How a love for doodling turned Rachna Prabhu into an entrepreneur

She loves to draw and doodle. And that has turned out to be her profession now! Meet young artist Rachna Prabhu, who is based in Mysore. In an exclusive interview with dna, she talks about her passion for doodling and how she turned it into a successful online business.

Have you always been interested in art and illustrations?
I have always been interested in art and started drawing when I was a little girl. However, I never joined the art club in school because I had zero interest in still life drawing and painting pretty landscapes. Instead, I enjoyed drawing characters from Archie comics and doodling on the pages of my notebook. And of course drawing funny caricatures of teachers. With a degree in Business Management and a master’s degree in Mass Communication, my career took a very different course and over a span of five years, I worked in the Communications field. But I never stopped drawing. I sent out emails to local publishers because I wanted to try my hands at illustrating children’s books. Needless to say, I was over the moon when I actually heard back from one publisher in spite of not having an impressive portfolio. I illustrated three children’s books for the same publisher that year and went on to work on myriad other interesting illustration projects over the years that followed. All along, I juggled two jobs - my 9-to-5 job and my illustration career in the evenings. I got married two years ago and decided to take a leap of faith and quit my corporate job to become a freelance illustrator.

How did you come up with the idea of Doodle Doo?
I would always talk about setting up my own illustrated merchandise business but there was this eureka moment at a thrift store that got me started. I was looking for a cute pocket mirror and they only had mirrors with pop stars and glittery flowers on them, much like in every other store, and I thought, ‘You know what? I should just design and sell pocket mirrors!’ So immediately after I became a full-time illustrator, Doodle Doo took root. In addition to mirrors, I decided on selling fridge magnets, beware of the dog signs and makeup pouches (all sold out now). It was while I was working on the artwork for these products that I realised just how much I enjoyed it. So a year later I launched doodle kitchen towels, a recipe book with an illustrated cover and most recently, a desktop calendar for 2016. I’m already excited about the possibilities in the coming year.

Quaint pocket mirrors by Rachna

What made you decide to take the online route?
I started by selling at flea markets in Bangalore and after a few months, launched my online store to reach out to more people. This was because at flea markets, people kept asking if my products were available online, so I knew right away that it had to be done. Really glad I did it because I saw how word of mouth led new customers to my website. But in addition to knowing that I had to open an online store, I also knew how important it was to be present on social media, especially as a freelance illustrator and owner of a small business. My Facebook page in particular has proved to be most effective in terms of increased sales and also exciting illustration projects that people have got in touch with me for.

What were some of the difficulties you faced?
The initial days of Doodle Doo were a struggle, but a great learning curve. I had zero knowledge about how to start a business. And being a one-woman army, it was no mean feat figuring out my business plan, designing the artwork, finding vendors and taking care of the administrative work. I had to spend a lot of time researching these things online but finally managed to zero in on the right e-commerce platform for my website, the right vendors and my basic marketing material. Soon after this I read up about social media marketing and started a Facebook page to promote my business. I realised that it takes effort to stay organised and motivated when you’re answerable only to yourself. But not once have I regretted doing my own thing and starting my own business.

How do you decide what products you want to make?
My key target audience is young women, so when I sit down to decide on a new product, I think about what would excite someone my age and also run the idea by my family and girlfriends, just to make sure before I proceed. Some other times, I’ll be drawing in my book and suddenly think, “Oh! That would look great on a fridge magnet!” and just like that a new product is born. There is never a dull day in my area of work because every day holds new possibilities.

Funky fridge magnets 

How did your family support you in this venture?
As a small business owner, you realise that family is your biggest support system. I was a newly-wed when I decided to start Doodle Doo and naturally I was more creatively-inclined, so my businessman husband was my main adviser in my initial days and helped me understand the importance of costing and finance management, amongst other things. At flea markets, I have my mum, sister and husband helping out with setting up and manning my stall, even when it involves travelling to a different state. 

What plans next?
I love testing new waters. In addition to adding some new products to my online store, I hope to collaborate and find some amazing personal and client work as an artist.