There is a very famous saying which goes as it’s never too late to start doing what you want to do. Being creative and innovative doesn’t come with an age limit. Yet starting up is not that easy. It takes a lot of grit besides hard work, determination and going that extra mile.
Particularly at the time, when the coronavirus pandemic was shutting down the businesses, two brave entrepreneurs decided it was the time to start a new one. An idea to have one’s own venture had been brewing for years and finally, Subrata Saha and Arpita Basu decided to take the leap of faith and from being work colleagues to becoming business partners by co-founding MyTripVilla – an online travel company.
Subrata Saha, has a rich experience of over 13 years in the travel and tourism industry. While the entire world came to a standstill during the lockdown, he saw a window for growth opportunity and decided to start his own business. After working for a bundle of travel companies, Subrata quit his well-paying job – to follow his dream of entrepreneurship – with an idea to give vacationers the best travel experience in the best possible budget. The company thrives on his experience and extensive knowledge about International holiday destinations, especially exotic and less explored destinations.
A woman with rock-solid courage to step into the business world, with her passion for travelling, Arpita Basu turned from employee to a boss of her own. She took the risk by quitting her good paying and stable job at MakeMyTrip to begin her new Entrepreneurial journey with online travel company, MyTripVilla. She is backed by her 14+ years of experience and emphasizes on making a traveler’s experience as real and memorable as possible.
The two partners share the common love for travel and together believe in making the people feel like travelers, and not tourists. The motto of the company is to plan tailor-made trips for each traveler and to provide everyone with a completely different experience.
The year 2020 proved to be challenging both personally and professionally for everyone. From being stuck at home for days, to seeing businesses shutting down, the list of woes seems endless. But despite all this, Subrata and Arpita forayed into an aspiring journey of starting their venture during the toughest times faced by the travel & tourism industry. With a combined experience of around 3 decades, they have worked together at MakeMyTrip.com. Subarta has managed sales, operations, franchises, business growth and Arpita was into retail sales. The pandemic time gave them much needed break and clarity to realize their true potential. Together, with their defined skillset and strategic thinking, it was just a matter of time that they thoughtfully decided to work together as partners with the sole purpose to reshape the travel market post pandemic.
Impressed with their enterprising skills, the aspiring entrepreneurs received the support from pharmaceutical professional- turned – travel entrepreneur, Ravi Dokania. Venturing into the travel business didn’t happen by accident, it was a natural progression. Ravi has a penchant for travelling and has wandered across continents; seeing more than half the world has inspired him to be part of the travel & tourism industry.
These three have proved that challenges bring some undeniable but often overlooked opportunities to the table; all we need is to navigate and make our way forward towards success.