Charmi Vichhivora, a young entrepreneur, and a photographer by passion started “Curly Charmy” in 2020. Curly Charmy is a small-scale business that deals with hair care accessories especially with products that take care of curly hair. In an interview with News Aur Chai, Charmi shares her journey of starting a small business.
On asking about the idea of starting a small business, Charmi said, “It was the lockdown period and the photography business was shut. So I decided I should at least take care of my hair since I faced a lot of challenges with maintaining my hair, like excessive hair fall, frizzy and dry hair, and was unable to maintain my curls. As I didn’t know how to take care of it, I looked it up on the internet to find products that would help me. Eventually, I came across the curly girl method but the hair care accessories were expensive and I couldn’t afford them. So I decided to make it on my own. I purchased the fabric and made the product at home. I was so proud of what I had made. I was determined to help every person who struggled with maintaining curly hair. I put up a story on my private account asking my followers if they would be interested in buying the hair care product and the response was crazy. I was not serious about it initially. As I started receiving orders even on my private account, I decided to make use of this opportunity and open a business. My main goal was that it should be affordable, as I was not able to afford it. Now I’m always working on Curly Charmy. That is all I can think of. It has helped my hair.” said she.
“The curly community is super great, they have always been very supportive,” she added.
When asked if the pandemic affected the business, she said,” The pandemic did affect my business especially during the lockdown period as the courier services were shut. The sales were not great, and I was demotivated as I had invested money into it.”
Charmi’s family helps her with the packaging of products and buying fabrics. She has appointed a tailor whom she could help by giving her work. She is the one who makes the products as there are many orders every day.
The available products are Scrunchies, Bonnet, Headband, Pineapple Protector, Scarf, Pillowcase, and Detangler all customized, available in different sizes, and most importantly cost-effective! All the products are made of satin, as it helps to keep your hair intact.
“In India, curly hair care is underrated and I would like to reach as many people as I can to promote that curly hair is beautiful too. Curly hair is not a trend, it’s a lifestyle!” she added.
