Success doesn’t come to you easily; you have to work hard for it

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The aspiring journey of the Affordable Organic Store

During the pandemic, Mr. Kamal Gupta, who recently retired from the Indian Air Force, wanted to do something to enable people to lead a healthier and sustainable lifestyle. Looking around, he observed that anything healthy or sustainable was expensive. Along with his wife, Mrs. Manju Gupta, a retired teacher, he decided to start an affordable store which would benefit people naturally.

Initially, they started with some food items but soon shifted their focus to gardening. As passionate weekend gardeners, they found it difficult to source seeds for a small garden. Most seeds vendors would give seeds in packets containing hundreds of seeds at an exorbitant cost, while a balcony gardener needs only few seeds for planting in their garden.

That is where they intervened. They decided to reduce the cost barrier from gardeners and make gardening affordable for all. They started hand-packing small packets of seeds containing seeds sufficient for a pot or two and selling them at a low price starting at Rs10. This is how the affordable organic store was formed. A few days later, Mr. Shivam Gupta and Ishika Garg, son and daughter in law of Mr. Kamal Gupta took the responsibility of the Affordable Organic Store.

Struggles

There were a lot of difficulties that Mr. Gupta had to face in creating the Affordable Organic store. It was not a smooth journey from day one. Sourcing good-quality seeds was a challenge. The producers are very scattered and scarce, especially for exotic seeds like rose, lotus, strawberry, lavender, and addendum. Many seeds had to be imported for the customers to different places.

Shipping the seeds safely was another challenge. Shipping during the pandemic was a challenge as many areas were under strict lockdown. The team worked hard to ensure that seeds were delivered in the remotest places. Today they take pride in delivering to the most distant places in the northeast and even in the Andaman Islands.

Finding skilled people during the pandemic was also a big challenge. Mr. and Mrs. Gupta worked with the local community and created a team of more than 15 women. These women were trained in computers, packing, and other operations work. More than 80% of the employees in the warehouse of The Affordable Organic Store today are women. With struggles, comes great success and it has been proven by the CEOs of the Affordable Organic Store.

What the CEOs have to say

“Gardening teaches not only responsibility but also discipline, because if you don't water the plants for two days, then well... it will die”

Mr. Shivam Gupta, Co-founder and CEO of TAOS

"Having plants is like channeling your motherhood, like watching a baby grow, it teaches your patience and calm because you can’t see the fruits in one day, it’s therapeutic and it couldn't be more amazingly put by Shivam, one plant is the smallest and the easiest thing you can do for the environment and conservation," says CEO Ishika Garg, who feels great to nurture plants on a daily basis.

Ishika also said, "We are going to start with eradicating some common misconceptions about growing plants. Fruits and Vegetables are not the hardest plants to grow, although they are a little more work than flower plants. But, if you are a beginner, you might not want to jump to oregano. Another common misconception is month-wise planting. Okay, we Indians strongly believe in Vastus and calendars and Astronomy; unfortunately, plants don’t. The best way to select the plant you can grow depends on where you live, average temperature, season, etc."

According to Ishika, her hands are always far more effective and efficient than any tool for gardening. However, as a beginner she does suggest some tools to make the process easier. If you are using a seed to make a sapling, seedling trays or coir coins are extremely helpful as they help give the seeds enough space and nutrients to start germinating and turn into a sapling. You are asked to invest in large amounts of mud without a guarantee. Other tools she mentioned are Trowel, Cultivator, Pruning scissors, and Spade.

Ishika Garg and Shivam Gupta wanted to reduce the investment that would go into growing a home garden as well as to educate people about how simple gardening is and the many benefits that come with it.

Success

Over time, the number of visitors to their website increased, and many people started talking about them. Today more than 200 people have made videos on Youtube about their store and their experience. They have more than 50k followers on Instagram and more than 10k followers on Facebook. With more than 350 varieties of seeds ranging between Rs 10 to Rs 35, they truly enable people to plant more.

What started as an effort for kitchen gardeners has also moved to a sustainable movement. Many people take seeds and gardening kits as return gifts for marriages and other family occasions. The Affordable Organic Store has served many functions across India, including marriages, anniversaries, and birthdays. Their vintage bottles are especially taken for most functions.

The Affordable Organic Store also started computer classes for women and kids with dedicated trainers. More than a hundred women and kids learned computers in their evening computer classes last year. The Affordable Organic Store also runs a library for underprivileged kids. These kids are provided free comics to hone their reading skills.

The Affordable Organic Store has successfully finished one year. Mr. and Mrs. Gupta are heading strong in their goal of creating a sustainable future. Their long-term goal is to enable people to grow more than a billion leaves. They genuinely believe that every leaf is our way of making the earth a better place.

The love of gardening is a seed once sown that never dies

You can vanish all the workloads just by gardening because it is a prudent act that cultivates a garden and renaissance own happiness and positive environment. Though gardening seems like a leisure activity, it tends to enhance health through growing organic fruits and vegetables because purchasing from markets is expensive. It helps to improve the lifestyle and cheer up the dull and debris environment. So, get ready to start exploring the world of gardening with the Affordable Organic Store.

I am sure you will get the best gardening product from them that will help you to make your home look lush green everywhere and always have fresh air to breathe in.