Bride of Honor: A Perfect guide for Bride and Groom for their Wedding Preparation

 

Bride of Honor is a Bangalore based startup founded in 2015 by Namratha Vijaykumar.  Their main moto is to prepare Bride and Groom for their big day that is for a wedding day.

 

Most importantly when we see the joy of a glowing Bride on her wedding day and a hug from the bride’s mother with a blessing in her lips at seeing her beautiful happy daughter, It makes all our effort worthwhile.

 

We got an opportunity to talk with Namratha, the founder of Bride of Honor and see what she has to say. I am sure her interview with us will inspire you.

 

 

 

Give a brief info about your startup?

My recent venture is Bride of Honor – Bridal consultants who started operations in 2015. We help the bride & Groom in their preparations to get ready for their wedding. We look after their nutrition, fitness regime, their skin & hair care, their wedding shopping to the make-up. We create the dream look, the bride & groom have envisioned for their wedding.

Recently, Bride of Honor also launched an online e-magazine which provides information about the different services available and reviews products and services of various Vendors such as Photographers, make-up artists, saree showrooms, jewelers, etc to name a few. The magazine also provides useful tips for Brides and grooms for their wedding preparations.

 

 

What made you start your startup and what problem does it solve?

Whenever a wedding happens in a family, the focus is entirely on the wedding preparations like booking the venue, caterer, purohit, invitation cards, etc and 90% of the time the bride and groom are so involved in the wedding preparations that they forget that they are the center of attention on their wedding day and should care for themselves. Last minute shopping and attempts to look fresh and glowing, leave them stressed and exhausted. I ended up helping several friends with such a wedding situation and realized that the bride & groom need to be thoroughly pampered. Their personal grooming sessions before the wedding should be a delightful and a pleasurable experience than being stressful and exhausting. This led to the inception of Bride of Honor

 

 

Tell us about yourself, your previous jobs/ventures? What were you doing before this startup?

I am the founder of Hasthakriya, a Corporate gifting firm and have been in this industry for the last 15 years.  The core of Hasthakriya is manufacturing and trading of apparels uniforms, bags and provide gifting solutions to corporates and institutions. Beyond this, I conduct Outbound trainings and have co-organized Offroading rallies under Chespa Forcez.

 

 

 Where is your startup based out of? Why do you think that is the best place for you?

My startup is based out of Bangalore. Bangalore is a cosmopolitan attracting people from across the country. I feel that Bride of Honor caters to Brides & Grooms of different communities and regions, right here in Namma Bengaluru.

 

 

 As a startup founder, what are you paranoid about? What keeps you awake at night?

One of the biggest issues faced by most of us today is finding time for ourselves. We are constantly on the run, with so much work to be done. I am constantly trying to find ways of ensuring that we can find solutions which can be a quick fix but with long-term benefits for todays on the go Brides & Grooms. At the end of it all when we see a very happy, well pampered Bride & Groom, glowing on their wedding day, our work is gratified.

 

 

Who are your competitions and how are you better than them?

We have not come across direct competition for our services as we attempt an end-to-end approach. We offer a combination of many services in one, a buffet of sorts that has helped us carve our own niche.

 

 

How hard is it to have a work-life balance as a startup founder and how do you manage it?

It is hard and challenging but exciting nonetheless. We have to be constantly on our toes and I sometimes have to juggle between different businesses which need my attention. But I have a strong team of people who work with me towards achieving our common goals. I also maintain a strict weekly routine with an in-place schedule for work with equal time and attention to healthy eating, fitness, hobbies, family time and most importantly ME time.

 

 

Have you raised funding? If yes, then we would like to know the details. If no then please tell us if you are looking to raise.

I have not raised funding. Currently, I have no plans on looking for funding.

 

 

What’s the biggest misconception people have about you? Why do they have that? What’s the reality?

The biggest misconception people have about me is that I am reserved and I dont enjoy life. That leads people to believe I am all work and no fun. In reality, yes, I am a stickler for habits and routine. Although I love travelling, I believe in ‘earning’ my vacation. This makes me a ‘yogi’ of sorts who only looks for reasons to stick to work. Truth is that I do make time to travel as that is my vacation in itself. At times I recoil into a shell, when I feel my work needs more attention than being out there.

 

 

What gets you excited about this company?

Bride of Honor not only helps brides & Grooms get ready for their wedding but they also become aware of several changes which would have left a lasting impact on their lifestyle when they turn it into a habit and add it to their everyday routine. For eg: The bride and groom go through a diet plan that suits their everyday routine. They go through fitness regime easy for them to follow. The bride and groom become aware of their skin & hair condition and how to take care. A stylist guides them with their body type and the kind of outfits’ suit their silhouette. They are guided through different personal grooming sessions which they can follow on a regular basis after their wedding too.

Most importantly when we see the joy of a glowing Bride on her wedding day and a hug from the bride’s mother with a blessing in her lips at seeing her beautiful happy daughter, It makes all our effort worthwhile.

 

 

Tell us how a day in your life looks like? Your schedule for a day right from the time you get up till you hit the bed at night.

I wake up and start my day with a cup of milk and almonds. From the minute I wake up music is turned on and playing in the background. I start with meditation and half an hour of workouts. I then get ready for office,  have breakfast. Once I reach office, the first half hour I review my work of the day which is pre-scheduled every Saturday for a whole week. I pick one task out of the list which I totally not want to do but will create maximum impact and finish the task. It sometimes occupies most part of the first half. I then have an hour of internal meetings with different departments and they are kept brief as we have review meetings every Saturday where the weeks work is planned and scheduled before hand.

I keep my meetings with clients and vendors post lunch. In the evening post work I generally go for a long walk where I get quality time to review my days work and activities. I am learning to play violin and practice for half hour every evening. I finish dinner with family at 7.30. I review the next day’s work and then read a book or article related to my work. I listen to music for a while or paint for half an hour. I go to bed at 11.00. Just before retiring into bed I practice gratitude and am thankful for a day spent well.

 

 

Tell us about your team and how did you meet each other?

I would like to speak about two core members who have been the driving force behind Bride of Honor.

I have a manager for Bride of Honor, Subhasmita. She joined as my assistant. She is a quick learner and is always up for a challenge. She scaled well by taking on multiple responsibilities, soon and well enough to be managing most of Bride of Honor’s work in a short span of time. The onus is on me now to give her role an apt title as she manages many portfolios. Once the magazine was launched she was also behind creating the layout and look of the magazine which generated lot of appreciation.

We have our online Digital marketing team headed by Siva Allu. He is a stickler for planning & keeping things organized. A very hard working guy who is well known for his patience and efficiently managing the team. He & Subhasmita are the key members who have managed to make Bride of Honor our e-magazine receive phenomenal response online in just the second issue of its release.

Presently, we have hired content writers and a marketing team and are growing in numbers with more bridal consultants joining in who give individual & personal attention to our brides.

 

 

 

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