Getting A Headstart

Marriage at young age followed by motherhood did not deter Ayesha Villait of
Bitsy Infotech from getting into IT. Though the initial months were tough as she
faced resistance from suppliers, today she is well versed with the way business
works

Job profile: Villait looks after purchase and sales segment within Bitsy
Infotech. She guides her team to have the right approach towards end-customers
also prepares a sales strategy to ensure that sales people are within reach of
customers. Villait focuses on business expansion by adding more customers to the
company's rosters within Mumbai.

Background: Born to a middle class family, Villait learnt shouldering
responsibilities at a young age. Her mother, a school teacher is the main source
of inspiration for her. Villait was married at the age of 18 and a year later
became a mother.

Despite having a young child and running a household, she managed to complete
her graduation at the age of 20. This also marked her entry into Bitsy, a
family-owned business as an accountant. Later she took over the onus of managing
the entire accounts of the company. Gradually she learned the tricks of the IT
market and began handling purchase and sales. “It was tough when I started
managing purchase. The IT industry was hesitant in accepting a woman as a
purchaser but after sometime my suppliers realized that they had no option but
to deal with me if they wanted to do business with Bitsy because ultimately I
was the director of the department. Now I can handle this business without any
difficulty,” Villait said.

Challenges: Stepping into a new business proved to be a big challenge for
Villait. This made her learn how to deal with customers and suppliers by
herself. Time management and working with strict deadlines was also a challenge,
as she had to manage her family as well.

Strengths: For Villait her husband, Satish, is her biggest strength. He
supported her in every walk of life. She believes that it was because of his
support that she could enter the IT business and become a successful
businesswoman.

Hobbies: Villait likes to spend quality time with her family, but sometimes
it becomes difficult. She likes to visit new restaurants and try different
cuisine. Exploring new places and famous cities is another area of interest to
her. She organizes at least two family outings in a year.

Future plans: Villait has ambitious plans for Bitsy and wants the company to
have better presence across Mumbai. Right now the company has eight outlets and
she wants to increase this further by the end of this year.

Archana Swamy

archanas@cybermedia.co.in