Against All Odds | From chawl to corner office: how a flower seller’s daughter built a global IT business in South Mumbai

Dake was born in a slum in Mumbai, the eldest of three children. Her father passed away when she was seven, and her mother made a living selling flowers. “She used to buy flowers from the wholesale market in Dadar, tie these into gajra, veni and strings, and sell them. We had to become responsible early. I looked after my younger sister and brother. My mother did not know that I had to go to school because she didn’t have an education in her childhood. My neighbour, whom I called Aunty, took me to the government school and enrolled me there,” says Dake.

The school was modest, but Dake thrived. Whatever the teachers were teaching, she aced it. Dake scored first rank every year right through school. “My friends at school would have private tuition or good clothes, a little bit of fashion even. But we made do with whatever my mother could manage—all that she earned was spent on us. She managed to give money for my computer classes. She managed to pay my fees till graduation,” reminisces Dake.

After graduating in commerce from Acharya College in Chembur, Dake entered Mumbai University. “I went in for correspondence courses because, at that time, I used to go to clinics to work as a compounder to supplement the family income,” she adds.

Dake got offers to work as a house help and cleaner, but by now, she knew that she wanted to do bigger things—she wanted to join a company. It was her grit and focus that impressed the management of Argon, and they onboarded her as an intern in 2003. “Within a few weeks, she came to me and said that she wanted to do graphics. As she had graduated in commerce, we offered her accounts instead. She started doing accounts and, by gosh, she was incredible,” says a member of the leadership team of Argon.

“As an intern, they used to offer me Rs 1,000, which I spent entirely on my travel,” she says. To her eager eyes, everything at Argon was a step to a better life. There were “good opportunities for learning everywhere”. She began to work in finance, human resources, and administration. “I used to engage with every department, even the technical designing team, website developer team, and whoever was making an app. I liked coming to the office rather than sitting at home,” she says. Dake used to come in around 10 am and leave late evening, “because once you take up a responsibility, you cannot skip out”. “You have to focus and figure out the solutions,” she says.

At the time, Argon was going through a critical phase with even a closure looming. Dake went up to the management with a simple offer—let her lead the teams. “Till then, I had been working only as an employee, not a decision maker. I didn’t have that IT background,” she says. Dake is among the forces that turned the company around, though she says it was the “good technical staff, as well as admin and HR and all good people”.

“She took over the company when it was barely profitable and, over these last six or seven years, she has made it hugely profitable. She has done a really good job,” says a member of the company.

Not based on technical know-how, but ensuring excellence

Dake’s leadership is not based on technical know-how. She has a thirst for knowledge and has learned domain hosting and website making, among others, but Dake’s winning edge came from ensuring clients got what they wanted. “My approach with the team has always been to push the focus that clients want. I ask the team to carry out an activity to a customer’s satisfaction level. I can sense that a design is looking good or that the app does not serve the purpose of the client. We run the operation based on what clients want; we understand their requirements and deliver that. After delivery, if the customer needs support, we are there. We have over 650 satisfied customers,” she says.

A large section of clients comes through word-of-mouth referrals.

Argon’s policy has been to hire young people from weaker socioeconomic backgrounds. The workplace is open-hearted and equal. “Vaishali has created an atmosphere in the company that is full of respect and friendship. No one is trying to protect their jobs. They’re all helping each other,” says a colleague.

Today, Dake, 45, has a higher salary, and her family, which includes her husband and a son, is living well. “I have a very simple lifestyle, including my choice of clothes,” says Dake.

Dake still takes the train, and she doesn’t leave till the work is done.