Is starting an online Laundry/Dry-cleaning business profitable or loss making?

• As I told you in my previous articles, any business online or offline is always a successful/profitable but it solely depends on the person or team who is operating it. Coming into the specifics that is the Laundry or Dry-Cleaning(LDC) business below are my view points-

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/laundrydry-cleaning-business-profitable-premanth-kundurthi-pk-/

Online LDC business is as such a different concept to people. 

Example:

When compared with a normal food delivery company or an e-commerce company the logistics of a LDC business is quite different. In this sector the delivery executive should visit the customer’s place twice for the same order. 

He has to visit the customer’s place for pickup, take the garments back to the processing center. Once the garments are processed he should again deliver them back at the customers place. Effectively for one single order the delivery executive should visit the customer’s place twice. 

In case the customer wants to rewash the clothes then again the logistics doubles.

Logistics is only one of the points, there are many details where a person venturing into a LDC should check in detail for more in depth understanding of the business.

In this regard the service providers should first educate people on-

• What are the various types of services they are offering?
• What is the process on how they will be offering their services?
• What are the delivery timings?
• What are the areas in which they are offering their services?

And so on..

By answering these questions, customers will get an understanding on how actually an online LDC business works and start using them accordingly.

It’s always better to start a LDC business in the offline mode and then taking it in online. In the offline mode it is wise to start a single store and then scale it to multiple stores. By starting a single store they will know how to handle the- 

• Operations
• Human Resources
• Logistics
• Customer Relationship

LDC business is usually a volume business. A service provider can derive profits from this business only when he processes huge volume of garments.

If somebody is passionate about starting a LDC business online, here are some of the steps which they should follow-

• Do a market survey on what percentage of people will use such type of services
• Design a website
• Mobile application is not mandatory in the initial stages
• Have a call center team(where people can order your service by dialing the call center as well)
• Have a good human resources team, as LDC business is a labour intensive business, human resources is the heart of this business
• Have a dedicated logistics fleet which is mandatory for online 

After running the above online model on a trial basis then people can scale it up based on the results. 

For more information on how to start a LDC online and how to turn it into a profitable model you can connect with me.

People can get in touch with me in LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram

PK,

PK Enterprises.

What is the difference between a Local dhobi/Machinzed Laundry?

Local Dhobi:

A person comes on a TVS – XL or a bike, takes clothes from the client, wash them in the dhobi ghat or a pond, dry them on the ground/fields/clothes line, iron with coal iron boxes and then deliver them back to the customer. There is no need of using power/water/chemicals/facility/human resources (as the person who is operating is himself/herself the owner)

The main points everybody is missing here are-

By using only soap oil, bleach there will be many side effects. This is because the lather will be present on the linen and we should use proper chemicals, neutralizers to remove that lather. Due to this residue people will get affected by skin allergies and infections when they get in contact with the linen

For Example:

B2B (Spa/Hotels) owners should change their linen once in 6 months when they use the service of a local dhobi. But when they come to mechanized laundry the life of the linen will be extended to another 6 months. By this the owner of a hotel or spa can reduce his/her investment on the linen by half per annum.

When there is heavy rain or any natural calamity they don’t have proper equipment to process the linen and hence the delivery will be delayed. The skillsets of these people are very low. They will be processing the linen in an age old way without any technological up gradation or without using any biodegradable chemicals. By doing these things they don’t know how much harm they are causing to the environment. The client is also happy as he is getting the work done at a low price. But when the linen starts losing its shine or prone to get damage easily, that is when the client starts facing the burnt.

Client Risk:

The investment a client puts on the linen will be going down the drain and it is impossible to stop. Till the time they realize this point, everything would be over.

The stains will not be removed as people here will only use soap oil, bleach and no other stain removals as they cannot afford them or they don’t have much expertise. Due to this the linen life will be reduced

Mechanised Laundry:

A mechanised laundry is the upgraded version of a normal dhobi-

The setup is done in the following way:

• Rent a place
• Construct a shed
• Install a transformer for power supply(a minimum of 40hp power is required for all the machines to run at a time. Washer, Extractor, Dryer, Calendar Iron Machine, Steam Iron Tables etc.,)
• Drill bore for water
• Water softener for water to be at the desired ppm(usually water should be lower than 50ppm for longer life of the linen)
• Vans for logistics(pickup and delivery of linen)

For setting up all these the person requires a minimum of 20-50L as capital investment depending on the size of the machinery capacity.

Recurring expenses:

The recurring expenses every month will be as follows-

• Rent
• Power
• Salaries for employees
• Logistics
• EMI s
• Chemicals
• Stain removals

Another important point which differentiates the local dhobi and the mechanized laundry is that-

A mechanized laundry has a variety of ironing machines- starting from coal iron, electrical and steam iron. He knows which type of iron to use for a particular garment. 

Example: Coal Iron will be used for linen shirts and trousers, Steam Iron will be used for delicate garments. 

A client before comparing a normal dhobi to a mechanized laundry should have these things in mind and take decisions accordingly.

If the life of linen, quality of service, delivery should be on time, one should definitely follow an organized process. Without the processes nothing can be achieved.

I don’t want to criticize anyone but want to enlighten people on how a laundry industry actually works.

Hotels or spas before onboarding a laundry service should do a background check on how they are actually processing the linen.

I always believe in setting up the processes which is time taking but at the end we get long term solutions rather than short term/time being solutions.

There goes a saying-

‘Quality is remembered long after price is forgotten’

People can get in touch with me in LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram

PK,

PK Enterprises.

There are so many different type of Laundry/Dry-Cleaning machinery manufacturing companies in the market, which one we should choose?

For a laundry service company the major investment goes into the purchase of machinery. There are many laundry machinery manufacturers locally, nationally and internationally.

Here is a simple example which I want to explain-

We buy many different type of gadgets, products for our personal use. Starting from Mac books to iPhones to gas stoves to bikes to cars etc., while purchasing any product we also enquire about the service aspect.

After sales service is a very important aspect. If the product manufacturer doesn’t give the desired service at the right time, then there is no point in purchasing that particular product. The same applies to the laundry machinery manufacturer as well.

In a laundry service industry there are many types of machines-

• Washing Machines:

• Horizontal
• Vertical
• Front Load
• Top Load
• Heavy Duty

• Hydro Extractors

• Tumble Dryers

• Ironing Tables:

• Coal Iron Tables
• Electrical Iron Tables
• Steam Iron Tables
• Vertical Ironing Machines

• Flat Work Ironers:

• Flat work, chest or strap-type ironers
• Single Roller Flat Iron
• Double Roller Flat Iron

And there are many other type of machines like-

• Foam Finisher
• Automatic Trouser Ironing
• Spotting Table(Stain Removal) etc.,

The machinery should be purchased depending on the type of vertical the laundry service provider is venturing into.

For- 

• B2C i.e., retail laundry. Machinery should be purchased according to the target audience, quality and quantity of garments.
• B2B i.e., institutional laundry. In this segment there are again many different type of verticals. Hotels, SPAs, Saloons, Resorts, Hospitals, Educational Institutions etc., for each type of sector the machinery should be purchased according to the target audience, quality and quantity of garments.

Therefore my advice for any Laundry and Dry-Cleaning(LDC) service provider is that know the below following parameters and choose the machinery manufacturer according to your requirement-

• Target Audience
• Type of Vertical
• Brand
• Price
• Customer Service
• Why target audience is the most important factor for choosing the laundry machines?

Target Audience:

Target Audience is one of the important factors for deciding the purchase of laundry machineries. If the quantity of inward garments/linen is huge then the type of laundry setup will different. In the same way when the inward garments/linen is less then for such type of business the laundry setup will be entirely different. 

Laundry machinery setup also depends on the quality the laundry service provider offers.

Therefore target audience is the most important criteria while purchasing the laundry machinery

*LDC- Laundry and Dry-Cleaning

People can get in touch with me in LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram

PK,

PK Enterprises.

Exercises that will keep you ACTIVE throughout the day during LOCK DOWN.

In my previous article I’ve told on how a posture is important to for working from home professionals. 

In the second part I will tell you how small exercise will keep us active throughout the day.

Exercise Regularly

As all the gymnasiums are closed, people cannot go outside. But they should make sure that they work out regularly, stretching muscles, and keeping themselves fit and healthy at all times. It’s very important to get as much movement into the day as possible and avoid being sedentary. Try some freehand exercises and stretches. Do crunches, push-ups, squats, and leg lifts in the morning to feel energetic throughout the day. Not only will it help staying physically fit but also increases productivity by improving mental clarity and focus.

Try these 3 simple exercises at home to release the fatigue, strengthen your muscles, and maintain calm.

• Shoulder Raises

This exercise is a great way to relieve the tension in your neck.

Step 1: Raise your shoulders up to your ear

Step 2: Hold for 10 seconds, and drop it down with a force

For an even bigger stretch, do it for just one shoulder at a time, and then alternate five times on each side.

• Leg Planks

Step 1: Sit to the edge of your chair with your knees bent and feet on the floor

Step 2: Gently extend your right leg out in front of you until it's straight and parallel to the floor

Step 3: Hold the pose for 10 seconds, release, and repeat with your other leg

Do the exercise five times on each leg.

• Chair Dip

Step 1: While seated, place your hands on the armrest of your chair/sofa/bed and move

your bottom to the front of your seat

Step 2: Slowly straighten your arms and lift your body off the chair, then hold for 10 seconds.

Relax and get back to the starting position

These are all the must do things for a person working from home to keep themselves  productive in their working hours. It’s in the best interest of ourselves to keep ourselves active and make sure that we are in good health by the time the lockdown ends.

People can get in touch with me in LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram

PK,

PK Enterprises.

PK,

PK Enterprises

Have you ever wondered how sitting postures are very important while WFH ?

The novel coronavirus lockdown has pushed the entire Indian professionals into working from home. Being new to this medium, you may not have proper work-desk arrangements set up at home. Working for long hours in working conditions at home over a long time can have an impact on your health. Poor posture while working on the laptop could cause disorders like pain in the neck, back, shoulders, and other issues. It’s important that you mind the posture while working at home.

• Right Posture

– With right desk, chair, and accessories

The right posture keeps people healthy and gives them more energy to work. Try to get in your working habits from the office to avoid developing other issues like fatigue, headaches, backaches, neck pains, and MSDs (musculoskeletal disorders). These conditions will not only affect productivity of employees but also their mental health. Let’s look at some points to remember while working in different ways.

Sitting on a chair and desk

• It may be a good idea to invest in a chair and work desk that support different postures throughout the day. The chair that you invest in should have adjustable features like Seat heights, Armrest and Backrest adjustments to ensure maximum comfort. These will keep the back supported

• If you are having a normal chair(plastic chair), make sure that the laptop. The laptop should be adjusted according to our eyesight so that people don’t land up in a head ache or stressing our eyes.

While standing & working

It’s also a good idea to stand and work to vary your work posture. You may use a big table as your standing workstation. The more regularly you change your posture, the

better you will feel.

While standing -

• Place your laptop on a hard surface
• Adjust the height of your laptop screen such that the screen top is at your eye level

While sitting on the sofa or bed

Of course, working on the bed, sofa or the bean bag can be quite attractive. While it’s okay to use these for a short period, remember not to forget the basics of good posture.

• Place cushions behind your back to help you get right support
• Place cardboard or a stand beneath the laptop to keep it steady
• Adjust the height of the laptop to keep the screen parallel to your eye level

• Use Laptop Safely

It is natural to pick a comfortable spot while working on the laptop at home. Given that you will end up working for long hours, maintaining the correct posture becomes crucial. It is recommended that you opt for a laptop stand and set up your system in a way that the screen is raised to the height of your eyebrows. You should also use a wireless mouse and a keyboard, if possible, to keep the screen at your arm’s length while typing.

• Keep Moving

Working from home means there is a chance for you to become more sedentary. You no longer have to walk over to the conference room or take a causal break and walk around. While at home, ensure you take breaks to move around a bit. Try to walk around a bit while you are on the phone. Socialize a bit, as you would do if you were in office. Micro-breaks are great productivity boosters and also prevent you from staying seated all day.

These are all the must do things for a person working from home to keep themselves  productive in their working hours. It’s in the best interest of ourselves to keep ourselves active and make sure that we are in good health by the time the lockdown ends.

People can get in touch with me in LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram

PK,

PK Enterprises.

There are so many chemical distributors in the market. Which one is best suitable for a laundry company?

• There are so many players in the market for laundry chemical distribution. Each one of them has their own significance. We cannot devalue one and over value another company.

There are chemicals ranging from Rs.5 per liter to Rs.5000 per liter and the price range keeps on increasing. 

Usually the price depends on a number of factors. Ranging from brand to quality to service to availability of stocks to market conditions, the prices keep varying.

Above all these parameters the quality of chemicals can be best extracted when the service providers use water of appropriate ppm.

Water:

• The PPM/Hardness/pH value of the water shouldn’t be more or less but it should be appropriate
• As water plays a very prominent role in the washing of clothes it should be maintained very properly
• There are six ways to know if the water in your laundry is ‘good’ water. What needs to be considered are – water clarity, water hardness, total dissolved solids, Iron, pH and Bicarbonates
• Therefore water should be given major priority and it is the back bone for the laundry industry
• Good quality of water will enhance the chemicals and the output quality will also be good

Check this link for more details: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/laundrydry-cleaning-business-profitable-premanth-kundurthi-pk-/?published=t

In India, every state has some 2-3 big chemical distributors.

The chemicals should be used depending on the type of vertical the laundry service provider is venturing into.

For- 

• B2C i.e., retail laundry. The chemicals used will be different, 
• B2B i.e., institutional laundry. The chemicals used will be different. In this vertical there are again many different type of sectors. Hotels, SPAs, Saloons, Resorts, Hospitals, Educational Institutions etc., for each type of sector the brand of chemicals usage will be different

Therefore my advice for any Laundry and Dry-Cleaning(LDC) service provider is that know the below following parameters and choose the chemical distributor according to your requirement-

• Target Audience
• Type of Vertical
• Brand
• Price
• Customer Service

*LDC- Laundry and Dry-Cleaning

People can get in touch with me in LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram

PK,

PK Enterprises.

What are the various challenges in a Laundry/Dry-cleaning business?

Laundry industry is an ever evolving industry as so does its challenges. A few important challenges that need to be definitely addressed are-

• Logistics:

When compared with a normal food delivery company or an e-commerce company the logistics of a LDC(Laundry and Dry-Cleaning) business is quite different. In this sector the delivery executive should visit the customer’s place twice for the same order. 

He has to visit the customer’s place for pickup, take the garments back to the processing center. Once the garments are processed he should again deliver them back at the customers place. Effectively for one single order the delivery executive should visit the customer’s place twice. 

In case the customer wants to rewash the clothes then again the logistics doubles.

• Customer Issues:

Customers give their most sentimental clothes to the service providers and they expect them to return in a nice and hygiene way. There is no wrong in this but the service provider has to be very careful while collecting the clothes from the customer

Example: PKC Laundries (customer care) one of the best laundry services in Hyderabad had one of a kind peculiar experience. PKC’s delivery executive has picked an order from a customer’s place. 

A husband and wife were there at the time of pickup of the garments. Husband gave 5-white shirts, 1-green shirt and 1- pink shirt. At the time of delivery husband was like he didn’t give a green shirt for processing as he never had a green shirt. In place of green shirt he was demanding for a white shirt. 

PKC’s people were pretty sure that they picked a green shirt. Due to the customer’s harsh behavior they checked internally and they didn’t find a white shirt that the customer was asking. PKC’s customer care got in touch with the customer and they told him that, it was definitely a green shirt and not white and asked him to check with his wife. 

Still the husband was not convinced. At last when PKC s executive spoke to his wife, she was like that green shirt was her husband’s shirt and he has bought that one recently. So many customers’ don’t know what colors and branded clothes they wear.

There will be so many issues of this kind and the staff should be trained to handle such kind of issues.

• Human resources:

LDC is any time a labor intensive industry. 90-95% are blue-collar workers. Blue-collar workers are always tough to handle. The problem is that as most of these people are uneducated it is very difficult to make them understand the importance of working.

Attrition will be always higher. People leave without any reason. Service providers will give training for people but they will be leaving without any notice. They will be giving training for other set of people and they will be leaving again. 

It is difficult for people to get adapted to heat in the ironing department, chemicals in the washing department. My advice for all the LDC service providers is prepare SOPs. These SOPs will make sure that everything will be in place and they are like constitutional guidelines for an enterprise.

• Payments:

Payments in the B2B segment is a major challenge. Credit period will be around 60-90 days and in some cases it will be more than that. Therefore it is better for people entering into this segment to be a bit cautious.

Hence these are the major challenges faced by LDC companies.

People can get in touch with me in LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram

PK,

PK Enterprises.

If we already have a type of laundry machinery setup, can we get business from any very vertical?

This is the general misconception which many of the laundry companies have.

A straight and simple answer is NO 

The main reason why laundry companies are going into losses and shutting down very quickly is they don’t know whom to target and which type of machinery should be installed.

Therefore before starting any business a market survey for a period of 6-8 months is mandatory. The survey is important for the following reasons-

• Target audience, 
• Type of Vertical to enter,
• Set of machinery to choose
• The capacity of the machinery etc.,

Want to know more about the market research visit this link- https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/actually-start-laundrydry-cleaning-business-what-one-kundurthi-pk-/

It is not just easy as everybody thinks. Start a laundry company, invest some 15-20 Lakhs to install machines and then afterwards if the business doesn’t flourish as planned then go into a different vertical with the same machinery (people cannot again revamp the whole setup). This is absolutely wrong.

The broad classification of verticals in a laundry industry are-

• B2B
• B2C

B2B:

• Hotels, Resorts
• Hospitals, Wellness Centers
• Spas, Saloons, Gyms
• Co-living Spaces
• Hostels, PGs
• Residential Schools/Colleges
• Buses, Trains, Airplanes 
• Convention Centers, Function Halls etc.,

B2C:

• Laundromats
• Live Studios
• Pickup stores
• Online free pickup and delivery etc.,

These are the various types of verticals in a laundry industry. The machinery should be installed taking into consideration the target audience and type of vertical one is entering into

For Example:

If 10 eggs are needed to bake one cake, and also the restaurant can bake only one cake. In this case if the restaurant takes an order for 10 cakes then he will not be able to supply the remaining 9 customers’ orders. 

On the same lines coming to the laundry industry, the owner of the company should know the capacity of his machinery, which type of vertical he is venturing into and what should he exactly expect from that vertical. After taking into consideration all these things he should start his business and shouldn’t jump the gun.

So according to machinery, capacity, target audience, market survey, place we should do business

If you choose your target audience as B2C segment and if somebody comes and gives you an order for spas, saloons, gyms and hotels then it doesn’t make any sense

Whenever you stick yourself to the target audience then only there is scope of generating more profits. You will have that much time of thinking about that particular vertical and doing something new to increase revenues

For a businessman along with his work he should make enough time so that he can invest that time into his next developmental works. This will definitely lead him into the next stage in the growth trajectory.

If a person wants to start another vertical he should have another set of team, machinery setup, target audience, market survey. If the company can manage the new vertical in the same setup then it is the ideal situation. 

Otherwise a new vertical definitely needs a new setup for everything.

Therefore my advice is, if a company chooses a particular vertical it should stick to it. It is not easy to alter between verticals. If anybody wants to flourish in this business, it is mandatory to stick to the basics, have patience, give customer the good experience then success follows.

You can connect with me on LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram.

PK

PK Enterprises.

To actually start a Laundry/Dry-cleaning business what is the market research one should do?

• Before starting any business market research is always important. Market research always gives us a basic view of how the market is going to react if we launch a particular product or service. So, it is always advisable to do some survey before starting anything. I don’t say you will get to know the perfect numbers but you will have an idea of how the reaction might be.

Coming to the laundry industry it is important to do a survey for a minimum of 6-8 months. Below are some of the points on which a survey should be done to have a view and understanding on this industry-

• Process
• Pricing
• Different verticals
• Competitors
• Investments, ROI

• Process:

It is always better to know the processes of any industry we want to get into. Processes help us operationally. If the processes are in place then the operational costs will come down and efficiencies of the systems, manpower will increase and this will lead to more profits. So, always do a thorough research on processes. These vary from person to person, company to company. For a beginner it is advised to understand various processes in the market and design a process that is suitable for his company (later on once the company starts its operations the processes can change)

• Pricing:

The most important point part of the market research. For any business to succeed pricing should be perfect, otherwise the business will keep losing money. Coming to the Laundry and Dry-Cleaning(LDC) business anybody who gets into this business will look at the competitors prices and price their services in the same range or with a tolerance of +/- 20% which doesn’t actually make sense.

Generally any business should have a SOP s(Standard Operating Procedures) on how they are running and what are the costs they are incurring, based on these SOP s they should price their services.

The SOP s include-

• Manpower cost
• Power cost
• Chemicals cost
• Marketing cost
• Miscellaneous cost
• Profit percentage

Without analyzing these, pricing a service is very difficult and that is where many LDC businesses are losing. Apart from these a person entering this business should know which type of machinery he/she should purchase, the type of target audience they are going to target and accordingly they should set the pricing. Once they have these parameters in mind then it is a walk in the park!

For further reading: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/laundrydry-cleaning-business-profitable-premanth-kundurthi-pk-/?published=t

• Various Verticals:

A person should know what area the various verticals available in this industry. Verticals are nothing but the various business opportunities. The two broadly classified verticals are B2B and B2C.

B2B:

B2B is again divided into-

• Hospitals and wellness(hospitals, spas, wellness centers)
• Hospitality (Hotels, Resorts, Gyms)
• Transport (Buses, Railways, Airways)
• Accommodations (PGs, Service Apartments, Co-Living Spaces)

*Hotels: 5 star hotels, 3 star hotels and budget hotels

B2C

• Laundry (this segment is again divided into Laundromats, Stores, Free pickup and delivery service etc.,)
• Dry-Cleaning

So the classification of business is very important to decide on which industry one should enter

• Competitors:

It is always better to know who are the existing people in the industry. A close rapport with them will always be helpful. This is the era of collaborations, mergers, acquisitions etc., so it is always a good idea to maintain a good relation with the competitors in your industry

• Investments, ROI(Return on Investments):

The last and the most important point is the Investments and ROI(Return on Investments). While entering a business one should have a fair idea of how much investment one should make and what is the ROI of that money. Without knowing this then there is no point in starting a business. 

I always  believe in a quote:

“Businesses are always done to make a profit. According to me any business is profitable. It is upon us to see that profit and work accordingly”

Therefore keeping the above things in mind, it is very important to do a thorough market survey before starting any business.

If you want to replicate the same model in other city apart from Hyderabad, do a thorough study on the demographics of that place and then replicate but don’t blindly do it.

If a person entering this business knows all the above mentioned points then only he will know where he can reduce costs. Reducing costs will directly impact the profits. So, it is very important to do a market survey before getting into any business.

You can always reach me on LinekdIN, Facebook and Instagram.

PK

PK Enterprises

40cr Indian workers in the informal sector are on the verge of losing their jobs and more than 330cr workers worldwide are affected by this pandemic. Do we have a solution for this?

The International Labor Organization(ILO) says that the unemployment rates will be more when compared with the WW-II times

The Covid19 pandemic has really created a storm medically, socially and economically. The current statistics are at a total of-

15lakh+ confirmed cases, 90k+ deaths, with the U.S being the epicenter where the death count is increasing day by day.

The International Labor Organization (ILO) has released a bulletin on how the work force is faring at the moment and what steps the governments, institutions and other statutory organizations should take at the moment so that people will not die of hunger!

Latest analysis shows that the impact of the COVID19 pandemic far exceeds that of the 2008-2009 financial crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic is having a catastrophic effect on working hours and earnings, globally. A new ILO report highlights some of the worst affected sectors and regions, and outlines policies to mitigate the crisis.

The sectors most at risk include accommodation and food services, manufacturing, retail, and business and administrative activities.

The eventual increase in global unemployment during 2020 will depend substantially on future developments and policy measures. There is a high risk that the end-of-year figure will be significantly higher than the initial ILO projection, of 2.5crore.

More than 4 out of 5 people (81 per cent) in the global workforce of 330 crore  are currently affected by full or partial workplace closures.

ILO which describes COVID-19 as “the worst global crisis since World War II”, 

According to the new study, 125 crore workers are employed in the sectors identified as being at high risk of “drastic and devastating” increases in layoffs and reductions in wages and working hours. Many are in low-paid, low-skilled jobs, where a sudden loss of income is devastating.

Worldwide, 200 crore people work in the informal sector (mostly in emerging and developing economies) and are particularly at risk.

“If one country fails, then we all fail. We must find solutions that help all segments of our global society, particularly those that are most vulnerable or least able to help themselves.”

The four pillars which are very important for us to concentrate on getting things back on track are-

Coming to developing economies and India:

COVID-19 is already affecting tens of millions of informal workers. In India, Nigeria and Brazil, the number of workers in the informal economy affected by the lockdown. In India, with a share of almost 90 per cent of people working in the informal economy, about 40 crore workers in the informal economy are at risk of falling deeper into poverty during the crisis. Current lockdown measures in India, which are at the high end of the Government Response, have impacted these workers significantly, forcing many of them to return to rural areas.

It is equally upon us as it is on the government to pull ourselves out of this deep hole. My analysis on how a working professional should act in this situation so as he/she will not face the burnt and make themselves shield a bit from this global crisis-

• As many people are on the verge of losing their jobs, its better to upgrade their skills and see how best they can equip themselves to fight the situations post lockdown
• We having everything in our hands, we have internet, google, ideas and other things which are our greatest tools at the moment. We need to check what are the skills we need to upgrade and work accordingly
• India has a strong work force of 40 crore in the informal sector and if at least some of the working population work in upgrading their skillsets then that would be really wonderful
• People should stop blaming the government as there is no point in it. Government is  doing its job in curtailing the corona virus pandemic and also working harder to get the economy back on track. It’s we, the strong work force should act accordingly and design strategies and mitigate the risk

We are doing a great thing to the country and the world at large by staying at home and not venturing out, but it’s time we think beyond. We have to foresee what is lying ahead. I always believe in- 

“The time of crisis will also bring with it a new set of opportunities”.

Two wonderful opportunities below for people to look into:

• The ODISHA government has flown a circular in the newspaper that if somebody is ready to manufacture-

• PPE kits
• Sanitizers
• Face masks

People should send a sample for the approval and the odisha government will give approval for the order. The requirement is so high and people can benefit from that(a problem always gives an opportunity)

• SIDBI(Small Indutries Development Bank of India) is giving loans up to 2crore for enterprises who can manufacture medical equipment(mostly related to the corona virus). This is also one of a kind opportunity to enterprises, people, entrepreneurs to utilize on full scale.

The underlying point is it’s upon us to utilize the time we’ve on our hands and work on war front basis and be match ready by the lockdown ends and grab the opportunities with both hands rather than cribbing on the situation

As I always end with a quote-

A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty

PK

PK Enterprises

Source: https://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/newsroom/news/WCMS_740893/lang--en/index.htm