Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Shruti Shah, co-founder of Tiffin Stash, located in Toronto, ON, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Tiffin Stash is an online tiffin delivery marketplace that enables users to try a tiffin and subscribe to weekly and monthly tiffin services. We partner up with multiple curated tiffin sellers. They go through quality checks before getting verified and listed on our platform. Quality and customer experience are our utmost priority.
Tell us about yourself
Like every other management graduate, I followed the clear path before I ended up with the most coveted corporate job. I worked for a few years in India. Gained an incredible amount of experience in the digital and marketing space. A high-paying job and a fancy title came at the price of hard work, long working hours, and supersonic stress. After working for 13 years, I came to Canada for a fresh start, and thanks to my own food struggles, I was able to envisage the dire need for an organized, structured, and dedicated platform for tiffin services. Hence I joined the Tiffin Stash idea along with my two business partners.
I feel motivated when I hear the joy in a mother's voice who is happy to see their son at university, studying and eating our tiffins daily. We feel delighted to serve daily tiffin to old age people from our community, meeting the tiffin needs of professionals and students.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I believe the biggest accomplishment for a bootstrap startup like Tiffin Stash is the ability to grow and fuel the business and open up different growth avenues and revenue streams for us. Within a year, we diversified into the catering line and introduced the snacks category, and there's more in the pipeline.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Running this business is our passion, and there is no end to working hours when there is passion involved. The biggest difference between long working hours in a corporate vs. business is “willingness to work 24/7”. I am sure owners out there can resonate with this. So the hardest thing as a business owner is to detach yourself from working hours.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Start while you are still employed - Often, people quit their jobs to start a business. A new business takes time to set up, create awareness, get your first five orders, and so on. You do not want to start a business with the pressure of earning money at the cost of your survival. Rather than being employed, you are free to focus on your business at your availability, and financially you are not worried.
- Clear Business Plan - Know your target audience, learn about your competition and start your business with a clear business model. What’s your business strategy? What will be your marketing pitch? How is your business different from the rest? Have these answers ready before you start a business.
- Look for growth avenues - Don't shy away from trying something new. Doesn't matter if you're selling pencils and a guy approaches you with a compass box to sell. There is a need for everything, and there are customers for every product. You never know what may work for you and what won't until you try.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.tiffinstash.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tiffinstashinc
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tiffinstash/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tiffinstash/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.