Turning Point..

Since I did not want to go to Jalna on a transfer, I quit my job at the bank,'' says Swapna Pednekar, quite casually. But then, she has n...

Since I did not want to go to Jalna on a transfer, I quit my job at the bank,8221; says Swapna Pednekar, quite casually. But then, she has never regretted resigning from the post of manager, Bank of India after 30 years of service. For it was after that she started out on her own as a gemologist and jewellery designer, and is doing very well for herself.

Pednekar started working with the bank right from the time she was an undergraduate. Continuing later as a clerk, she shifted to Pune from Mumbai after her marriage. Gradually she moved up the ladder at work, getting promoted till in 1981 she was appointed manager of the Bhavani Peth branch. In 1996, she was transferred to Jalna, 8220;but I was firmly entrenched in Pune. My daughters were growing up, and I could not disturb them,8221; she reasons. That was when she decided to opt out by taking a voluntary retirement.

All along, Pednekar had shown a keen interest in jewels and jewellery. Some of her family members were in that line of work, and she also inherited some of the creativity and flair for art from her mother. All this put together, she decided to study the subject on an academic level. This was in 1994, when she enrolled for a course in gemology at the Fergusson College. Later she went on to do a specialised course in diamond grading.

On quitting the bank two years later, she thought of putting her knowledge to use and starting her own enterprise. 8220;There was another reason. Often I would leave a jewellery shop empty-handed. Because the designs I8217;d like never fitted in my budget and the ones that did, did not seem right. So I thought why not create my own designs that could be beautiful and also affordable? I had already done studied jewellery designing in Mumbai,8221; she explains.

And that was the beginning of a new phase. Receiving a fair amount of encouragement from the designs she did for family and friends, she started off, earlier with low-budget works like finger and ear rings, and then bigger sets. 8220;My first big assignment was doing the entire jewellery for a Punjabi wedding 8211; that of the bride and all the family. Diamond, gold 8211; I got to work in both.8221;

Gradually she got her team of craftsmen together, and today has six who actually create the ornaments from her design. 8220;It8217;s more of their skills rather than mine,8221; says Pednekar. 8220;If they are not extremely careful about the cutting and crafting, the design will just not take form.8221; Now very well established in this second profession, Pednekar believes her experience at the bank helped her tackle the initial paperwork and legal hassles, she believes. 8220;Terms like balance sheet, professional tax, income tax were familiar to me, and I was not baffled on day one, as can happen with first-time entrepreneurs,8221; she elaborates. With over three years into the business, her sights are now set on the export market, and with her creative and entrepreneurial talents in top form, she believes she will get there soon.