Ajmera Fashion
AN ENDEAVOUR WITH A DEEP-ROOTED BUSINESS PHILOSOPHY BUDDING WITH NEW-AGE BRANCHES AND LEAVING AN EVERLASTING IMPRESSION.
Famously known as the diamond hub of India, Surat has emerged as a major contributor to the textile industry. Having its roots entrenched in the textile industry since the early 17th century, the city (once renowned for silk weaving) is now responsible for over 70% of man-made textile manufacturing in India, with polyester, lace and synthetic fabrics being the highest in production.
Invading the limitless desert of enthralling textile houses of Surat, Ajmera Fashion has been forged with the aspiration to make a difference in the fashion industry. What started as a small traditional family business is now a mega empire.
Ajmera Group is being led on the forefront by Mr. Ajay Ajmera (CEO and Founder) and his brother – Mr. Vijay Ajmera (MD and Founder) – as the two pillars of the core management team.
Hailing from a provincial city (Sikar) from ‘The Land of Kings’- Rajasthan, a young man in his early twenties decided to make a name in the game. Mr. Ajmera laid the foundation of his very first brainchild i.e., Ajmera Fashion at Surat in 1992.
He set his foot in the industry with the motive to carve his way out to the ‘Maya Nagri – Mumbai’ and make a significant mark in Bollywood. Ironically, he landed in Surat and began his career expedition as an Agent in the Textile Industry to recognize the pulse of this diverse market that makes this huge engine tick. With time, he gets himself enlightened with the ins and outs of the respective industry while analysing the shortfalls of this industry to chisel out his own place. Mr. Ajmera accredits his success to the blessings of his parents and elder, which he considers equivalent to god’s benediction.
Though being a conventional Marwari family business, Ajmera Fashion is offering trendy textiles to the modern youth by adopting new-age methodologies of operating the business in the 21st century. Gradually gaining expertise in creating a balance among the clients, the enterprise has intervened the respective industry with the endeavour to create waves of gargantuan proportions
MOTTO BEHIND THE JOURNEY
When asked about the motivation behind the inception of Ajmera Fashion, Mr. Ajmera unveils, “We set up the enterprise to help the low-income groups of the country attain employment or help them set up their own business ventures with ease.” Being one among the seven children in a family, he had a keen interest in Political Science and Humanities that allowed him to grasp a firm understanding and establish an objective to help the unemployed sector of the nation in the best possible manner. Since the beginning of his entrepreneurial journey, he has been putting his heart and soul to enhance the employment opportunities in the country.
Keeping this vision and the motto intact, Ajmera Group has employed over 300 people so far. Navigating through the uncertainties while being substantive.
“A journey from trialling, toiling and testing times to reaching the limitless sky and attaining a position that others today can only dream of, Ajmera Fashion has made a name to be reconned with,” asserts Mr. Ajmera
Starting from scratch in a whole new city, Mr. Ajmera came across numerous uncertainties and the entrepreneurial journey to say the least was not a cakewalk. He elucidates that there were immense obstacles that had to be dodged while foraying in the industry. But with sheer determination to create a positive impact in the society, he kept sailing the waves of ups and downs that imparted him with surging success eventually.
However, it was the shackles of the traditional credit system that was weighing Ajmera Fashion down and as a result, it almost came to an end in 2014. As the company was still trading in a conventional Marwari manner, making pace with the wavering market trends became an uphill climb. The need of the hour was to break the barriers caused by an outdated business style while revamping the whole model. and operating format for his company. At present, it has become one among the rarest companies that operate on a non-credit basis.
Furthermore, Ajmera Fashion was determined to promote women empowerment even when the concept was not very popular in the nation. The group takes immense delight to reveal that a significant portion of over 30% of its workforce is of female employees only. Apart from this, the company is also well-reckoned for its employee-friendly work culture that ensures a holistic development to each of its associated individuals. In conversation with their employees, many even tagged Ajmera Fashion as the best enterprise to work for!
WHAT IS SO EXCLUSIVE ABOUT AJMERA FASHION?
Today, the Group has emerged out as a Manufacturer and Wholesaler that also renders franchise options. Mr.Ajmera has commenced several ventures under the parasol of Ajmera Group. ‘Ajmera Retail’ is their first retail store in Lucknow that is a multi-storey outlet. Adding to the list of ventures, they have recently ventured into the food industry with their exclusive Groundnut Oil under the name of Ajmera Naturals. Moreover, with a manufacturing capacity of up to 10 Lakh pieces per month and spread over 10,000 sq. ft, Ajmera Fashion currently exports to over 30 countries worldwide, making a strong mark and is swiftly increasing its global footprint.
When various companies are specialized in one-two kinds of manufacturing processes, however, Ajmera Fashion boasts off a large variety comprising of Printed Regular Sarees, Printed Fancy Sarees, Designer Sarees, Cotton Sarees, Silk Sarees, Ethnic Regional Sarees, Fancy Kurtis, Simple Kurtis, Palazzos, Leggings, Fancy Lehengas, Wedding Lehengas, Bridal Wear, Gowns, Salwar Suits, Menswear, Kids Wear, Lingerie, Nightwear and the list goes on.
The year 2020 had been a challenging period for everyone owing to the Coronavirus pandemic, and Ajmera Fashion also had its fair share of troubles associated with it. Facing multiple setbacks in the post-COVID-19 scenario, Mr. Ajmera is not a person that can be bogged down by circumstances and under his auspices, the company emerged out with all fuelled spirits and is ready to conquer and dominate the market once again.
Even amidst the reigning chaos of the COVID-19 crisis when multiple businesses faltered or withered, Mr. Ajmera decided to inaugurate the Lucknow-based franchise retail outlet in October 2020. The concept of venturing into health foods was brought to the forefront of operations realising a void for healthy natural oils in the country. Thereby, Ajmera Naturals came into existence.
His strong leadership and steadfast determination allowed the company to combat the unprecedented crisis effortlessly. Whilst everyone was struggling to get their thoughts on how to move forward during the lockdown, Mr. Ajmera was devising a new game plan all while charting a new course of action for the company to bounce back with high spirits.
SYNCING WITH TECH-TRENDS
In this regard, Mr. Ajmera comments, “Digitalization is one of the most powerful global networking tools present worldwide, and inclusion of digital techniques in modern-day manufacturing is a must to achieve the strongest possible output, increasing their market share globally and include the maximum number of stakeholders.
Ajmera Fashion’s Factory consists of several new techlaced digital printing machines that allow them with effortless fabrics manufacturing processes to stay ahead of the curve. Their R&D team is in a constant process to maintain their reputation of being the ‘market leaders and trendsetters’ in Surat. In the e-commerce dominant era, people are constantly striving for an online presence, and Ajmera Fashion has also made its name in the race. So far, they have set up their helpline and order placement portal that deals with customers all across the globe with multilingual telecallers and executives to guide aspiring clients on how to set up their businesses and also explaining how the textile industry works and how to set their margins to ensure maximum profitability for themselves.
Moreover, the Group also has a robust online presence via its popular YouTube Channel that currently has 154K subscribers and over 2,00,00,000 views from the multiple videos that have been posted by them. They have posted videos in various languages such as; Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi and Gujarati to cater to the diverse diaspora of the country. Basically, the channel offers guidance to start-ups on performing effortless business operations to the burgeoning enterprises or those who strive for transitioning to self-employment from employment. Many other videos involve the process to create sarees and other printing processes.
Such videos primarily target the Indian housewives that Mr. Ajmera reckons to be the most untapped growth sector. In every video, he constantly mentors such women by stating
“There are 24 hours in a day. If you divide that into 3 parts that are 8 hrs of sleep, 8hrs of work- be it household work or a job (if you are employed), and 8hrs to do anything you please. It is what you do during those 8hrs that can make all the difference to your life.”
CONFERRED WITH MULTIPLE RECOGNITIONS
Admired for its dedicated efforts and matchless offerings, Ajmera Fashion has been felicitated with several awards and accolades by many key dignitaries of the society, showcasing its success story.
A few of the honourable mentions from the unending list of conferred awards have been given below
- Rashtriya Vikas Ratan Award by National Achievers Recognition Forum – 2019
- The Most Promising Women Designer Clothes Manufacturers of the year (Gujarat) by World Signature Awards – 2019 presented by Bollywood Actor Govinda.
- Millennium Brilliance Award for Best Management in Textile Industry of the Year presented by Bollywood Actress and Padma Shri Awardee Kangana Ranaut.
- AQE Award for the Best Manufacturer in Textile Industry of the year presented by Bollywood Actress Karishma Kapoor.
- International Service Excellence Award for Best Quality Product of the Year presented by Bollywood Actress Zeenat Aman – 2018-19.
- Indian Achievers Award for Most Dynamic Entrepreneur of the Year in Apparel Industry presented by Ministry of Education (former title of Minister of Human Resource Development), Ramesh Pokhriyal.
- International Product & Service Award for the Leading Women Designer Clothes Manufacturer of the Year presented by Bollywood Actress Juhi Chawla – 2019
- Social Impact Award for Significant Contribution to Social Welfare in India presented by Bollywood Actress and UN Environment & Goodwill Ambassador for India- Dia Mirza.
- Indian Brand of the year Awards for the Women Designer Clothes Manufactures of the Year presented by TV Anchor & Roadies Sensation Rannvijay Singh Singha & Bollywood Actress Mandira Bedi.
- The Leading Women Designer Clothes Manufacturer of the Year (Gujarat) by ISPA.
- International Product and Service Awards – 2019
- Business Leader Summit & Award for Most Admired Manufacturer of Women Apparel in Gujarat of the Year presented by multiple Bollywood Actors.
- The Most Quality Product of the Year (Manufacturers of Sarees) by Pragati International Service Excellence Awards – 2018-19.
Being a leader in its respective domain, Ajmera Fashion has become a successful and altruistic organization. Mr. Ajmera is an avid believer in giving back to the society and has worked with and supported multiple charitable organizations such as; National Organization for Social Empowerment, Dr Ambedkar Vanvasi Kalyan Trust and many more similar organizations. As the company foresees a bright and blazing future ahead with the boom in the textile industry in the forthcoming years, they also aspire to make a social impact to the lives across the globe by ensuring a cosmopolitan presence.
