Ashapura Business World owned by Ashwin A Thakkar is one of the leading Traders and Supplier of various day-to-day necessary stationery and allied items such as note books, address book, journals, diaries, pencils, colors, promotional pens, ball pens, erasers, corporate calculators, deluxe clip file, spring file, computer file, folder, pads, etc. of branded companies at competitive prices. These products find application across Corporates, Banks, Schools, colleges as well as for personal use.
Ashapura Business World with a focused approach towards complete customer satisfaction has managed to build an impressive list of loyal clients who have been with Ashapura for years now. Some of these clients are Viacom 18 media private limited, Star India Private limited, MCCS, Tata Sky limited, Novartis India Private limited, RBS Bank, 9XM media, Times Now & Piramal to name a few.
As a kid growing up in Gujarat, Ashwin Thakkar always dreamed of owning a business. "I have always enjoyed entrepreneurship, ever since I started working says Ashwin, who currently is the preferred stationery partner of more than 150 top corporates like Star TV, Piramal, Tata Sky to name a few in downtown Mumbai. He is also the first franchisee partner of Vistaprint India. For Ashwin, now 36, who came to Mumbai from Delwada village near Ahmedabad, Gujarat, with dreams of making it big with just 500/- rupees in 1996, it's the kind of stuff that movies are made of. At the age of 14 he started as a salesman for Jalaram stationary on a monthly salary of 700/- rupees.
" Working on field for Jalaram was my real learning ground. Understanding people as customers, their likes, affordability, etc.," the reluctant Ashwin said, gradually opening up. Around 2004, he saw a spark which ultimately lit his dreams for a big future. Admin, AVP at Star TV gave him an opportunity to supply & store raw material within Star's basement for 2 months against a rock bottom deal. This is where Ashwin picked up the nuances of entrepreneurship. Two months later he started his own business "Ashapura Stationery" by borrowing 2 lakh rupees from friends & family. Over the next few years the media industry emerged in a big way in Mumbai.
Employees at Star India were witness to the awesome service level Ashapura used to provide. Business started growing on word of mouth publicity. Over the next decade he purchased his own store at Elphisntone employing more than 20 employees. Today his turn over is around 10 crore with 150+ marquee clients to boast about.Ashapura Stationary is the first partner Vistaprint appointed to service growing business owners to professionally promote their business with quality printed and digital marketing products at an affordable price through the offline channel.
From running a stationery business, what led you to partner with Vistaprint?
I used to supply stationary products to Vistaprint corporate office and was
always intrigued with the product offering. In 2015, I happened to get in touch
with Chirag Bhuva who was then leading customer service at Vistaprint.
He strongly believed that my teams service approach coupled with unique
& quality products by Vistaprint was a winning combination. Chirag insisted
that it was not about making money but creating value for consumers.
How has the growth been with Vistaprint ?
TheBe it small & medium enterprises or top corporates all of them have requirements
beyond office stationary. Vistaprint helped Ashapura become a one-stop shop for such
needs. Earlier I only supplied office stationery. Today, we offer customized
apparels like T-shirts, shirts, caps, hoodies round the year for events.
I had to earlier approach multiple vendors & outsource printing needs for
products like banners, posters, invitation cards etc; however with Vistaprint
today I have a single fulfiller. They offer quality products at an affordable
price with timely delivery & content that is unmatched.
How has this partnership worked to your advantage?
The response is phenomenal, My average order value has increased with new
products that I have started offering. Vistaprint is a global brand and its
lineage is working to my advantage. From its product quality to customer service,
everything is premium. Printing as an industry is typically considered as a high
volume and low quality game however Vistaprint is changing the market dynamics by
its premium offering at affordable pricing.
Can you share one thing that makes Vistaprint stand out?
Technology & innovation is the key differentiator. It's approach to use computer
integrated manufacturing makes production faster, less prone to error, flexible
& that too at the lowest possible cost. Recently they helped create a dedicated
micro website for one of my key corporate customers. This website allows my end
customer to order Vistaprint products along with office stationary items supplied
by Ashapura using a single interface. This is a game changer, now imagine a
stationary shop providing online services along with customized items at the click of a mouse!!
What is the way forward?
I started with a shop–in shop franchise format & have already started a dedicated /
exclusive Vistaprint shop at Ahmedabad. With exciting products like customized umbrella,
USB, power banks etc. lined up over the coming months I strongly believe that
Vistaprint is going to change the way India shops for personalized merchandise.
I am already looking forward to be a master franchise for Vistaprint and grow my business pan India.