Anahita Mukherji | TNN
Mumbai: Those who launch a new business during an economic downturn can hardly expect their product to sell like hot cakes—unless, of course, the product is hot cakes. A bunch of Class XI commerce students in the city has got into the entrepreneurial spirit, and is gaining hands-on business experience running its new company, which manufactures brownies.
The 16-year-old commerce students from RN Podar school, Santa Cruz, put their heads together to create their own company, complete with a CEO, board of directors and shareholders. The five directors pooled in their own money, a grand total of Rs 3,750. They generated an equal amount by selling shares in the company to their classmates. “We used the money to set up Brownies Inc. We bought two ovens and an egg beater, and rented a classroom from the school at Rs 200 per month. That’s where we manufacture the brownies,’’ says CEO Arnav Singh Bisht.
The purchase team buys the ingredients, the production team bakes the brownies, and the sales team walks around school with trays of the finished product, priced at Rs 10 a piece.
Brownies Inc is part of the company project begun by Junior Achievement (JA), an organisation that works with schools nationwide to give students a taste of the outside world, so that they’re better prepared for choosing a career. JA has started a similar project in a school in Chandigarh, and another one in Bangalore. The board of Brownies Inc initially consisted of both students and a few teachers and members of JA. But within the first few weeks of the company’s formation, school authorities pulled back and let students take their own decisions.
“The company is doing really well, but the most important part of this exercise is for students to develop interpersonal skills as well as to grasp issues related to scaling up a company and maintaining quality control,’’ says Ramesh Krishnamurthy, who heads JA’s western region operations.
A few days ago, the two-month-old Brownies Inc suffered a setback. “A whole batch of brownies didn’t turn out well, and we had to discard it,’’ says one of the directors, Risheeta Agrawal.
BROWNIE COMPANY Student-run firm has plans to diversify into carrot cake
Mumbai: Brownies Inc, a company launched by Class XI commerce students of R N Podar school, Santa Cruz, recently survived its first setback, when an entire batch of brownies had to be thrown away, resulting in a loss. “We decided to discard them all the same and write off our loss, because we didn’t want to compromise on quality. And we thought it would be unethical to provide our customers with a product that wasn’t good enough,’’ says Brownies Inc’s 16-year-old CEO, Arnav Singh Bisht.
For production team member Haren Paul Rao, the recent mishap was heart-breaking, especially as the brownies are baked during the students’ free periods.
The company has been a huge success at the school, as students of all ages readily fork out their pocket money on the freshlybaked brownies. The school even hired Brownies Inc for its annual day function, buying brownies from its students.
Encouraged by its success with brownies, the company is considering branching out into carrot cake as well. “Many students are weight-conscious, and one can’t stay slim eating brownies everyday. So we thought carrot cake may be a good idea, especially since carrots are cheap,’’ adds Risheeta.
Working for Brownies Inc is no labour of love—students in all the departments of the company, except the board of directors, receive a salary ranging from Rs 10 to Rs 20 per session.
Podar school principal Avnita Bir says the exercise has helped students get hands-on experience of what they read in their textbooks. “They have a better understanding of what it means to form a company, raise capital and sign MoUs,’’ she adds.
The young entrepreneurs of Brownies Inc are very attached to their creation. “We’ll continue working for the company even in Class XII. Eventually, we may sell the company to our juniors,’’ says Risheeta.
The 16-year-old commerce students from RN Podar school, Santa Cruz, put their heads together to create their own company, complete with a CEO, board of directors and shareholders. The five directors pooled in their own money, a grand total of Rs 3,750. They generated an equal amount by selling shares in the company to their classmates. “We used the money to set up Brownies Inc. We bought two ovens and an egg beater, and rented a classroom from the school at Rs 200 per month. That’s where we manufacture the brownies,’’ says CEO Arnav Singh Bisht.
The purchase team buys the ingredients, the production team bakes the brownies, and the sales team walks around school with trays of the finished product, priced at Rs 10 a piece.
Brownies Inc is part of the company project begun by Junior Achievement (JA), an organisation that works with schools nationwide to give students a taste of the outside world, so that they’re better prepared for choosing a career. JA has started a similar project in a school in Chandigarh, and another one in Bangalore. The board of Brownies Inc initially consisted of both students and a few teachers and members of JA. But within the first few weeks of the company’s formation, school authorities pulled back and let students take their own decisions.
“The company is doing really well, but the most important part of this exercise is for students to develop interpersonal skills as well as to grasp issues related to scaling up a company and maintaining quality control,’’ says Ramesh Krishnamurthy, who heads JA’s western region operations.
A few days ago, the two-month-old Brownies Inc suffered a setback. “A whole batch of brownies didn’t turn out well, and we had to discard it,’’ says one of the directors, Risheeta Agrawal.
BROWNIE COMPANY Student-run firm has plans to diversify into carrot cake
Mumbai: Brownies Inc, a company launched by Class XI commerce students of R N Podar school, Santa Cruz, recently survived its first setback, when an entire batch of brownies had to be thrown away, resulting in a loss. “We decided to discard them all the same and write off our loss, because we didn’t want to compromise on quality. And we thought it would be unethical to provide our customers with a product that wasn’t good enough,’’ says Brownies Inc’s 16-year-old CEO, Arnav Singh Bisht.
For production team member Haren Paul Rao, the recent mishap was heart-breaking, especially as the brownies are baked during the students’ free periods.
The company has been a huge success at the school, as students of all ages readily fork out their pocket money on the freshlybaked brownies. The school even hired Brownies Inc for its annual day function, buying brownies from its students.
Encouraged by its success with brownies, the company is considering branching out into carrot cake as well. “Many students are weight-conscious, and one can’t stay slim eating brownies everyday. So we thought carrot cake may be a good idea, especially since carrots are cheap,’’ adds Risheeta.
Working for Brownies Inc is no labour of love—students in all the departments of the company, except the board of directors, receive a salary ranging from Rs 10 to Rs 20 per session.
Podar school principal Avnita Bir says the exercise has helped students get hands-on experience of what they read in their textbooks. “They have a better understanding of what it means to form a company, raise capital and sign MoUs,’’ she adds.
The young entrepreneurs of Brownies Inc are very attached to their creation. “We’ll continue working for the company even in Class XII. Eventually, we may sell the company to our juniors,’’ says Risheeta.
SUCCESS IS SWEET: Brownies Inc entrepreneurs display their product.
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