Interview with Shraddha Varma | Fuzia
I hope this can inspire you to become a successful entrepreneur too! Why is it important to hear the story of a successful entrepreneur?
Having the vision to become an entrepreneur is great. Making it happen is another story!
In that frame, I had the pleasure to interview Shraddha Varma, founder of Fuzia. Fuzia is a women’s networking community and a talent showcase platform where they build each other up through creative expression, experiential learning, and mutual support.
It celebrates the beautifully crafted mixture of internet and creativity. They aim to give every woman space where she can learn and grow. Fuzia is a unique place where they try to empower women to use their creative voices and thereby nurture them to become a confident and independent leader.
It is an initiative to drive gender equality and empowerment through the power of ‘She for She’ and ‘He for She’ ideology.
1. What gets you out of bed in the morning i.e what’s your source of motivation?
The fact that my sleeping hours are going to add nothing to this world. The ability to work and bring a difference one at a time just makes me jump out of my bed and I’m like hello? The show is going to start with the sunrise and me.
2. Why should people choose your product/services?
Well, I believe in balancing my professional and personal lives and that is the need of this millennia. We provide an exquisite learning experience and remote work so that you can become financially strong and can pull off other things as well, like LIFE. How about that?
3. What’s your competitive advantage and why can’t it is copied?
That would be the dynamic version of feminism for us. We don’t just believe in empowering women; we try to engage with every stratum of the societal structure where everyone realises the need for feminism and join us to achieve our goals. We have members of Fuzia who are men and we hope that someday the LGBTQ community too finds solidarity with us. All-inclusive attitude is what I believe is unbeatable.
4. What risks are you facing?
I think that sustaining in this competitive world of social media is the risk that might concern us. We have been doing great so far, and I would want that to keep that pace in future too.
5. Have you considered any alliance/partnership?
No, I haven’t considered any alliance as of now.
6. What are your cash flow projections? When will you break even? How much will you need in investments?
We are a Self-funded start-up and I think associating more with people and creating blogs for them would be our major goal regarding this. We are hoping that by 2023 we will be able to break even. We want to educate and bring real and visible changes in people’s lives and I can’t quantify the investment amount at this point of time. It’ll vary with our targets and the outreach.
7. What comes first for you money or emotions?
Hey, that was a tough call! Money is important for us to have a steady run in this endeavour but yeah, emotions have always driven us. If I have to choose between the two, I would say emotion matters to me the most because that has given me the push to keep working incessantly for the greater cause.
8. What are your strengths and weaknesses?
My team is my strength. The way we work together to achieve something gives me hope. I am weak at managing my overthinking. I worry a lot!
9. Tell me about an accomplishment you are most proud of.
Fuzia! It was just an idea and the fact that it is fully functioning organisation today is undoubtedly an accomplishment for me.
10. How do you handle the pressure?
I do Yoga. That helps me think in a focused manner and yes, Fuzia team is always
there. So, I manage it good.
11. If you sold your company today, what would be the tone of the conversation? What would you want to gain? What would you want to avoid losing?
First, I don’t want to sell my company. But out of the odds even if I do, I would maintain the positive attitude that I have today. I would look forward that Fuzia in future gains more jobs for women and the youth of the world and lessens their one problem at a time. What I would not want to lose is the motto and the vision of empowering women. This journey has to go a long way.
12. What advice would you give to someone starting out?
If you want to do something, just do it. There is always a way. Don’t overthink, it complicates but yes plan well. There will come a moment where you’ll go point-blank, but there is where you pick up again and become successful.
13. What’s the one question you were expecting most and I haven’t asked you? And please share the answer to that question as well.
Well, you didn’t ask me the cliché question of all time- you are a woman’s organization, why so? Why do you think that women only need empowerment? And I think you didn’t ask me this because I already said that we are an all-inclusive family where the historically undermined category needs to be addressed and that is possible with a polyphonously organized strategy.
