Britannia Marie Gold awards Rs 1 cr to homemakers for kickstarting business ventures

Britannia’s Marie Gold, a 60+ year old favourite brand of homemakers and 3rd largest biscuit brand in India, announced the ten winners of its inaugural My Marie Gold, My Startup campaign. The initiative, which was launched to empower Indian homemakers to pursue their dreams of financial independence and entrepreneurship, saw more than 1 million applicants from November through February. A sum of Rs 10 lakh each was awarded to the 10 winners. 

Following weeks of deliberation, culling through the scores of applications, the Britannia Marie Gold team named 42 finalists from across the country. These finalists were flown to Bengaluru to receive business guidance from Pallavi Gupta, COO of popular North Indian restaurant Mast Kalandar, Aarti Mohan, Co-founder at Sattva and Lavanya Nalli, Vice Chairman of Nalli, to name a few and pitch their business idea to an eminent jury which included journalists, entrepreneurs and Britannia executives. 

Ali Harris Shere, VP - Marketing, Britannia Industries Ltd., said, “This campaign, which focuses on empowering homemakers in a real and meaningful way, was a first of its kind for Britannia Marie Gold. After years spent getting to know this key demographic, we saw a mindset shift where homemakers were looking for more fulfilment outside of the home. We are pleased to announce the winners who we hope will go on to build businesses which will not only be a financial boost to their families but will also provide a positive impact to their local economies.”

Here is the list of winners: 

• Umaparameswari G is a 53-year-old homemaker from Coimbatore. Umaparameswari was not able to complete her own primary education but has dreams of starting her own business. She has plans to start her own dry coconut manufacturing business, spreading awareness of coconut oil’s benefits.
• Sneha Kumanduri is a 37-year-old homemaker from Bengaluru. Holding a BA in Education and experience working as an HR executive, Sneha wants to launch a handmade skin and hair product line using organic ingredients. She also has plans to employ women and girls who belong to lower income groups, offering them flexible working hours. 
• Kasthuri Rajavel is a 23-year-old homemaker from Namakkal who has completed her B.A, in English and is currently in her 2nd year of B.Ed. Kasthuri has identified a market opportunity in her community – a lack of lassi shops. Rather than create a milk supply to sell to local tea shops, she believes there is a huge opportunity to provide consumers in her area with a new experience -- lassi.
• Anita Balasaheb Hore is a 34-year-old homemaker living in Pune. Anita wants to help support her family by starting a solar product company in her village. She hopes to teach her community the benefits of solar power so that those living in villages have access to light and electricity. Anita believes that this will help children further their education and support farmers who need to work and water their crops after dark and/or during power outages. 
• Vijayeeni Sahoo is a 36-year-old homemaker from Bhubaneshwar who has been trained in stitching and tailoring. With nearly five years of experience, Vijayeeni believes that stitching is a great way to train the illiterate society. With the 10-lakh price money, she believes she can purchase machinery to train up to 50 students at once, teaching them a skillset that will enable them to support themselves.
• Asha Khanna is a 68-year-old widowed mother of three who lives in Delhi. Asha has always been a passionate home cook, taking orders from family members and friends. Asha sees an opportunity to cater to young, busy mothers by providing healthy home cooking to their families. Under the name “Nani Ki Rasoi,” she would like to also teach the younger generation to give more and more people a taste of healthy family food.
• Darshana Dilip Pawar is a 31-year-old homemaker from Pune. A postgraduate from a reputed University, Darshana has dreams of launching her own biscuit making company. She wants to create a treat that is nutritious and wholesome.
• Swagata Saha is a 36-year-old homemaker from Kolkata. Previously a teacher, Swagata paused her career once she had her first child. She sees an opportunity to bring a fitness centre to her community as currently, there is a market gap. While everyone’s busy with fast-paced work and school schedules, she believes fitness will help men, women, boys and girls stay healthy.
• Dipti Krushnarao Kulkarni is a 32-year-old homemaker from Baramati. With a MA in Economics, Dipti would like to launch a food manufacturing business for products such as Bhajani Chakli, Kurdai, Multi Grain Chips and more.
• Lalita Pravin Patil is a 35-year-old homemaker from Mumbai. A science graduate, Lalita wants to start her own restaurant business with a special theme called ‘Angan’ which means the space in front of the home. Lalita hopes to bring to life the dining experience of a home in her home village – a unique selling proposition.