‘Cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset,’ was the topic of the recent Navhind Times talk show, Talk from the Heart. Serial entrepreneur, philanthropist and Padma Shri, Shashi Soni was the guest on the show and spoke about the importance and need for the right mindset in starting and maintaining a business. Ms. Soni who is also an innovative social entrepreneur has influenced the power of business innovation to help the poor.
Recipient of prestigious awards and recognition in the fields of business and social welfare, including the Mahila Gaurav Puraskar in 1990 for contributing to Indian Industry, she became a Managing Committee member of the All Indian Industrial Gas Manufacturing Association and also a member of the Directorate of Technical Development. She is now the chairperson of IZMO LTD, the world leader in interactive marketing solutions. Her company offers hi-tech automotive and e-retailing solutions in North America, Europe and Asia, and had been listed in BSE and NSE. What started off with Deep Transport in 1971 with an investment of Rs. 10,000 in-hand has now become a $500 million enterprise.
“I was married at the age of 15 and did not have a very strong educational background but what I lacked in education, I made up with an intense desire to give my children a good education. And for this I knew I would require funds which I did not have at the time,” she recounts. After moving to Bombay from Bilai where her husband worked in the steel plant, she joined her brother and started helping out in his petrol pump and garage. “I initially use to hand out tools to the mechanics and watch what they were doing and from there stemmed the idea of doing something more. With my brother’s help and Rs 10,00 in hand, I then started my transport business.” After the success of her maiden venture, Ms. Soni then opened Deep Mandir cinema in 1975, the first AC Cinema in Mulund, Mumbai. She not only managed all the operations of the cinema theatre successfully for several years but also ran the cinema canteen efficiently. “The initial stages of my career, about ten odd years were tough. There were many challenges that I had to face but I stayed the course,” she shares.
However things really started looking up for her with her new venture, Deep Oxygen Private Limited in Mysore. It was not just the first industrial gas manufacturer in Mysore, but it also changed the face of small scale gas manufacturing. “Here too there were several problems in the beginning and I had to lobby with the Finance Ministry (upto the level of the Finance Minister) to overturn a change made in the Excise Duty structure which threatened to wipe out all the Small Scale industrial gas manufacturing units located across the country,” she said. Her determination and resilience were the tools she utilised to propel her in the right direction and make a success of another undertaking. “Every new venture was a challenge and these challenges only motivated me to do more,” she stated.
As the business started to grow, she stepped into the technical field and in 2005, she founded IZMO limited at Verna Industrial estate in Goa; a company that makes bullet ammunition. “Throughout my journey I have realised the importance of the right mindset and keeping my staff happy. Transparency and a close bond with staff is crucial for success,” she stated.
