The Alimond Show
Welcome to The Alimond Show --join us as we share our entrepreneurial guests' stories, uncover their secrets to success, and explore the unique paths they've taken to build thriving businesses in our community.
In each episode, our host, Aliyah Dastour, sits down with a diverse group of local business owners, from the corner cafe to the boutique shop, from tech startups to family-run enterprises. We peel back the curtain to reveal the trials, triumphs, and transformational moments that have shaped their entrepreneurial journey.
Discover the passion, perseverance, and innovative thinking that fuels these businesses, as well as the challenges they've overcome along the way. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur seeking inspiration or simply a curious listener interested in the stories behind your favorite local spots, The Alimond Show has something for everyone.
Our guests share their experiences, insights, and valuable advice that can empower you to turn your own dreams into reality. We discuss topics like marketing strategies, customer relationships, community engagement, and much more, offering practical takeaways you can apply to your own business or career.
Join us every week as we celebrate the unsung heroes of our local business community and explore the vibrant tapestry of entrepreneurship in our area. Tune in to The Alimond Show and get ready to be inspired, informed, and motivated to support and nurture the businesses that make our community thrive.
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The Alimond Show
Shahrin Karim of KameezGhar Boutique - From Bangladesh to New York's Fashion Scene: Transforming Maternity Leave into a Cultural Fusion Business, Empowering Women Entrepreneurs, and Committing to Affordable Style
Ever wondered how a visionary entrepreneur transforms a passion into a thriving business? Join us as we sit down with Shahrin Karim, also known as Tukasha, the inspiring founder of KameezGhar Boutique . Shahrin takes us on a fascinating journey from her roots in Bangladesh to carving a niche in New York’s fashion scene. Discover how her maternity leave in 2016 sparked a new chapter, leading her to fill a void for South Asian traditional clothing in the U.S. With a diverse collection that includes Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi, and Nepali styles, along with innovative Indo-Western designs, Shahrin’s story is one of cultural fusion and creativity. Her ready-to-wear sari solution and expanding men’s collection are just a glimpse into her commitment to making high-quality and accessible fashion for all.
In this conversation, Shahrin opens up about her unique marketing strategies that have captivated audiences, from vibrant social media campaigns to insightful fashion trend blogs. Gain insight into her dedication to empowering fellow women entrepreneurs through a newly launched course, all while maintaining personal connections with customers. Despite pressures to raise prices, Shahrin stays true to her mission of affordability and authentic customer interactions. Listen as she shares how maintaining a clear vision, profound dedication, and essential knowledge are the cornerstones of her success. Shahrin’s journey is a testament to the power of cultural appreciation and business acumen, providing valuable lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs and fashion enthusiasts alike.
My name is Sharin Karim and my people knows me as Tukasha, and I have a South Asian clothing business and I started this business like back in 2016. Well then, I have to go back a little bit, please. Yeah, tell us so. I was always focused on my studies and we could barely get time for extra curriculum activities. I used to do swimming, biking, but after my MBA, I was waiting for my visa process to be completed and during that time, I got bored.
Speaker 1:I wanted to do something productive and I enrolled myself back in Bangladesh, 2009, in fashion designing. It was a short, six-month diploma course, but during that period of time, I have published my own design and I have done a couple of um fashion shows. Um, to be honest, I injured a lot, yeah, um. And then I moved to. After six months, I moved to the U? S in New York, um, and then, and then um I um, started my career in financial industries, but knowing that that was the end of my work in fashion. But now, looking back, I was wrong. I feel like you know, that was just the beginning.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then when you came here to New York, were you working with a company, were you working on your own, or what were you doing in New York?
Speaker 1:When I was in New York I started my career in the banking industry. So I worked like 10 years and this commis card actually I created. There was a reason Kamis car actually I created um there was a reason, um.
Speaker 1:So back in uh 2016, when I got pregnant with my second child, I was on maternity, early maternity leave and again I got bored and I wanted to do something productive. Yeah, and then, um, my love for fashion and the experience I had previously actually made me to create Gummy's Car, and that time, actually, I realized that there's a huge gap in South Asian clothing.
Speaker 2:Which is what you specialize in.
Speaker 1:Right, and it was like we hardly could buy South south asian traditional outfit, um, and or, if we ordered online, it like it would take um four weeks or one month to get and it was pretty expensive, oh my goodness. Yeah, and but I had a clear vision actually, um, which was, like you know, um, to offer high quality, custom-made, personalized outfit and also effortability to each and everyone. Yeah, so yeah, that made me actually to create this company, and in the beginning it was very small, just online. Online means like this Facebook page, yeah, and, but you know, I started working very closely with my customers, you know, finding their needs, understanding their problems, and I ensured them to like they can, you know, feel extraordinary.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely. I saw some of your work. Talk to me about the collections that you have.
Speaker 1:I have like South Asian clothing means I have like Pakistani collections, the Indian collections, the Bangladeshi collections and few of the collections are Nepali based. Means like lahenga, saris, anarkali gowns, and now I started working on my own design, which is Indo-Western Okay. So it means like people who are inspired by my collection. People means like not only now, I see like not only South Asian community. I see like, you know, different background cultural people are coming because they got inspired by my outfit. Because it's the Indo-Western means, you know, there's a Western touch too.
Speaker 2:Like a fusion.
Speaker 1:Right yeah. So different background, cultural people means like a Latina, african-american, this one back here.
Speaker 2:She likes to wear her saris, her boyfriend's Indian, so yeah, so she likes to put all that good stuff on. So this is perfect that you offer this for other people, because maybe some people feel shy and nervous, like can I wear this, is it okay?
Speaker 1:I'm glad you brought this up, because sari is very hard to you know, wrap it up, you know, because there's drapes and the pallu has to be on the left side. So there's like a lot of you know process. So now I came up with like a one minute wear sari, which is like everything is ready to wear. Wow. So it comes like, yeah, you just wrap it up and it looks like a sari you are wearing.
Speaker 2:Beautiful, the ease of it all for people who don't know how to do it. The proper way can help them, and I also saw that you cater to also not just women, but men. Talk to me about the men collection.
Speaker 1:Yes, when I started this small business, it wasn't a men's collection. Before, like for a couple of years, just women collection. But now I see, like when men doesn't do shopping, it doesn't matter if it's a South Asian or Western, they don't love to shop. It's like hardly we can find few men that they love to do shopping. Yeah, maybe just online. But when their girlfriend comes, like maybe their wife, their mother, they look for, like you know, pairing up with their partner or their son. So that made me feel like, oh, I should bring men's collection too. And I have husband, I have son, he's 13 years old, yeah, and that that actually so like for two years. I have man collection in my store, yeah, and man collection also. I have Indo-Western too. So you know, there's a jacket, there's a kurta pajama.
Speaker 2:I saw some of the looks and I was just like, wow, this looks really nice. It looks very chic and luxurious. I was just like this is really nice and it has like the nice shiny material or satin, I think which brings me to my next question um, what type of materials do you like to use or like? Where do you source them from, and do you have a team behind you, or is it just you?
Speaker 1:yes, um, I have team. Um, I didn't have team before. It was, you can say, like one man, army, um, but now I have one influencer, she, uh, she's very good and the team I have worked with um. There's another it guy um who is like recently, like uh, two or three months, I just started working with them um, but the team I have to do my own design, like I sketch my own design, I send it to them and it's like they, you know, they do the stitching over there, okay, and if something happened I know the teaching thing I can do some touch-up. And the material you mentioned, I mostly used the chin-on silk. It says it's kind of the way you said it Like satin a little bit.
Speaker 1:Right, it's like glaze and it's like a lifetime warranty. Beautiful, everybody loves a good lifetime warranty.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's awesome, and now I saw that you were honored listee. You got a badge from Marcus, who talked to me about that. Congratulations.
Speaker 1:Oh, thank you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was like not too long ago, like a few months ago, I have you know LinkedIn account about Kamis Kaur and they reached out to me through LinkedIn Like hey, would you like to apply through LinkedIn? Like hey, would you like to apply, Because it's only for women-based business owners? So I said okay, but I didn't have that much idea. So I was like, okay, let me give it a try. I applied and then I had a conversation with her over the phone. It was like a one hour conversation and, yeah, she actually inspired me to have my biography on. Yeah so, yeah, so I was, I was, it was really honored because they are 125 years, you know, they've been doing this, yeah, so that's a long time. It's exciting.
Speaker 2:That's so cool. Congratulations again is awesome. And then, um, as far as marketing goes, what are you doing to get your name out there? Are you online? Are you going to uh network groups? Tell me everything. Is it word of mouth, a mix?
Speaker 1:um, well, the marketing. Um, I believe in social marketing and to me, social marketing it's just like all about you know how you connect with people, so I connect with my people through the social platform, like through Instagram. I create content and recently I started writing fashion trends and tips blogs. So my customer, you know, can use the Kamis Car platform not only as their clothing store. Also, they can use it as a resourceful, you know platform.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:So and also, I didn't mention anywhere. This is the first time I'm going to mention.
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh, we get the exclusive Thank you.
Speaker 1:So I recently launched a course which is called you know how you can start your own business with even $100. Wow. This course actually is for those women who want to do something by their own, or maybe staying at home with those moms, or those women who want to do something as a side hustle Because I started as a side hustle in this business so this course will inspire them or, you know, show them the path, like you know from where or how they can start their own business and follow their dream. Yeah.
Speaker 2:I love that. Where can people find more information? Will it be on your website or where it?
Speaker 1:will be published in my website. I didn't link it yet but I will. But it's coming, it's coming. It's coming because you know before you know. Publish it in publicly. I would like to have the presentation on my own, like what this course is about. Yeah, so you know. So can people understand. Oh, okay, if I take the course, I will learn this and that.
Speaker 2:Yes, I love it. No, that's so great. I love that. You were just like. You know what. I want to help other women too, and I want to help the community.
Speaker 1:And they don't know where to start. They can use me as a resource.
Speaker 2:Yes, that's beautiful.
Speaker 1:I love that. Thank you yeah.
Speaker 2:And then, where do you see yourself in the next five?
Speaker 1:Well, it's hard to say because sometimes I get, you know, fight with myself, like where's the end? Because, like, I'm just going with the flow. So, in the next five years, I want to keep growing my business as a brand and, um, I would love to see, you know, not only the south asian communities, uh, coming together. I would love to see like other cultural communities are coming together to my fashion, to my work. Yeah and um, yes. And also, like you know, I would like to inspire the other women, um, yeah, you know, to start something by their own. Yeah, um, so they can, you know, do, um, something like as they will wish, um, always, absolutely.
Speaker 2:And now I do have a question. It is a little bit controversial. You're like, oh no, but like I know there's been things where it's like, oh, that's cultural appropriation. Like you're not Indian, you don't know the meaning behind this. Or like this is a sacred, um, you know outfit. What are your thoughts on that, do you think? Because I feel like you're like, yeah, you want to branch out culturally, but maybe some people don't wear it and they don't maybe know the meaning of it. What are your thoughts on that?
Speaker 1:um, like I am bangladeshi, um, like I born in bangladesh, yeah, so um but for other cultures, you know for the other cultures.
Speaker 1:Yes, so you know, I'm glad thank you for bringing up that topic. I had that concept in my mind somewhere. Like you know, this is for only these Indian people. This is for only these Bangladeshi people. Bangladeshi people, we love to wear sari and Indian they love to wear, you know, lahenga Pakistani. They love to wear kamis salwar, kamis karara. So I know lahenga Pakistani they love to wear kameez salwar, kameez or kerara. So I was like, okay, so I was only focused on those South Asian communities. So when I moved to Virginia, from New York to Virginia, like I moved like 2019, I saw a lot of changes and the changes I noticed is like in one year. What changes is like? As I mentioned earlier, like I saw, other people are also other cultural people are also inspired by my collection. Yeah, so I had one, not one. I had a few customers, mostly Latinas. Wow, your biggest clientele.
Speaker 2:Okay, you're looking back there. I love it.
Speaker 1:They are inspired by my collection, especially ready-to-wear saree. Okay, Because my ready-to-wear saree is a very rich fabric. They will wrap up in a body and you don't feel it like you wore something. Yeah, it's comfortable.
Speaker 2:You don't feel uncomfortable, like you wore something.
Speaker 1:Yeah it's comfortable, uncomfortable, you can wear it, you can carry that all day long. And the second, um, the customer I know, just african american. Yeah, um, if you, if you go to my instagram page yeah, my official instagram page you will see their pictures, like, even they worried, they shared their pictures with me and then referred other Latina customers. Yeah, and I have also like African-American male customer, latina, you know the male customer. You want to believe that's?
Speaker 2:incredible.
Speaker 1:And yeah, now I'm focusing on their taste. Yeah, too, like now, I feel like you know, this is not only my designs are not only meant to be for indian, bangladesh or south asian community. Yes, it's like it's growing, yeah, expanding, I love that.
Speaker 2:No, I love that. It's like a fusion and your take a different take on, like the modern women, woman who wants to like wear this right. So I think that's cool. Um, and then my question right now is what do you see as the trends right now, I guess, for fall, winter? What are the colors, the textures, what's going on right now?
Speaker 1:velvet oh yeah nice, right now it's, the color is like dark, of course it's the same, like brown, black, gray. And the velvet material. It's right now, it's going on and it will be till February, end of February. Sometimes it goes, you know, depend on our weather. We have velvet shawl, velvet silver suit, velvet sari. So right now it's very demanding, velvet, all right, and it's very high-rich material. Yeah, very high quality.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I saw some of your stuff and your stuff looks really good it looks like top-notch, like whoa. Thank you, yeah. And then what do you hope the experience will be for your customers when they wear your clothes and when they go on your shop or they get to know me? What do you hope to give them as an experience?
Speaker 1:to my customer. Yeah, yeah when they come to my shop. Um, you know, you know they, they I had. This is what I was wanted to tell you. I have one customer last week and she came to me. She's like, oh, you texted me, it's a boutique, but when she came to my store, she's it's a clothing store and it's huge, you have a huge boutique that's cute, I love it.
Speaker 1:So I was like okay, that's so, you know, compliments, a big compliment. And then she goes like can I take this picture? Can I take this picture? She was wearing outfit, she was excited. Yes, I love it.
Speaker 2:So you want people to just have like a great experience and have that shopping experience where they can touch the material, fit it.
Speaker 1:Yes, and I have a trial room inside my store so you know they can try it on before they buy. So today I wasn't home. My mother came to visit me and she was there and the customer was almost leaving. I said you know what? My mother is home. Is it okay if she can help you? She's like okay, because she was um, you know, um european american. She doesn't speak bangla, she doesn't speak um hindi or anything, and my mother doesn't speak english. So that was a compromise. I told her, like my mother doesn't speak english, she understand. She said that's okay.
Speaker 1:She went to the store, my mom helped her and she was like I want to buy three or four outfits of it. But she said I'm, I'm good, I'm coming deaf, I'm coming back, definitely, but she got two outfits. She, she wanted to buy one because it was like um, she was going to attend um indian wedding, okay, and she wanted to have outfit, yeah, so she got two. But she's like you know what I can wear? Because I have a, the casual kuta, which is also um indo-western. Like you can wear it outside in summertime too, yeah, so maybe for those she, she wanted to buy, yeah, yeah, I love it.
Speaker 2:and what do you like to do in your free time, when you're not wrapped around fashion and clothes? What do you like to do? Study, yeah, study, oh, what do you study?
Speaker 1:Well, I love to. You know, I believe, like to go with the flow. You need to educate yourself all the time. So I took an e-commerce analyst certification course. Recently. I enrolled myself with, again, fashion designing certification course I'm done. It was from Person School in New York, nice, so yeah. And also I got a certification course in HR because my master's was in HR and so, yeah, I love to study. It doesn't matter if it's related to the fashion or colors or patterns. I need to know.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's just your curious mind. That's what you love. You want to know, you want to learn and know for your, for your business, right?
Speaker 1:so that's awesome.
Speaker 2:I love that. Is there anything, maybe that I have not touched on, that you would like to share about yourself, your business, your industry, um?
Speaker 1:no, it's just like, uh, sometimes people ask me how's your self? Um, now, I couldn't answer them Like I'm not self-oriented because my vision was different. No, um, to me actually, um, the successful business is, I mean, it's not about sales, um, I believe a successful business is all about how you know the meaningful way you can show your creativity to your people by influencing them through your work. Yeah, so that's what I believe. When my customer comes to me and they appreciate me, sometimes some customer, like in front of me, was giving me a lot of prayers um, in, in their own way, like they were. Some of them were elderly people or maybe they were teenagers. It's like we were so glad that you were here, um, so you know, those are the great achievement for me. And then this um, this feedback actually kept my uh vision same in the same way. Yeah, um, I couldn't change my.
Speaker 1:Even some customer tell me oh, you have um, you always offer cheaper price than others yeah um, and it's growing, but I cannot increase my price because same same uh, you know uh motive I have. It's not all about sales, yeah, it's.
Speaker 2:This is the uh, you know the attachment I can feel with them yes, yeah, absolutely, and I think that's a unique quality, because nowadays sometimes it's really hard, you know, and people are like we gotta up the prices here and here and here so.
Speaker 2:I like that you're staying true to that and I think it will come back to you in a good way. Yeah, you're welcome. And then for my final question that I like to ask everybody is do you have a quote or a saying or even a mantra that has inspired you in your life and would you like to share that with our listeners to leave us with a great message? And would you like to share that with our listeners, to leave us with a great message?
Speaker 1:Or maybe something your mom told you or your dad that sticks in your head and you're like, yeah, well, this is all I want to. You know, tell everyone from my experience what I had is I did not have privilege to invest a large amount to start my startup business. I started very low amount. All I had is all I believed from that experience yeah, like you need to have proper dedication, clear vision, yes, and, most importantly, the proper knowledge of education that what you are going to start and why, yeah, so if you believe those and be consistent, you can reach. You can reach there.
Speaker 2:I love that Well. Thank you so much for being on the podcast and for sharing your story and all the insight on your beautiful boutique or large shopping store.
Speaker 1:Thank you for having me, absolutely.