On this week’s edition of 'The Founder,' we feature Ruvani Soysa, an alumna of Methodist College, Colombo. She resigned as a Banker in order to care for her two daughters, but continued to pursue her dream of designing jewelry. She launched her own label ROONI JEWELLERY in 2011.
What inspired you to start your business?
I was always interested in design from a young age. As a teenager I used to design and cut and sew my own dresses. This was my passion which came to me naturally and later on, I used to have sales for my friends. After leaving school, I joined Grindlays Bank and I worked there for ten years until my marriage. Shortly after, Sunday Times organized a dress design competition where they had invited judges from Bangkok Design School. I entered the competition and became the first runner up without any professional knowledge or training of design and tailoring. Unfortunately, I was unable to pursue this as my kids were very young, although I did continue to take orders for clients. After a while my creative instincts took another turn and I started studying Graphic Designing on my own. I got a tutor to visit me at home, and later started designing leaflets, packaging, etc. for companies and individuals as a freelance designer. I enjoyed this very much as it made me expand my ideas in a different way. One milestone I achieved during my designing tenure was when I designed a watercolour floral tissue box for Flora 28 years ago and as of today, the design still continues to show case itself in supermarkets. My inspiration for jewelry surfaced ten years ago after my children were all grown up and started working. This motivated me to start creating and assembling pendants and it ultimately drove me to take part in the first sale with only twenty small necklaces. This was the inception of my business ‘ROONI’ and it has expanded since then.
What was the journey like, from the start to building the business up to where it is right now?
I am a person who is determined to succeed in anything I do. If there is anything considered impossible, I will always try to somehow find a solution. There are many costume jewelry items around, however I felt that I should make my products stand out in ways where it portrays classiness, affordability and pride when wearing it. Hence, I decided to design my jewelry products using cultured pearls and ethnic semi-precious stones. Many clients have told me, “you have beautiful items,” when they appreciate my jewelry, it makes me proud of what I have achieved so far on my journey. I do quite a lot of research online as well as read books to help improve my designing and creativity skills. The raw materials are purchased and thereafter I design and make most of the necklaces and earrings myself. I do my own advertising, create display stands, design leaflets and also make my own boxes as I believe it is important for a product to have good promotions and packaging.
I like to make various designs and it is important to have the correct color combination to make it a unique piece. You could say my experience in banking, graphic designing and creative efforts are all combined in to making my business a success today. Most importantly, I have periodic sales at my home premises where my clients are informed in advance as well as participate in pop up sales and private sales.
Being an entrepreneur, what was it like facing the global pandemic? How did it affect the business?
COVID19 definitely affected sales as I didn’t have them during the pandemic period. However, due to my strong clientage, they would reach out if they wanted to purchase anything, or instead I’d have a very small sale on and off following all healthcare guidelines. I have a few products on my Instagram page for those interested to view. However, I still prefer to direct interact with clients so that I can get to know them, and I too feel that they really know and appreciate what they purchase. At the end of the day, it is very satisfying for a designer when a customer likes the product.
Explain a few marketing strategies you have implemented, and what makes them successful?
Marketing strategy is very important; hence during my sales, I always reach out to collect my client’s contact information so that whenever my sales are happening, I inform them well in advance. Further, I advertise in the newspapers, Facebook and Instagram. I would say though that word of mouth recommendation is my main form of connecting more clients to my business. Most important I always request a review of how the product is, if they like it, if not why? This customer feedback makes a big difference in improving the quality of my products.
What motivates you to wake up in the morning and do what you do on daily basis?
Learning new skills drives and keeps me motivated on a daily basis. You could say my creative dreams start working when I wake up, and it definitely does not stop at making jewelry alone. It also expands to other areas such as metal smiting, jigsaw lampshades and even resin products. I gave metal smiting a try, which is where you have to cut brass / copper sheets and turn it into a pendant. It was really satisfying at first and gave me a wonderful sense of achievement, although my fingers get smashed during the process! I also assemble Jigsaw Lampshades (which are sold in many parts of the world). My newest passion is to create various resin products and I hope to start it in the near future as I feel I have researched well on the subject. As you can see, my imagination carries me to new heights every day and it does not stop there!
What separates ROONI from its competitors?
Quality and affordability together go a long way. I always ensure that I maintain these two aspects as well as my personal connections with my clients. This is what I believe that makes me stand out from other products, and encourages loyal customers to reach back to me. So when you say ROONI, people not only look out for the product alone, they also look out for both product and me.
What is your definition of the word “success”?
You have to believe in yourself, that hard work can take you to greater heights. Failure is a part of the process, if you fail one way, try and try again till you achieve it. This is the definition of success from my point of view.
What is the end goal?
To expand my product further by maintaining both quality and affordability.
