Budding roses

Often, the ‘little something’ that distinguishes an enterprise from being ordinary is that little ‘extra’. In keeping with this piece of wisdom, the sibling duo Yeshoda and Rhea Karuturi ventured out to enhance simple acts of endearment. More precisely, they are turning the thoughtful gesture of gifting flowers into an art through their venture Rose Bazaar. Young and raring to go, their effervescent personae are reflected in their brand too as is their penchant for quality and environmentally conscious decisions. “Our venture is very eco-friendly, and very conscious of sourcing the best, fresh flowers. Personally I am very motivated by the employment we create for women,” Rhea opines.

“We want to make flowers a way of life,” emphasises Yeshoda, who believes that their family background served as an impetus for startingup. “Both our parents are entrepreneurs and watching them set up their business so passionately definitely played a major role in our lives,” she says.

Pretty much like most millennials, Yeshoda was at a crossroads as she needed time to figure out what it was that she really wanted to take up as a career. “I always wanted to study economics and business but didn't exactly know what I wanted to do after that. I worked for my father for the last two years. During that time, he would always push me to think about creating value, and these conversations with my dad taught me that business was about doing this for society as a whole. It was through this constant debating with him that the idea of Rose Bazaar came up.”

Rhea, on the other hand, likes to believe that her entrepreneurial journey was pre-destined. She confides her initial confusion, “I love art and literature and thought I wanted to do something purely creative. But I found that I was also drawn to the clean analytical thinking of economics and computer science. So, picking a dream was hard, but Rose Bazaar came in and showed me how creative business can be and, today, I feel good using both sides of my brain. It helps that I'm doing it with my sister as well, as we both complement each other's skillsets.”

As there are no 'regular' days in the lives of entrepreneurs, their differences help them handle any challenges that they may face. Yeshoda says, “At the office, every day is unique. Rhea and I focus on different areas of the business and are pretty occupied in our respective roles. But we always have lunch together, which is nice!” The girls have distinct interests outside of work too. “I love to read and write, particularly about art. I also like to tutor in my time off, though I haven't found the right opportunity here yet,” shares Rhea. Yeshoda, on the other hand, is an avid travel and hiking buff, who likes to start her day early, usually with a workout. “But I like reading too,” she smiles.

Already targeting the puja-flower market and the home-decor market, they are setting their sights on bigger innings this year. Rhea hints at the future, “Making each customer smile with a fresh box of flowers at their doorstep every morning will always be the intent. But, of course, we wish to branch out pan-India next.”