He quit preparing for an MBA and opened a tea stall. Two years later, it had grown into a restaurant. Prafull Billore speaks to Brut about his journey towards success.
Thanks to MBA Chai Wala!
Thanks to MBA Chai Wala!
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🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:00Hello sir, my name is Praful Billore. I started my tea business today only.
00:04Today is my day. I quit my MBA dreams to start a tea stall.
00:22Those days I was very much frustrated and depressed because I was not getting colleges which I always wanted to get into.
00:27So I dropped out, threw away all the books and started looking for something else.
00:33I was telling that I am an MBA and I am doing that. So they didn't give me a job.
00:51They were sceptical that this guy will snatch our jobs in near future because he is educated and well smart.
01:03I used to get Rs. 37 per hour and I used to work there for 8 hours a day. So Rs. 20, 20, Rs. 250, Rs. 60 per day was my salary.
01:16I was exploring and doing permutation and combination with the product. What should be the product which I should sell.
01:34When you want to sell something, if you want to start a business, you need something as a product. So chai came into my mind.
01:39I am a chai lover and chai has always been the companion all together throughout my journey in CAD examination and throughout the life as well.
01:50Chai is a product which is easily sellable, which is easily reachable and the connectivity is so so huge and vast.
02:09It took me 55 days, 50 plus days to take a pledge and doing things which are abnormal in the Indian society from good families.
02:25Because I am from a very good family and started a chai ghatel on roadside, it was a very difficult job to start even.
02:31The first challenge which I faced very immensely and very brutally was starting this chai ghatel on roadside.
02:37Washing equipments, cleaning things and doing that stuff which is not appropriate enough for good families, students, kids was very difficult.
02:47Then my relatives, my friends, my near and dear ones used to make a laugh on me that the guy who is going for an MBA and selling chai on roadside is very difficult to face those people.
03:00I have seen many goons and you know Municipal Corporation Police have thrown me away from my place which was there.
03:06That happened 4-5 times and I was losing hopes in those days.
03:15To be honest, I by myself was very supportive to myself because all my friends, relatives and friends used to say me not to go.
03:23But yes, I got the support of my family.
03:26I used to sell chai in a kullad, with ceramic kullads, with toast and this way.
03:34Hello sir, my name is Praful Billaure, I started my tea business today only. Would you like to taste my tea?
03:39That's how I used to greet them and that was very special.
03:42Because whatever I learnt throughout the journey of CAT and GMAT, I invested all those energy, all those education in that making chai and selling chai.
03:51So the special was my conversation, my point of view on politics, my point of view on business.
04:07I am not a passionate foodie who became an entrepreneur. I wanted to be an entrepreneur and chai came into the picture.
04:12If you ask me to make a sandwich, I am not at all interested.
04:15Chai came and I made it, so I am making chai.
04:17But I have never been in a family, I am not a foodie, I don't even eat much.
04:21I am just an entrepreneur who took chai as a product to sell across India.
04:28So I sold out chai throughout on the tea stall for 2 and a half years.
04:32Then after I took a place just behind that chai spot and now it is a cafe chain.
04:42So my message to all entrepreneurs, early stage entrepreneurs is that till you are on this earth, you have to work.
04:48So why not do just one thing.
04:50Today or tomorrow you will get success and leave it for 2 minutes.
04:52If you don't do anything else, you will have to start from zero.
04:55So do this only.
04:56You are already in this, you have already gone so far, so you won't have any problems.
05:00Gradually you will understand the rules and games.