Not Your Average Founder Spotlight: Sowmya Pelluru, Founder of manakii
Welcome to “Not Your Average Founder” with Sowmya Pelluru, Founder of manakii.
Q: Sowmya, give us the scoop on what you guys do at manakii?
Sowmya: We are an online socially conscious women’s underwear company that anchors on the fact that underwear is a product women need, so it should be comfortable, accessible and empowering.
Underwear is one of the most needed, least donated products in shelters. Knowing this, I decided to take the purchasing power of women and create a company that allows them to uplift other women as they shop. manakii’s one for one model is crucial to the company’s mission and drives underwear to women’s shelters.
Q: In this world of COVID, has it helped or hurt the business? What are the biggest trade winds helping you in your favor?
Sowmya: Given that we were about to enter the manufacturing stage last March, it definitely hurt our planned launch. The factory we had secured after months of intense scoping had shut down and supply chains were altered around the world.
However, overall the trend in consumer shopping behavior pivoting even more to e-comm will in turn be a positive when we launch in Spring 2021. DTC brands are also seeing a huge push and influx of customers with the growing awareness of people of color owned business and female entrepreneurship seeing a spotlight with pandemic parallel social events. Given that I identify as a woman of color entrepreneur, the events helped me find a community
Q: Biggest personal accomplishment to date?
Sowmya: I recently graduated from Georgetown with a master in design management and communications. This was big for me because in parallel I was working a demanding job at Wayfair and building manakii. There were so many late nights and countless weekends spent studying and working in coffee shops… making the (early!) graduation is even sweeter.
Q: What got you into fashion and design, and what tactical advice would you give someone going into your domain?
Sowmya: I truly love fashion and design. I’ve been scribbling since I could hold a pencil. Developing brands is very similar to both of those things. Every brand has a heart, and getting to the core of that architecture hits on color palettes, consistent innovative design and intentional language to convey the correct message to consumers.
My passion for social and sustainably conscious businesses grew through my global supply chain undergraduate degree. I cared a lot about efficiency and impact. I knew that if i was going to work in fashion, I wanted to create a transparent brand that was anchored in sustainable practices, community and giving back. This sort of brand building takes a specific set of skills and background, which I leaned into while consulting for brands such as the Washington Area Community Investment Fund.
Tactically, I suggest taking a full circle view on the design topics of your choice. Experiment, see what feels right as far as your scope. Sometimes people fall in love with one thing and struggle to add onto the more practical side of things. For example, in order to be a successful brand builder, I had to understand data and targeting. Being able to speak to design, tech, targeting and testing is nuanced, so that full circle approach is something any person going into branding should armor themselves with.
Q: Most interesting nerdy thing you’re learning about right now in the world of design?
Sowmya: I’ve gotten into consulting work that allows me to dive into User Interface and User Experience design. I LOVE Adobe XD and am hooked into designing random apps that I think could be useful like a design studio app where people can contribute and share their ideas or a community app for women of color entrepreneurs.
I’m also working on a podcast called “most likely to succeed” where I interview female entrepreneurs, creators and game changers. This has in turn made me nerd out about editing software and the puzzle pieces of planning a launch strategy that comes with podcasting.
Q: Tell us something people don’t know about you.
Sowmya: I was born in India and my first language is telugu. I moved to America at a really young age and grew up in Charlotte, NC but my roots trace back to different parts of southern India.
My family moved here for my dad to take a job at IBM, and then Microsoft (cue a tech obsessed Sowmya….). But as the daughter of immigrants, it is always top of mind to me that my ancestors were those who worked on farmland in India, and the privilege I have to build a life in America is one that is a gift. This is the core of the one for one program. Giving back and empowering those who lack resources is a problem rooted in heart, because I know the power of empowerment through dignity and education through my family’s own experience.
My culture and family background is incredibly important to me, which is why my company is named in telugu. manakii means “for us” which really resonated with the mission of what I am building and the values I wanted to bestow on the brand.
Q: Personal goals in 2021?
Sowmya: Launching manakii is my main goal, and I am happy to say that we are on track for this spring. I want to be able to make a difference by empowering women and providing underwear for women in need.
Personally, I look forward to focusing on my physical and mental health. I started meditating everyday, running and doing barre. Making progress and creating stability around my health is vital to both my happiness and my success as a founder.
Q: Favorite place to zen-out and relax and why?
Sowmya: Usually I would say a barre3 studio, but COVID has put a wrench in my live studio experience. Now, I would say it’s somewhere in a park, with my latest read and a cup of chai.
Q: College. Did you go or not? Still worth it or not?
Sowmya: I did go, and I got my masters so I did a little extra. I believe there is a lot of value in education, and have personally seen the progress it can have on one's professional and world view.
However, I will always sing praise to those who challenge any road that seems like a given path. For me, that path was an MBA. Not only is Wayfair filled with Ivy League MBAs at every level, I had the societal pressure from those around me who saw it as a crucial step in my life. I went as far as spending the money to take a manhattan prep class for the GMAT, and devoted countless hours to studying. After taking the exam, and even starting many applications, I decided to pivot. It took me trying and talking to many MBA grads to understand that a more specialised masters was the right step for me.
That said, I also believe in the power of new age education. I am a big fan of Khan academy and LinkedIn learning. I myself have gained countless skills from these platforms and highly recommend them.
Going to college is a very personal choice, and my only advice is to talk to as many people as you can who are in industries you think you’d like to get into. That will help guide your next steps more than a major claimed on a framed certificate.
Q: Outside of manakii, what are the biggest innovations you're following right now and why?
Sowmya: It has to be VR/AR tech. I’ve been obsessed with following it since I started at Wwayfair, because the connection with retail was inevitable. Not only do I believe that it is the future of retail, but I also see the potential it has to do good and make monumental strides for education and health care access.
It’s an exciting realm!
Q: Favorite book and why?
Sowmya: When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanthi.
Paul speaks so beautifully about life, death and spirituality. He was an Indian American neurosurgeon and writer who was diagnosed with stage 5 lung cancer. The book speaks to his reflections as he faces death and welcomes the birth of his first child in the same season of life. Sometimes we get so caught up in the future, we forget in the hustle that life is made up in small moments. That it truly is short, and we should cherish life.
For those who are crunched for time, below is a snippet of the Stanford article that was the precursor for the book:
“Time for me is double-edged: Every day brings me further from the low of my last cancer relapse, but every day also brings me closer to the next cancer recurrence — and eventually, death. Perhaps later than I think, but certainly sooner than I desire. There are, I imagine, two responses to that realization. The most obvious might be an impulse to frantic activity: to “live life to its fullest,” to travel, to dine, to achieve a host of neglected ambitions. Part of the cruelty of cancer, though, is not only that it limits your time, it also limits your energy, vastly reducing the amount you can squeeze into a day. It is a tired hare who now races. But even if I had the energy, I prefer a more tortoise like approach. I plod, I ponder, some days I simply persist.” - Paul Palanthi, When Breath Becomes Air
Q: Who inspires you?
Sowmya: Anyone who is pushing against norms and challenging archaic beliefs. There have been monumental moves for representation regarding women of color - Kamala Harris being the most recent notable win. Seeing someone who looks like me in such a powerful position is influential to not just myself but every other black or brown little girl watching the world.
Also, I have to note the incredible young poet, Amanda Gorman, who performed at the inauguration and left me with full body chills. It’s a passion point of mine to use speech to make an impact, so to see this powerful portrayal of language paired with a woman of color was very inspiring.
Q: First place you're going to vacation post COVID?
Sowmya: Taiwan! I’d love to visit our factory and manufacturing partners in person after communicating virtually for the last year. With my background in supply chain, I find something very calming about being in a factory setting filled with fabrics, so I’ll just claim it as a vacation!
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That concludes Not Your Average Founder Spotlight. Thank you Sowmya! We hope to grab a cup of chai with you soon!