Umang & NikitaFounders of Once Again Published On: Tuesday, December 29, 2015 Views 3166
"People often don't realize the effort people put in to get where they are, to some they just think that overnight, you become rich and successful. It's never that simple."
Fashion lifestyle arena has seen several unique ideas come to life. Still there was a huge void in the lives of fashion conscious people who open their cupboard and rummage through piles of clothes, only to find they have nothing to wear. This is where the duo behind once again store comes to limelight. Umang Chordia has a BBA in Finance while Nikita Agarwal has completed her bachelor’s from St. Joseph College of Commerce. Both had the vision to make branded fashion available to the buyers at good prices and they want to help their sellers make space for new memories.
After months of researching, making mistakes and a putting in a lot of work, Once again Store came into existence. The duo started to learn aspects of coding and computer languages, customer expectations, and government rules little by little. Within a short span of time, the platform has garnered over 160,000 Users and 1500 + registered Accounts.
Please provide a brief overview of your product/ service.
Once Again is built around the concept that you should never have to wear the same outfit twice. We believe that each day is a page in the chapter of your life and each outfit you wear has a story to tell.
After finishing their part in your lives, your clothes deserve to go to a new home. To facilitate this, we make selling easy; free of tape, hunting for packing material, printing labels and arranging delivery. With Once Again, all you have to do is wait for your item to sell! We handle everything from packing material, labels and shipping to delivery, payments and returns. Your clothes reach new homes and you are paid! Once Again lets clothing be sold, bought and loved again.
What inspired you to build the above product/ service?
We wanted to build a service that would solve an existing problem with no exclusive solution, Once Again gives women the opportunity to buy and Sell pre-loved Fashion from and to anyone in the country. It solves the classic problems of having too many clothes and nothing to wear and the urge to buy branded clothes but not having the money too. With once again, you sale can fund your next purchase!
What is your life mantra?
My Life mantra Would be “Always be patient” This is something That I follow and believe in with all my heart. There are always going to be moments of difficulty in anything you do, but if you are patient then that gives you the ability to think with a cool head and almost everytime you make a better decision rather than a decision in Haste.
What was the most challenging part of your journey till now?
I would say, Since we’re still in college, the most challenging part of this for us would be the balance between our education, social life and Work. We finish college at 12 and come to the office, we work till 8 and then head back home and start again. The other major challenges we face on a daily basis is the maintenance of the website and other tech processes as both of us are from a Business Background.
Share some details about the investments that you have been able to fetch for the business till now.
As of now, the venture is bootstrapped, supported by our parents. We are on the lookout for a new first round of funding with which we want to scale up and take a major step towards becoming the head player in this market.
How do you protect yourself from the problem of Brain Drain?
Since we are a small company, We do not have any employees. So the problem of attrition does not exist for us as of now. But on a personal level, We protect ourselves from brain drain by taking a small break during the week by catching a movie or hanging out with a couple of friends.
According to you, what are the three qualities an individual must have to achieve success?
Patience, Like I mentioned above, patience is the most important quality I believe to achieve success, The magic usually happens right after you give up. SO you need to be patient and keep at it Loyalty, you need to be loyal to what you’re doing. If you start a business and don’t put the required effort and don’t devote time to it because you want to hang out with your friends etc then you are not loyal to what you started. you must give your heart and soul if you want to make it big. The effort and preparation are always in your hand. The results, not always. Therefore, you must do your part right!
And Humour If you cannot enjoy the little things and always find a reason to have a smile or a little laugh here or there, you are Basically a robot. You as well as your co-founders etc need to have the ability to take a tense situation and make it lighter by keeping a cool head and being able to see it without any tension.
Which online tools/ services/ apps do you use the most and would like to recommend as well?
We use GTmetrix, Seositecheckup a lot to check the performance of our website and would recommend them to everyone running an online store the other tools etc that we use would be Google analytics and Evernote and WordPress blogging extensions. All these help us maintain our work, give us insights and help in small ways to make working easier.
Share any one habit which you think makes you more productive.
I think, the habit of writing down what has to be done as and when you are made aware of the task ticks a note in your brain. Since you have written it down on your to-do list, there is an urge to get done with it. you want to scratch the line of work off before you leave.
Share any one habit which you wish to change in yourself.
I don’t know. umm Maybe Laziness, I sleep way too much.
Answer in less than 50 words
• One tip to success:
There is no tip to success as such, but one tip that has been helpful in making your product better than the rest is the service you provide. The better the service, the better the image in the minds of customer.
• One mistake you believe every individual must avoid:
Thinking that you can handle it all by yourself. You must realise that you are as important as your co-founder. You must find a partner who you trust and you know will be there when the things are not smooth and instead of turning on and against you, they will be with you to face it. It is very important to make sure that you and your partner are flexible. if one is rigid and the other is flexible, you will run into a dead end.
• One most important lesson that you have learnt till now:
Time is Money, The most important thing I’ve learnt is that Time is the most important thing in your life. You cannot waste a single minute. If you are having fun, have at it, if you’re working, then work at it but don’t waste time sleeping, sitting and watching tv etc!
What are your plans for next 3 years?
We want to expand and get into the Men’s, Children and Wedding Industry of apparel and accessories. We want to become the complete Resale Store which has everything for everyone. We want to build a collaborative economy and help people fund their purchases through their sales and make fashion affordable for everyone.
If you get a chance to start your career again what would you do differently this time?
I’ve Just started out, so I don’t know. Will be able to answer this in a few years I suppose.
What are your top three getaway destinations?
Ooty Any place with a beach and Rajasthan.
Share a quote that inspires you the most.
“It took me 17 years and 114 days to become an overnight success.” -Lionel Messi
People often don’t realize the effort people put in to get where they are, to some they just think that overnight, you become rich and successful. It’s never that simple.
Connect:
- Business Website https://www.onceagainstore.com/
Inspiring Entrepreneurs
Founder | CEO | Business Head of Mobulous
Founder | CEO of Elula Tech Pvt Ltd
Founder | CEO of Techy Flavors
Founder | CEO | Business Head of Mobulous
Founder | CEO of Elula Tech Pvt Ltd
Founder | CEO of Techy Flavors
Founder | CEO of Suffescom Solutions Inc