In a decade, Radhika Shah has gone from being an international student in Australia to a small business owner.
Shah arrived in Melbourne in 2007 as an international student to pursue a course in Graphic Designing.
Call it a stroke of good luck, Shah already had a job offer before she came to Australia.
“I was working as a graphic designer in Ahmedabad and was very keen to study in Australia. I went to an education fair where I met a representative of Cambridge International College.
“I told him about my work and an expertise and he offered me a job. I thought he was just being nice but he followed up one month later and that’s how I had a job even before I arrived here,” she told SBS Hindi.
Shah says the job offer played a role in her decision to move to Melbourne.
“I had Australia in mind but I chose Melbourne because I had a job offer. I thought it will make it easier to become independent and take care of my expenses,” she says.
Shah graduated as a Graphic Designer two years while working as a Graphic Pre-Press teacher at a local college in Melbourne.
She worked for a few years as a teacher and later moved to working for corporates.
However, it was this urge to start something of her own that made her give up her well-paid job in October 2017.
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“I finally gathered the courage to resign and started my own Graphic Design studio, Pyramid Pixels Studio from home. I kept thinking about it for years but finally gathered the courage only last year,” she says.
In less than one year, Shah has built a portfolio of over 30 clients. She combines her graphic designing services with her IT skills of building websites and photography skills.
“I was scared of venturing out on my own but now I keep thinking why didn’t I start earlier,” she says.
Shah feels entrepreneurs like her often feel stuck when they are pursuing a full time job.
“It is difficult to think about having your own business or doing something about it when you are employed full-time. If you want your own business and want to be your own boss, you have to make that difficult choice,” she says, adding that she doesn’t ‘regret it all’.
Shah learnt the ropes of running a small business by attending the local council workshops and mentorship programs.
“I live in Whittlesea council and they run these free workshops and sessions for small business owners.
“I have learnt marketing, taxation, legalities from these workshops. I would be lost if I did not have that training,” she says.
Shah says she makes more money now than she did when she was working with agencies.
Shah currently runs her small business from home but plans to move out to a co-working space soon.
“I also plan to hire two more designers as I need to pay attention to marketing. I need to be out there,” the confident business-woman says.
RADHIKA SHAH’S TIPS FOR SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS:
- Keep your eyes, ears and mind open when you start out on your own. You can do a lot when you are paying attention, listening carefully and have an open mind.
- If you have this idea in your mind about starting your own enterprise, try it now. You need to listen to your own voice. There’s a reason why the thought is not leaving your mind.
- Job is important but it sometimes becomes your life and stops you from pursuing your passion. It is natural. But if you are really keen, you need to have conviction to give it your all – time, effort and concentration.
- Take a look at how your local council is helping small business owners. I have gained a lot of understanding about running my own business from council workshops.
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