so we discuss all the details of fabrics, textures, designs, colors etc
over the phone.
I however, do most of the wall art orders myself as sourcing
canvases and stocking on art and craft supplies is easy with the constant
moving!
C. Were you in a different profession and re-trained for the
current one? If yes, can you share how/where you learned the skills required
for your current profession?
S. I’m an architect by education and all architects are
artists/designers by default, so I’m the jack of all trades; the trades being
sketching, drawing, doodling, painting and scribbling. So I just had to polish
my skills when I started with ‘Apple of my eye’, and now I’m planning to learn
stitching too.
C. Fauji wives make their home in an assortment of obscure
places across the country. Our lives are about living in the moment and doing
what we can, when we can. Can you share how you stayed creative or found work
that satisfied you while moving across the country?
S. Finding work was my main concern when I got married as a
flourishing career in architecture requires being stationed at a single place,
which was obviously not possible in my case. But fortunately we have had our
postings in places where I did have my stint as an architect. Apart from this
the constant moving, packing and unpacking and setting up new houses also gets
me to explore my interior styling skills, which I do with as much zeal and
enthusiasm as I did in my first posting!
C. How do you market your business and products while moving
from base to base, place to place, and often to remote areas?
S. Well we should thank the internet and social media! Many
people consider it addictive and fake but for us Fauji mompreneurs it is a
blessing! I’m sure all the beautiful ladies married to defense personnel would
completely and whole heartedly agree to this fact! Talking of moving to remote
areas, as I mentioned it is sheer luck that I haven’t seen such posting as yet,
but I’m prepared for anything!
C. How do you juggle that load of social commitments &
welfare activities that are an integral part of the fauji community, while
nurturing your passions and meeting work deadlines?
S. The best part about working from home and also being your
own boss at the same time, is that you can plan and prioritize in advance so
the deadlines never become a ‘load’ along with all the social activities of the
Fauji wife life.
C. As a creative/entrepreneur + fauji wife, is there
something that you cherish very much about being part of this community? And is
there something you feel must/can change for the better?
S. I cherish almost every little thing about the Fauji
community, the best thing being, you’re never a stranger at a new station and
you instantly bond like family with the fellow ladies. A few upgrades of the
welfare activities suiting the current times and relevance would definitely
benefit, and from what I’ve seen things are changing and for the good!
C. What challenges have you faced in balancing work and
fauji life?
S. The constant moving around the country every 2-3 years,
sometimes twice in a year, single-handedly parenting the kids are the main
challenges, because of which, I admit, the growth of my venture has been
sporadic. But I have been working upon it, and that’s exactly what you have to
tackle and just keep going. The positive side however is that it teaches you to
be more patient with yourself.
C. What tips would you give to fauji wives out there who’d
like to pursue their dreams while living at small and busy bases (many still
believe or led to believe that you can either be a fauji wife or a
professional, and that’s not true)?
S. To all the Fauji wives out there I’d like to tell them
nothing is impossible; it just requires a bit of will power.
C. A parting quote or philosophy that helps you stay calm
and do what you do?
S. Just go with the flow! Don’t lose focus and most
important of all be kind to yourself. Life’s short and it’s not always easy for
us Fauji wives!
Thanks Sanyukta, for sharing your story with us!
A note from me: I recently released a #KindleBook called ‘The Work-At-Home Military Wife’ for Armed Forces ladies and anyone who desires to create self-employment for themselves on the move. Check it out here:
(For Women's Day celebration, this week the book is on 50% discount!)
A gift: And hey, if you’d like to explore work-from-home career ideas that you can pack and carry, download my FREE ebook '25 Work-from-home Careers for Military Wives’ by signing-up for my email updates, here.
Connect with me:
Twitter @ChandanaMilSpo
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