Many women after motherhood presume that their career is over and stop seeing any future outside the four walls of the house. They silently sacrifice all their dreams, talent, intellect and desire to have socio-economic freedom. Amidst them, Neetu Singh (Founder & Managing Director, SINI Designs), an inspirational leader who stepped into entrepreneurship in 2011 after ten years of marriage and raising two kids, shines as a role model for millions of women with her inextinguishable passion, ingenuity in planning and astonishing administrative skills, proving that age is just a number, not a barrier to start anything new.

Despite having no professional degree in the fashion business, work experience, family background in business or even a professional attitude, Neetu marked SINI’s eminence in the industry by ensuring quality of products flavored with value addition, competitive pricing and timely delivery. Consistency on all these parameters resulted into enhanced trust quotient with consumers. Reading the mind and pulse of the consumer, converting their mental images into reality and its delivery with punctuality, quality and competitive pricing have been the unique factors that have catapulted SINI to the industry pinnacle.

Neetu’s knowledge of art, culture and nature and their fusion with the contemporary trends in fashion works as an icing on the cake. Her journey being her ‘guru’, she constantly explores, experiments and feels the trends from people’s perspectives. The variables to be used by people of different countries having different preferences, contemporary likings of people especially young generations and the spirit of the people are also kept in mind when designing a collection. Each season has its own uniqueness and reflecting this uniqueness through color, pattern and fabric is the key ingredient in the success recipe of SINI.

Neetu’s obsession with leaving no angles uncovered has enabled her to establish four companies: SINI Jewels, SINI Designs, SINI Lifestyle and SINI Foundation along with a certified and compliant factory. With a motive – inspired from India, crafted for the world, Neetu’s enterprises export fashion accessories and garments to more than 50 countries (U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia and Middle East among others), meeting the global, traditional and contemporary fashion trends. This way, she has not only been connecting the creativity of her talented artisans to the International and domestic markets, but is also contributing to Indian economy by generating foreign currency. In fact, her endeavors in training the artisans, organizing designs workshops, exhibitions, seminars, craft melas and cluster development programs with the help of Central Government has facilitated the public sector to create a workforce to reckon with.

A Leading Corona Warrior

Besides her hard-earned success, the milestone that endowed her with utmost satisfaction was getting recognized as a Corona Warrior, featuring on 15 leading news channels, for providing PPE kits and the upcycled cotton masks at very nominal prices to various hospitals, airlines, MNCs and many other organizations. As the onset of Covid-19 pandemic disrupted the Indian economy and supply chain system, SINI took up the challenge and started making three-layered cotton masks and distributed lakhs of masks countrywide to the frontline corona warriors. Neetu extended help to the needy by distributing masks manufactured in her factory and generated employment for SINI Designs workers during this difficult time of crisis.

Well-equipped with the technology and raw materials, the company also started making highquality PPE coveralls (certified with DRDO-INMAS, SITRA and OFM along with SEDEX-SMETA, ISOs, CE and GMP) adopting stringent quality measures. “Due to this pandemic, we have channelized our capacities for making these healthcare products. We want to ensure that our medical heroes always have the protective equipment that they need to stay safe. I’m happy and satisfied that by using my proficient skills in creating masks and PPE Kit, I am contributing towards making Aatma Nirbhar Bharat,” affirms Neetu.

“Neetu’s obsession with leaving no angles uncovered has enabled her to establish four companies: SINI jewels, SINI designs, SINI lifestyle and SINI foundation along with a certified and compliant factory”

The Journey

While women possessing a post-graduate degree in Physics typically tend to enter into research, teaching or multinational companies, Neetu was determined to foray into the fashion world, as she had a strong desire to do something meaningful for the under-privileged, especially women and to empower them to be financially independent. Starting working as an artisan was looked down upon but the philosophy of ‘If there is positivity in the thought process, there is no job that is below dignity. Only the target should be set high’ has guided Neetu to metamorphose from an artisan to an entrepreneur.

To provide a platform to showcase and sell the beautifully crafted handicraft jewelry, fashion accessories and garments, she launched her own brand SINI (short form of her name) in Birmingham, UK, in 2011. Her desire to do something for improving the conditions of the downtrodden complimented with a natural knack for fashion designing, propelled Neetu to train the under-privileged artisan as well. SINI in a short span has evolved as a leading brand in garments and fashion accessories which is innovative, traditional, contemporary, affordable and appealing to everyone.

Having started her career as an artisan herself, she understands their zeal for creating world-class products and the limited impact it had on their lives due to the lack of creator-to-consumer link. This thrusted her to create a platform for small-scale and house-hold industries, modelled under the corporate ambit, where these artisans can showcase and earn on a permanent basis. The symbiotic relationship between SINI Designs and artisans (even those from North Eastern states, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab who had been not getting due remuneration and recognitions) has enabled them to traverse through the unexplored markets without any apprehension or fear of the exploitation of middle men.

Uplifting The Community Of Artisans

By handholding the artisans and weavers in the Indian handloom & handicraft sector and training them to improve their skills and incorporating the latest technological trends in their creations, Neetu has not only given them the strength to stand against the competition (relatively cheaper imported machine-made goods) but also to take the quality of their products to newer heights generating lots of interest and business in the International market. Neetu has successfully brought back many international buyers who had shifted to other countries by reviving the Indian art, fusing the Indian art with global trends and showcasing them to the international market.

Well-aware of the plight of women, Neetu articulates her motto in life to support, facilitate and empower women through financial independence which would enable them to take better care of themselves. Today, more than 150 women have been working on sewing units in her factory and more than 5000 women across the states are working in the supply chain. Coming from different background, education, socio-economy deprivation, health and hygiene issues, these women have now been setting examples for others to follow. “I will further take along millions of women who will be direct contributors in the family and Indian economy,” avows Neetu. Furthermore, she also extends moral counselling for giving life-changing visions to people.

Under AASTHA Foundation’s self-help initiative, she has created a cluster of more than 5000 artisans across several states having knowledge of Indian Art, Embroidery, Kashidakari, Zari work, Adda work and other skills to create world-class Handicraft Jewelleries, Fashion Accessories like Stoles, Scarves, Shalws and Garments. By taking care of health and education of the artisans and their families, she has ensured socio-economic upliftment of these families as well.

Neetu is not only striving to conserve and protect Mother Nature and nation’s property, but also motivates others by running several projects/ campaigns through her NGO.A strong proponent of Zero Waste Policy, she leverages her designing skills to recycle all the waste materials and develops various fashion accessories out of them. She advocates hand embroidery, handloom and traditional Indian ingredients in contemporary designs which SINI exports.

Spreading Wings

SINI was conceived as an exportoriented venture. But, the thought– why only foreigners should have the luxury of using this label, has led to domestic expansion also with online label SINI Lifestyle. The brand’s scintillatingly designed garments and accessories are adding a dash to panache of Indian consumers. With the vision of transforming Indian women of all age groups into more confident SINIwomen, Neetu plans to open her first retail store in India by January 2021. She intends to convert the operations into mass production and largescale marketed range of products using the e-marketing and e-commerce model. To fulfil this dream, she is relentlessly making efforts to increase the range and variety of products, improvise the packaging, and increasing the reach of products to remote areas. Taking such long strides, Neetu seems all set to take SINI to greater heights and the artisan community along with it.

Neetu Singh, Founder & Managing Director

Along the way of her entrepreneurship, neetu graduated in fashion designing and finished an online programme of harvard business school on sustainable business strategy to keep herself abreast with the latest business acumen. While she constantly chisels her business acumen through economic dailies and periodicals, following international magazines, conferences on trends and forecasts, seminars and summits helps her to keep a tab on the latest trends and technologies in the arts & crafts industry. Neetu has participated in various garment and fashion accessories exhibitions and events in Kuala Lumpur (2015), Bangkok (2013), Hongkong (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 & 2017), japan (2019) and melbourne (2018 & 2019), where SINI creations have been exhibited, showcased, appreciated and awarded.

Words Of Wisdom To Budding Entrepreneurs:

Sustainability should be the core building block of design; it should be integrated into everything we do. I suggest the same way about digital design. We have a responsibility to ensure that the impact of every one of our design decisions is positive and not negative.

Awards                                                                                    

• In 2018, Neetu was awarded as one of the Asia’s greatest emerging leaders and SINI designs as greatest emerging brand in the indo-Singapore business and social forum 2018 by Asia one magazine and URS media after Apan-Asia survey by PWC and united research services.

• Most valuable jewellery designer and entrepreneur – 2017by network 7 media group

• State award for master crafts persons by govt. Of national capital territory of Delhi for innovative Jewelry designs

• Empanelment as a fashion designer with DCH, ministry of textiles (GOI) as well as fashion design council of India, FDCI

• Sponsored by ministry of textile, to participate in autumn fair international, Birmingham, UK in September 2011

• Silver awards for best display in 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2019 in Indian Jewelry and fashion accessories fair at greater Noida expo mart, greater Noida, by the epch, ministry of textiles

• Recognized for excellent contribution for fashion shows – 2017 in the Indian handicrafts and gift fair by the export promotion council for handicrafts

• SINI designs was selected to sign MOU with the weavers of north eastern states to design and export their products under the tutelage of ministry of textiles and export promotion council of handicrafts; thus encouraging the marginalised weavers to get the SINI platform

• Featured in emergence of new woman entrepreneurs of INDIA– a book on gender studies by renowned author dr. Rajiv Kumar Verma

• A Broad range of apparels and accessories with specialization incotton and silk based products

• Garments, scarves, and beachwear kimonos in 100 percent cotton

• Casual wear tunics, modern kurtas, vintage dresses and pants

Neetu Singh In Spotlight

• With no prior experience or any family background in the field of fashion, a physics post graduate Mrs. Neetu, armed herself with sheer passion, grit & hardwork to make a mark for herself across the industry by ensuring quality of products flavored with value addition, competitive pricing and timely delivery.

• Exporting fashion accessories & garments to more than 50 countries while ensuring quality products flavored with value addition, competitive pricing & timely delivery, she is connecting the creativity of talented artisans with international markets. All the while contributing to Indian economy by generating foreign currency.

• Garnered many accolades for in-house production of quality PPE kits & masks during covid-19 crisis to help & meet the market demand for protective gear, whilst sustaining the jobs of her employees during the struggling times.