#Mother’sDay2022: Story Of Mompreneur At PDD Falcon

On the occasion of Mother’s Day 2022, here is a story of an entrepreneur, who is a happy mother and showcases high gratitude towards her mother-in-law for being a strong pillar of motivation in her life on becoming a successful ‘Mompreneur’.

PDD Falcon is a company that sells a range of steel-based items such as lunchboxes, sippers, steel canisters, tumblers, choppers and oil dispensers, currently has around 20 per cent of its sales from online and 80 per cent from physical stores across India. The company was founded in 2017 DD by an inspiring entrepreneur couple, Chirag Visaria, Sneha Visaria who runs the business with the vision of satisfying Chirag’s father’s dream.

The couple has received an opportunity to go to a recently popular reality show Shark Tank-Season I to pitch their business idea for a deal. 

How did you come up with the idea of PDD Falcon and what challenges did you face on your way to success?

I am an IT engineer with a master's in Marketing. I had an IT industry work experience. After my marriage, my father-in-law inducted and encouraged me to join the 35-year-old family business of stainless-steel component manufacturing. 

Since 2012, I have been associated with the family business with my Husband. In 2016 my father-in-law passed away in cardiac arrest, it was then on this first death anniversary in 2017 that we decided to make a brand-named Falcon give a tribute to him and his learning. As it was his last wish. Initially, we weren’t sure about whether we would be able to make it large, but a great customer review encouraged us to be bigger and better. As a woman, the biggest challenge in a family business is to prove our worth. 

There is never a fixed role or position that you get at the workplace. And work is always secondary for fully sufficient families. You must first add some value to your inputs so that people and staff at the workplace feel your importance. You should not be treated just like a substitute.

How is your company different from other players in the sector? Talk about its USPs.

PDD Falcon manufactures stainless steel home and kitchenware products. These include lunchboxes, sippers, steel canisters, tumblers, choppers, oil dispensers, and more. All the products are steel-based (TCI certified JSL coil). Steel is 100 per cent recyclable without cutting back on quality. Stainless - steel is a healthy and safe alternative to plastic storage, drinkware, and kitchenware. This is a commonly known fact, but when you go to find out those alternatives, you don't get the benefits of plasticware in stainless steel viz. leak-proof, modern, and attractive, and the options available were unreliable.

Do you face any pressing issues in the workplace or in society as a woman?

Not really, in fact in our Industry when people talk to me, they are quite amazed and take it positively. Also, our factory has maximum women workers even in highly male-dominant roles like debt follow up, purchase, pressing machines and polish machines. 

"Women, if confident and true to themselves, no one can press them.," asserts Falcon's Sneha Visaria

What are your tie-ups and expansion plans and what is the ratio of sales from online and offline distribution channels?

We have now started ties with export avenues where trade is under process with distributors in Germany, UAE, New Zealand, Nepal and Mauritius. It is yet under-sampling stage, but further orders are expected. We tie up exclusively with Wonderchef for sales of their online as well as offline portals. The company has a network of 50 distributions in India, including tier1 and tier 2 cities to cater to the mass market with each distributor serving around 200 stores. 

PDD Falcon expects to close this financial year with a turnover of Rs 5 crore. It expects online sales to contribute 50% to its overall turnover in 5 years. Before the closing of this financial year, we shall expand our offline network to 60 distributors reaching out to more than 8000 dealers. More sales are expected to come from export avenues.

Your message for other entrepreneurs who want to get started or are just starting out?

My simple pointers for women to make a mark in the workplace, especially in family-owned businesses are:

· Be consistent - Many social pressures pile up that may lead to losing our focus on our tasks. As a woman entrepreneur, one needs to take it and walk the way.

· Build your credibility - Though being educated or experienced, building credibility asks for time and events. The moment you are consistent, you get small events in your daily work life where you can prove your excellence and win over your peers. Such a collection of events make you hold positions. 

· Climb the ladder - When you're in a family-owned business, you need to know it all. The best way to do that is to take all roles, do it, learn it, and move ahead. 

· Don't take differences to bed - It's very likely to have differences of opinion at work between your family members, especially your spouse. The best way is to leave these issues behind and not let them affect our family.

I understand that my role in my house and kids are equally important. Thus, I schedule my week in such a manner that I have a good time with my family.