When Pune-based Harshwardhan Patwardhan joined his father’s transport business soon after finishing his Master's in Management from the University of Nottingham in 2013, he realized that it was a well-established organization, and he was not needed there. While in the UK, the Kolhapuri sandals he had worn had received a lot of compliments, and he had sensed a business opportunity
After doing a lot of research on the leather industry and identifying soft leather to make Kolhapuri sandals and the thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) material for making soles, Harshwardhan started Chappers in 2014 at age of 24 with about Rs 5 lakh working with a few artisans in Kolhapur. Today, Chappers is a profitable brand with an annual turnover of Rs 2.2 crore with four exclusive stores in Pune and a presence in another 20 retail partners - all in Maharashtra.
Remembering the family’s humble roots when they used to live in a chawl until he was about 10 years old, Harshwardhan chose to build the brand without receiving any financial help from his rich dad. In fact, I bought the first set of sandals with Rs 15,000 from Kolhapur and sold it to my friends and family members, he says. I thought I would rather use the money to buy a few extra pairs of Kolhapuri sandals.
“I used to buy leather from Dharavi in Mumbai and walk down to Sion - about 1 km away - to catch the bus back to Pune with about 50 kg of leather and save the rickshaw fare.” Harshwardhan shares his journey of building Chappers brand from starting with Kolhapuri sandals to now experimenting with loafers, moccasins, and mules.
I followed my dreams, started my venture, and slogged days and nights, and today I can proudly look back and say it has been a fantastic journey. I was born to a middle-class family when my father had just started working in the family transport business. A fabulous childhood after that in love, fun, and laughter taught me to enjoy life but stay grounded simultaneously. I started working in my father’s business in 2013 after completing my Master’s degree in the UK.
I wasn’t enjoying it a bit the entire year I worked there, and began to contemplate starting something independently. Furthermore, I always loved wearing Kolhapuris and would travel the world wearing them. But one day, while teaming it up with a leather jacket, I noticed something new. Both were made of leather, but while the jacket was soft, the Kolhapuri was hard. I was soon inquisitive about tracing the reason behind the difference and started studying leather.
I started the business in 2014. Likewise, I worked with a few artisans in Kolhapur and would buy the sandals from them and sell it to my friends and family members in Pune. One day it struck me that almost all the western footwear types have ‘ers’ at the end of their name, like loafers, slippers, etc. As I was attempting to Westernize Kolhapuri per se, I thought it would be a great idea to name my brand Chappers- the ‘chapp’ from Chappals and add ‘ers’ to it!
Challenges were right there from the beginning: sourcing raw materials, making the product, selling it at reasonable prices, and finding the right mix of a like-minded team. Today, with my 8-month pregnant wife, I am still the happy soul who doesn’t believe in balance in life and prefers doing whatever he finds to be right at any point in time. I still love football and traveling to new places, and I firmly believe that if you’re not having fun at work, it’s time to quit it.
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