In a world where we are still bridging the gender gap, there are stakeholders doing their bit to enable and strengthen these initiatives. I met one such woman at SATYA MicroCapital Ltd’s Vijaylakshmi Das Entrepreneurship Awards 2023. Dibhya Mallick, who runs her technology company Typof, is not only enabling the growth of artisans with the power of technology, but also empowering more women in business to take charge of their own business models using technology.
In conversation with SheThePeopleDibhya Mallick talks about her, why she started her company Typof, how she finds solutions for artisans who don’t have the technical expertise to grow their business, and why sisterhood works as a great mentorship for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Dibhya Mallick interview
Launching her technology platform
Moments before I found out she was being honored for her grassroots contribution, I was intrigued by Mallick’s business display booth in the lobby. She sat confidently answering inquiries from those who approached her asking about her business. When I asked her where she belonged, she proudly said, “Bhubaneswar, Odisha.” This is where she runs her tech company with her business partner. It’s hard to believe that Mallick started her company just two years back and the speed at which her business has grown speaks volumes for the hard work she has put into it.
“We started in February 2021. The vision was really to help craftsmen in and around the area. The region has some great local artists, but they don’t have the technical know-how to expand their business virtually. That’s where we thought our platform could step in and help them do that,” she recalls.
Looking back, Mallick’s journey seems challenging because she herself did not belong to the engineering background. How did she drive around then? “I also had to learn a lot about the e-commerce market myself. It’s always a challenge to start something from scratch and then gain the trust of people around you.”
Typof, which has generated over ten million in revenue and covers over a hundred cities, has a business model that truly focuses on simplifying commerce for everyone, enabling them to sell effortlessly to their target customers. “We enable individuals and companies to sell and grow their business through numerous tools and resources that they were not aware of before, but which are of utmost importance,” she says.
“My vision was to enable non-technical people to learn the technical tricks that would further help them grow their business like never before.”
Finding artisans who wanted to start their own branded websites and internet presence was Mallick’s first goal. As someone who respects art a lot, her endeavor to popularize local and regional artisans bore fruit as she signed forty artisans within the first few months. “Signing over 40 artists boosted our confidence and helped us realize that there was huge scope in this market.”
While Mallick only received her award at the event, she tells us it belongs to the ten thousand artisans she represents. “It is not me who is being recognised, it is ten thousand people who are connected to us. That’s the community I’m talking about. Harnessing that power can help not just grow the business, but also drive change at the grassroots.”
Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs
“We first have to get people to understand that they can learn anything at any given point in life,” says Mallick, adding that having to adhere to a timeline because society has set a certain standard can often demotivate people . “I want to tell people that they can start anywhere, anytime, and that age has nothing to do with their passion. Another important thing to note is that leveraging one’s expertise will go a long way if your vision is clear about what your business model is. Keeping small goals and slowly expanding helps big time.”
How more women in STEM can pave the way forward?
Mallick’s ideology of inspiration stems from her understanding of mentorship and sisterhood. “Women have this great ability to inspire other women. If young girls see women in important leadership positions, it will automatically empower them to dream big.”
Mentorship, she says, is the integral pillar that can help women move up the ladder. Many of us grew up without good female mentors, but that is changing now. We have some impeccable examples of women across industries, and if they mentor other women, it will be easier to bridge the inequality gap.
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