Do not become an entrepreneur for the sake of the label i.e. “Entrepreneur/Founder/CEO” or some lifestyle you’ve seen on social media. It’s rarely that glamorous.
Eshita Kabra - Founder of By Rotation
Our latest interview brings us face to face with the disruptive force that is Eshita Kabra. Upon leaving her job in 2019 to try and spark a change in the fashion industry Eshita founded By Rotation, the first and only peer to peer fashion rental app in the UK. Speaking to us about the importance of challenging our routine and carving out a kinder, more sustainable space in the fashion industry Eshita makes one thing very clear; it’s time to change.
Tell us about your work?
I am the founder & CEO of By Rotation - UK’s first and only fashion rental app. We’re a completely peer-to-peer marketplace, enabling people to rent and lend their wardrobes - thus doing good for the planet, your wallet and wardrobe at the same time. Our Rotators are from all walks of life across the country, and they believe in sharing quality fashion with each other and are proud to belong to our community.
While we launched less than 6 months ago (October 2019), we are the largest and fastest-growing peer-to-peer fashion rental platform in the UK. By Rotation is also completely self-funded and has no full-time employees - which in my opinion shows the sheer commitment and belief that my team and I have in our business and our values, and also that lean startup edge which is necessary when starting out.
What fuels your ambition?
I want to transform the way people consume fashion by convincing them the future is to share, rather than buy low-quality clothing that will fill up our landfills and eventually our planet. To my surprise, the fashion industry is even more traditional - or antiquated - as compared to the investment management industry (which I had a career in for the past 6 years). I want to disrupt the linear flow of production and consumption in this industry, and also the mindset of those that are set in their ways.
Who’s an up & coming in the industry you have your eye on and why?
I wouldn’t say she’s up and coming but my press representative Florence van der Spek (Flo) of Flo PR is someone that continues to impress and deliver. Her commitment and drive to all her clients, including myself, is commendable. She is also very professional (which I don’t always find is the case in this industry) and can work with different approaches, products and clients’ style - apparently I am the first person Flo had ever come across working in finance, and it was quite a refreshing culture shock in my style of working I am told!
As one can also appreciate, By Rotation’s resources are more limited in comparison to established organisations, yet Flo has accomplished many milestones for us in creative ways. Flo is someone I have deep respect for, and she deserves more airtime!
What advice would you give to other girls looking to pursue a similar path to you?
I’m fairly early in my entrepreneurship journey (I don’t know if my web designer days count, but that was when I was 11!) but these are the tips I stand by:
Do not become an entrepreneur for the sake of the label i.e. “Entrepreneur/Founder/CEO” or some lifestyle you’ve seen on social media. It’s rarely that glamorous, you have to be prepared to do all the gritty work no one else wants to do for your business yourself
There is a certain kind of professionalism and diligence that comes with working for someone else, especially for an extended period. If you start off with working for an established organisation, you can pick up the blueprint of what your business may want to look like. And also make mistakes and learn from them during such a time! Working on the trading floor, I was put in all kinds of situations - from being at my desk daily from 645am and being spoken horribly to, to leading analyst meetings with CEOs of the world’s largest organisations and making investment calls on millions of dollars. This is how you develop, grow and understand who you are
Reflect deeply and be honest to yourself about what your personal strengths and weakness are, and whether it makes sense for you to run this particular business opportunity
With the tip above, you can then think strategically about what ingredients are missing to make the idea a tangible success – i.e. aligning yourself with the people who have the skills you lack
Prepare to be obsessed with your work, but make sure you do not alienate people around you by doing so – bring them in
Very importantly, be honest and don’t take shortcuts because you will be found out
What does a typical day look like in the life of Eshita?
Sounds cliche but it’s different every day at the moment because of the rapid growth we are experiencing. Some days I will plan them such that I have meetings, speaking engagements and events on the same day (this one day has just happened 3 weeks ago!) and other days I will spend my entire day working on my phone and laptop, to focus on our technology, as this is our main product and we are constantly tweaking it in-house to react to community needs and feedback.
The common denominators on both these days are: constant communication with my team (we speak on weekends, late nights, in multiple media) and our community, puppy cuddles (Saffron my cavapoo comes with me almost everywhere) and 4 hours of barre and pilates on the weekend. That’s my private time when I do switch off.