Bigtree Entertainment and Reliance Trends CEOs talk business

Ashish Hemrajani, founder and CEO of Bigtree Entertainment and Arun Sirdeshmukh, head of Reliance Trends, discuss about their passion, apparel and online business over a quick chat...

Arun Sirdeshmukh: We both seem to have ‘sports’ as a common link. I play squash and am a marathon runner as well. I came across your profile and read that you are a competitive sailor. Tell me about it.

Ashish Hemrajani: I’ve being sailing for a long time now and go every weekend. I’ve participated in international matches as well. Even in India, we have competitions happening in Mumbai and Goa, which I participate in. It’s become a part of my life! So, tell me something about your sport interests.

AS: I have been playing tennis, cricket and squash, but now I prefer long distance running. I had an injury and wasn’t able to play squash for a long time and that’s the time I picked up running. I’ve participated in marathons in cities like Delhi, Bangalore and recently ran my first full marathon as well. It’s great to be part of such exciting sport activities. Tell us a little about your company...

AH: I was 24-years-old when I started this company. It was in 1999 and at that time, there were hardly any developments happening in India on online shopping and ticketing. I was highly inspired by international ticketing systems and wanted to bring about a change in India. We created a software and finally launched our website in the year 2007. What’s the story behind Reliance Trends?

AS: To give the customers apparel and accessories in relatively competitive price is what we aim for. A lot of people usually have an assumption that low pricing equals to cheaper quality. However, we have tried to change that mentality and give our customers a good quality product.

AH: Considering the fact that online apparel business is doing great business, are you planning to branch out in the online segment as well? For instance, brands like Being Human and a few others are making a fantastic profit in the online business segment. Do you have any plans in the future?

AS: Branching out in the online segment is a serious business. We need to prepare ourselves well in advance to enter the internet segment. However, we are discussing it and have plans in the future. As of now, we are planning to open our stores in different parts of the state.