Catering as much as 100 orders each day, Parvathy Mohanan turned her gardening interest right into a portulaca flowers enterprise. She shares how she turned a business gardener by probability.
After an exhausting week at her office in Kochi, Parvathy Mohanan comes again to her quaint hometown within the scenic locale of Muhamma gram panchayat in Kerala’s Alappuzha district.
The engineer’s weekend begins with admiring her lush backyard of portulaca flowers unfold over half an acre of land within the compound of her residence.
“I get up early within the morning and examine the weekly progress of my crops. I really feel so refreshed and stress-free simply taking a look at these vibrant flowers. It gives much-needed aid from my hectic job surroundings,” she says.
Began as a interest, the 23-year-old software program tester has now remodeled her ardour of portulaca farming for these vibrant flowers right into a worthwhile enterprise. Her enterprise has reached a degree the place she fulfils 50-100 orders each day, boosting her month-to-month revenue by Rs 1 lakh.
In dialog with The Higher India, Parvathy explains how she established the multi-lakh enterprise whereas juggling a full-time job.
From 30 to 300 types of crops
When Parvathy was pursuing her masters in engineering in Thrissur, her faculty was quickly closed in 2020 in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. She got here again to her hometown and began attending on-line lessons.
Whereas she already had a small assortment of portulaca crops at her residence, she procured 30 types of the plant from a neighborhood vendor. Her entrepreneurial journey began somewhat unassumingly when she posted some footage of the crops on Fb.
This sparked an curiosity amongst varied gardening teams within the social networking web site.
“Many individuals began enquiring if I offered the crops. I considered commercialising the gathering. I posted a sale put up and obtained 10 orders from Fb. That was the preliminary starting of this enterprise,” she shares.
The response was encouraging sufficient to show her interest right into a enterprise. So, within the first yr of faculty, Parvathy began commercialising the crops from her backyard.
As her backyard grew, so did her experience and fame. Protection by bloggers and YouTube channels additional fueled her enterprise which introduced in a flood of orders. Utilizing the income from her gross sales, she began increasing her assortment.
“As a university pupil, I didn’t come up with the money for to buy an increasing number of types of portulaca. A number of the varieties price Rs 5,000 per plant. However I wished to have them in my assortment. I began utilizing the income of the gross sales to put money into extra varieties,” she provides.
At present, her assortment has grown to a formidable 300 varieties sourced from throughout India and locations as far off as Thailand and Brazil. “It’s such a beautiful view when all of the varieties bloom in numerous colors,” she says with pleasure.
Balancing ardour and occupation effectively
Parvathy taken care of her backyard each day till final yr when she secured a job at an IT firm in Kochi after completion of her research. Regardless of challenges corresponding to managing her full-time job and adjusting to the plant’s wants based mostly on seasonal differences, she thrives in her twin function.
Each weekend, she manages to come back again to her hometown to handle her enterprise.
“I’ve additionally employed two ladies staff who deal with the backyard when I’m not round. I’ve taught all of them the experience required to do that,” she says.
She has mastered the nuances of portulaca care by specializing in necessities like direct daylight, minimal watering, common pruning, and using natural fertilisers like cow dung. Apart from, portulacas are recognized for his or her vibrant blooms and minimal care necessities. This suits completely into her busy schedule.
Sharing challenges in portulaca farming, she says, “Within the wet season, it is vitally tough to keep up a number of varieties like Jumbo. I repot these crops and preserve new cuttings in order that their roots don’t rot within the extra rain water.”
With portulaca farming, she manages to get 50-100 orders in a day. With this, she says to generate a further revenue of Rs 1 lakh. As her enterprise grows, Parvathy goals of balancing her work and fervour whereas increasing her enterprise. She additionally encourages others to go for farming.
“Anybody in want of extra revenue can do that as a enterprise additionally. The hot button is to develop low-maintenance however excessive demand crops like portulaca and discover a reliable group to hold out the work in your absence,” she says.
Rajani Mohanan, who has seen Parvathy toil arduous whereas managing each the workplace and the farm, says, “My daughter began this enterprise throughout the COVID-19 pandemic when she was only a faculty pupil. This has turn into an additional supply of revenue for her and she or he is ready to handle all her bills with ease and have some left for enjoyment as properly.”
When Parvathy returns to Kochi for her work, Rajani takes over a few of her tasks right here like serving to with order packaging. She shares how the enterprise has additionally helped them bond extra.
Parvathy’s story is not only one in every of entrepreneurial success but in addition a lesson in pursuing one’s ardour towards the chances. Her journey from a hobbyist to a profitable entrepreneur highlights the potential of turning a easy ardour right into a thriving enterprise, and her story continues to unfold, one bloom at a time.
“I get loads of compliments and appreciation that at a younger age, I’m doing very properly. But when I had not been cultivating these flowers, not solely would I be dropping cash however I might even be dropping my medium of releasing stress as a result of these crops are like my pleased tablets,” she provides.
Edited by Padmashree Pande; All images: Parvathy Mohanan.
