“FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) is working further towards women empowerment and entrepreneurship” said Ujjwala Singhania, President of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) FLO, while speaking at the inauguration of the 10th year of its Bengaluru Chapter The FLO aspires for a society where women are harbingers of change.
Rasmi Sarita, the Executive Director of FLO told The Observer: “We work towards bringing women together. People think women are low on skill and they can’t be entrepreneurs. If all women work together, we can double the GDP and double the skills. Our organisation is taking various initiatives to shed the inhibitions of women. We have set a 100 percent women owned Entrepreneurship Park in Hyderabad. Most women are not good at marketing and we are creating new marketing opportunities for them. The one good thing about Covid-19 was that it pushed us all to go digital. Today we have organized an exhibition, the FLO bazaar for all our women entrepreneurs to exhibit their work. There are 114 members who have traveled to be here from all parts of India and 700 members from Bengaluru, all women.”
The exhibition was by FLO female entrepreneurs, all having different stalls. The items ranged from earrings, household items, jewellery, saris, suits and food items.
The Observer talked to some of the entrepreneurs in the exhibition.
Ritu Mittal, who had a candle stall at the exhibition said: “FLO has helped me meet many new people. I am now aware of all that’s happening in the entrepreneurial sector. It is a great exposure.”
Anita Lalwani, who owned a suit stall said: “I get new customers and exposure through FLO’s help. I get to meet new designers and their creation. It has been 6-7 years that I have been with the FLO bazaar.”
Varnika Sangoi an entrepreneur said: “One of the organizers was my client, so she told me to come to her. The organisation is doing a really good work which they should be proud of. It is time for women to rule the world. I own a company which employees women. They make all the pieces in front of me and put their heart and soul into their work. I am very happy to be a part of the exhibition.”
Vidya Shah, the managing director of Vimochana, a woman’s NGO said: “Women have since long faced a cultural and societal block. They are typecast and told what to do with their life. They need exposure. There are biases in society that women cannot handle a business. A city like Bengaluru might not face these issues but they are still prevalent in small towns and villages. We need to motivate women, show them the right example. Once that begins, there will be a rippling effect on others.”
