The Indian Fashion & Creative industry has been a prominent segment in the country. This domain contributes to 5% of India's GDP and is growing exponentially every year. However, despite the prominence of this sector, there aren't many entrepreneurs venturing into this space. Creators, artists, influencers, youtubers and designers often remain underpaid for their ideas which further discourage them from creating new innovative designs or kickstarting something of their own that can scale. Recognizing this gap and putting her expertise in Design, Fashion and Technology into use, Smriti Dubey co-founded an innovative platform ‘SINS’ in 2013, which later adopted the name ‘ReDesyn’ in 2019. Smriti and her co-founder and partner from college have come forward with a very innovative concept wherein any artist could submit their design and sell productsunder his/her store. By enabling the masses to make a lucrative income on the side, ReDesyn is helping them to get a fair price for their creativity. Smriti Dubey, a fashion management expert with a keen interest in fashion technology and a strong entrepreneurial spirit, is urging more artists, creators, women and the NIFT squad to seek an entrepreneurial life and be their boss. Women Entrepreneur magazine recently engaged in a one on one interaction with Smriti Dubey Co-Founder, ReDesyn. Here are some highlights from the interview.

What are some important features of your expertise as an entrepreneur?

I pursued my fashion master's degree (MFM) from NIFT after completing my computer science honours degree from Delhi University. I am consequently knowledgeable in technology and fashion management. Given the abundance of influencers currently promoting and selling goods in the fashion industry, my knowledge of both technology and fashion gives me a competitive advantage over them. Secondly, while the market was still developing and just a few businesses were utilizing it, ReDesyn was already initially involved. We still follow the marketing trends on Facebook, Instagram, and Google Ads. Together with internet marketing, I brought celebrity involvement to the mix. But creating content for each design is another crucial priority. A story enhances every design and appeals to the audience, thereby increasing sales for the artists/creators. Nobody else does what we do: ‘we assist designers & content creators in monetizing their ideas and content’, and this makes us unique.

Take us through your early educational journey and prior industry experience.

Since my family frequently moved due to my father's government job, I finished my early education in different schools and boards. After finishing School, I attended Indraprashtha College, Delhi University to study computer science (honours) at the undergraduate level. I subsequently continued to the NIFT Mumbai's Master of Fashion Management program with an AIR of 26. In addition, I've taken a ton of seminars and 12 to 18 certificate programs in digital marketing and PR styling, two of my specialties. I have also worked as an intern in marketing and merchandising for high-end companies, including Louis Vuitton, Bottega Veneta, Levi's, Petal Kids Wear, and Ensemble. I then joined Bombay Electric as a trainee, soon becoming Manager in Retail and Marketing. Last but not least, my business/college partner and I started SINS, which we eventually changed to ReDesyn.

What motivated you to establish ReDesyn? Tell us about the underlying idea behind the firm and some of its most unique features.

ReDesyn started from a simple realization that designers in their early years are not paid enough. So we came up with the idea to collect designs from designers at our college (NIFT) and put them out on the market under our brand SINS. We launched at India Resortwear Fashion Week, hoping our products would sell immediately. But that strategy was not enough. So we renamed SINS to ReDesyn and introduced a tech aspect to it. We provide a sign-up page where anyone could sign up and drag and drop any design, and that would become a T-shirt. These designers could reach out to friends, family, and fans and ask them to purchase the product they designed. With covid bringing social influencers on the frontline, we expanded to include influencers from all social media platforms to add their merchandise on our platform and receive commissions for every product sold. A unique feature we offer is automation, through which anyone can go and upload their designs and have people buy them under their store. Creator Merchandise Platforms like Teespring, Redbubble, Printful, Threadless have made a mark as unicorns in markets outside India. We believe it’s the right time in the Indian market to grab this opportunity and let content creators monetize their fans by launching custom merchandise for them

What are some of the most pressing challenges that you encounter? How do you successfully mitigate these challenges?

Initially, we faced several challenges regularly. Firstly, there were many players in the market, so the competition was severe. This is mitigated by launching a lot of content and unique designs by various content creators. The supply chain was another prominent challenge since manufacturers have always been unwilling to produce one or two pieces of a design. They believe in bulk orders, and we offer made-to-demand, which became difficult, especially since we offer ready-to-ship in two days. Lastly, being from NIFT, we also faced challenges while fundraising and came a long way from our first pitch to thousands that followed. Initially, we bootstrapped and launched our platform ourselves without external funding.

“Content creators, no matter how big or Small, should be able to launch merchandise For their fans at no cost. Redesyn lets people Have fun by creating merchandise on-the-go With it’s design maker where:- abcd: anybody Can design!"

What are some of the most significant milestones that you have achieved throughout your professional journey? What has been the driving force behind your success as a professional?

Some of the most notable milestones include the fact that we increased revenue from 40 lakhs to 1.5 crores in just one year. Every item we sell is userdesigned. Secondly, overcoming the hurdles posed by COVID, we continue going strong and rebuilt a solid hold. I received India's Young Achievers Award in 2019, which is a huge personal milestone for me. Regarding motivation, our love for the industry & passion to never give up has seen us through the tough times. The organization has been sustained by determination and desire to be our own bosses.

Drawing from your experience as a business leader, what would your advice be to young women and girls who also aspire to become business leaders and entrepreneurs in the future?

To establish your value, I would advise all women and all NIFT students to pursue an entrepreneurial adventure. NIFT produces great minds every year and we would love to see & support more NIFTians out there as entrepreneurs. Graphic designers and content creators have huge potential to monetize their talent/content/fans and we’d love to see this become a trend in India. Don't hesitate to seize the opportunity to launch your own endeavors. Set up money, and launch a business. Women must unleash their business energy and not let any relationships or other limitations stand in their way. Start small, and save money. There aren't many women business owners in India, and we need more of them if we're going to achieve true equality.

Smriti is an intelligent and accomplished entrepreneur who has been a hustler since the beginning. Coming from a computer science background, she pursued fashion for the passion of it. The combination of the two skills materialized in the form of ReDesyn, through which she is thriving in her entrepreneurial journey. A strong advocate for entrepreneurship, Smriti is determined to inspire more NIFT students and women to take risks and experience ultimate work satisfaction and growth by launching something creative of their own, fearlessly.

Educational Qualification:

BSc. (H) Computer Science, Indraprastha College For Women, Delhi University

Masters in Fashion Management (MFM), NIFT Mumbai Headquarters & Other Office Locations: Thane, Maharashtra

Awards of Recognitions won: India's Young Achievers Award, Ramoji Film City, 2019

A business leader you admire: Malini Agarwal, Founder, MissMalini