This story is based in Rajanukunte, a town that is an hour away from Bengaluru. Anand had been working as a carpenter for many years and felt that his income daily wages would never help him to create enough savings. He was determined to pursue his aspirations and started a humble carpentry workshop with all the money he had saved till then.
The Challenges
Soon he realised that big money was in contract work for builders and that required investment in machines like planers, sanders and drills. His was not the type of business that banks would back, plus he had no credit history.
The Transformation
When he contacted Aye Finance, he was not expecting much. When the branch manager travelled 40 kilometers on his motorcycle to visit his business, he was pleasantly surprised. Within a few weeks, he had 1,50,000 in his bank account to get him started off.
The Impact
This modest support acted as a catalyst for growth, allowing him to upgrade his machinery and make more workstations in his workshop. He got the opportunity to collaborate with 3-4 architects who gave contracts for projects to him. He steadily built a reputation for quality craftsmanship and reliability. His proximity to Bengaluru also helped as he became the go-to carpenter for architects in the area. Over the years, due to his excellent repayment track record, Anand has taken several repeat loans from Aye. As his credit score got built, Anand began receiving offers for loans often for Rs 10 lakhs and above. However, he remains unmoved. "The Rs 1.5 lakh that Aye gave me years ago is more valuable than the 10 lakh loan you are offering now," he would explain.
Anand told the team from Aye that a good entrepreneur understands the value of good business relationships that have stood the test of time. With a twinkle in his eyes he said "Last week I was in Delhi, on my first flight in life. I had come there to do estimates for a project run by an architect from Bengaluru. If I come there again, I would like to come to your head office.
