Showing posts with label Kapdawala Story. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kapdawala Story. Show all posts
Khotwadi
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| They are right. This is a live, extra live, alive and kicking Fashion hub |
#MumbaiBrands Made in Santa Cruz Fashion Brand names
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| There are over 25+ establishments named Ramdev here. This one is different. |
For discover more such brands, visit Khotwadi, Santa Cruz.
B S Road, Dadar (W)
Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story. Part 7:
Khotwadi to Dadar
Nalin Jain was forced to say goodbye to Khotwadi a few months after he started his operations. And he moved to Dadar.
In Dadar, you can witness what i think is a very interesting shift. It's a change not just restricted to Dadar. There are a group of builders who are now building 'mall' style retail plus work spaces for businessmen and garment makers.
The rent is definitely higher than what you will pay in a chawl or one of the garment gaons. But there are enough businesses who are now ready to scale up. A big risk for Nalin but a good one to take.
This is the space where Nalin will commence his business from. It even has a window that faces the street where he can stick an ad for people on the street to see. It will function as a work space as well as a place where he can meet customers and vendors. He will also have to look for a new set of craftsmen.
Many of these mall-style workspaces are filling up fast. But when I asked if there is a chance that others from Khotwadi will also move, I was told that a few will, but most of them won't. They are very comfortable with the niche they have created for themselves in a place. Change is not easy.
But there are many who are not afraid of spending a little extra for the most precious commodity in Mumbai : Space. Here are a few other people who do business from the same place.
Khotwadi. Santa Cruz (W)
Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story. Part 6:
The importance of a work space loo
After a round of the by-lanes of Khotwadi, it's time to return to the life of the Kapdawala - Nalin of Gamma. A few weeks after landing in Mumbai, he had his production in full swing from the little sweatshop with the friendly, skilled craftsmen from UP who landed in Kurla on the same platform as Nalin.
It was a good arrangement, but not perfect. They were good at work, quality was better than what he got down south, the work happened faster.
Nalin also felt comfortable enough to bring his wife ( he stays with a friend in Chunnabhatti) from Coimbatore. She would help him with his business. As he settled down, there were a few things that cropped up.
The hundreds of workers and residents of Khotwadi have only one public loo. All day, there is a queue outside the loo.
Is that a problem in Mumbai? It is but this is a city where the first thing an aspiring politician does is build a loo for the masses who don't have one. And even after thousands have been built, there are still not enough.
But the problem is not just about the loo.
It's about space. While Khotwadi provides you with people and skills, it's not a place where you can sit and think. If you are copying designs, it's a perfect place. But if you decide to pause and think, on a full bladder, this is not a place.
And if he wants his wife to come and help him with his work, Khotwadi would be a difficult place.
It's easy to install an Air conditioner. But it's not easy to build a loo. And humans don't function like the buffaloes in the tabela downstairs.
Even then, Khotwadi was where a famous designer Anita Dongre first churned out her clothes from. The one who started the industry here. However, she has moved on now to a bigger place close by.
Nalin is not a hardcore designer or an Anita Dongre, but he felt that he needed space to think and not just churn out clothes. He also needed a place where his wife could work, help him with his accounts. He also wanted a place where he could invite a client. So what did he do? We will find out in the next post.
Read the full story here: A Kapdawala' story
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