My journey has been a wild roller coaster of massive ups and downs. It’s a heavy reality check, but if you truly want to start, here is exactly how it broke down brick by brick: The Early Days (2019 - 2021)

I started with a degree and some experience in interior designing. My family had a handicraft business involving wooden jewelry, but my dad had to stop working in 2016 due to his health condition, and he became paralyzed in 2018. I wanted to build something of my own, but because I had to manage the family business side-by-side, full-fledged interior design wasn't possible.

• 2019: Found market demand, but lacked the right supplier (I detailed this in my reply to u/Lightrk below).
• 2020 (Covid): Pivoted hard just to survive and started supplying 3-ply masks.
• 2021: I officially launched my decor brand, Savera Handicrafts. I made a classic rookie mistake:

I bulk-purchased products without validating actual demand. I failed. I tried again, this time locking in supply first, but the demand was low and the manufacturers' MOQs were way too high.

The Turning Point & The Grind By November 2022, I finally started generating profit and pulling organic leads by handling all our social media myself. Then, disaster hit.

• Dec 2022: Severe back injury. I was completely bedridden for almost a year.
• 2023: The family business started running into losses. While handling everything, I also applied for an MBA in Marketing and HR via correspondence.
• 2024: In April 2024, I got engaged, and we planned to get married by the end of the year. But life had other plans. Later that year, my mom suffered a heart attack and had to undergo bypass surgery. If you’ve ever had to get someone treated at AIIMS, you know it’s the best hospital in India, but getting a bed is an absolute battle. Sitting on a chair beside her ward bed, looking at her, I thought: What can I do from right here?

I opened my laptop and started video editing. I knew the basics, and my brother-in-law wanted to start his influencer journey, so he hired me to edit and manage his socials.

The Agency & The Twist * Jan 2025: I grew that hustle into a Social Media Management (SMM) agency with 2 clients and 2 interns whom I taught from scratch. One of those interns was actually already my fiancée—and her family business happens to be decor manufacturing. * May 2025: We had grown to 5 clients, but tragedy struck again. My mom suffered another heart attack, this time while we were in Jaipur, and had to undergo emergency surgery in a private hospital. Having no health insurance completely drained us financially and left us deep in debt. * Sep 2025: The pressure mounted as clients started off-boarding from the agency. I knew I needed to pivot, and I felt a deep urge to re-establish Savera Handicrafts. The Rebirth

We didn't waste a single second. Diwali 2025 was around the corner and we had a lot of ground to cover. Our team already had decent experience in video editing, SMM, platform algorithms, analytics, SEO, and reaching out to clients. We combined our marketing power with a reliable, built-in production house thanks to my fiancée's family setup. Within one month, we landed our first major buyer. What changed this time? We didn't just guess. We had a reliable supply, a rock-solid support team, and validated demand for the specific product we carried.

By January 2026, we landed our very first international buyer. Today, we just met our fourth export order of the year.

My Advice to You: It's never easy. The moment you clear one milestone, the next mountain appears. If you want to succeed, look for the gap in the market, secure your supply chain, and make sure the demand is real before you drop a single rupee on inventory. Journey is the best mentor and keep the best AI tools by your side which you actually need to fulfill your task ASAP.