‘Blown’ away by her act!

As children, we’re all had dreamed of doing something out of the box. The same ol’ 9-5 was probably the last thing on our minds. As disempowering it may seem and truth be told, most of us gave up on it as adults. But, not 30-year-old Bengaluru girl and first generation entrepreneur Menaka Bhandary. “There is no particular episode that pushed me, as said above its always something I wanted to do from a long time now. The concept of opening a wine and beauty bar in Bengaluru, came to me when I stumbled upon a podcast that my husband made me listen to,” she begins.

 Menaka has been encouraging small-time women entrepreneurs throughout the process. Speaking of the same, she elucidates, “As a part of my venture, I usually focus on having a lot of events and activities with women who have started their own businesses and hence also encourage in lots of cross-promotions and events with women. I am always in the support of contributing my small bit towards women who are doing something to be independent.”

The fitness fanatic, who recently opened her second outlet in Mumbai, believes that nothing compares to having your own unique set of ideas and flaunting it with confidence. And this is exactly her mantra. “Making a mark and finding a way to be ‘the differentiating factor’ was a huge struggle. With this venture being my very first business, in a completely new industry with huge players that customers swear by meant that I had to deliver something truly exceptional and unique. It also meant that the quality of service that I  provide had to be mind-blowing.”

While her venture keeps her on her toes at all times, she’s loving the hustle. Speaking of ways she likes to unwind, Menaka believes, “I like to keep my mind and body active. I cherish my time with my family, I love going for my runs, working out, a little bit of gardening and love watching TV with my dog, Cookie. In a stressful situation that key is to have a clear mind and find solutions to a problem to eliminate the stress. Being fit and eating healthy improves the productivity of your body. My sister, Meghana and my husband are constant support and always help me channel it and they share the stress with me and help me deal with it together rather than doing it alone.”

On what’s next, she signs off by stating, “We are definitely looking at rapidly expanding and opening up many more outlets, and celebrating women power while we’re at it!”