Started up with Tk 90,000, now worth millions

Entrepreneur Nitai Sarkar once ran a mobile phone top-up shop. He later bought clothes and bedsheets from wholesale markets and sold them online. Eventually, he began manufacturing bedsheets and other home decor products himself. Through gradual expansion of his own production and online marketing operations, he built a home decor brand called ‘Ortha’.

Nitai Sarkar’s interest in business began in childhood. It started as a hobby when he sold chanachur, the popular spicy snack mix, and apples at religious festival events. That childhood interest eventually turned him into an entrepreneur. He worked for three years after completing his undergraduate degree, and then eventually decided to venture into business.

Nitai Sarkar’s company, Ortha, now manufactures and sells a range of home decor products, including bedsheets, pillows, pillowcases, curtains, mosquito nets and duvets. The company began its journey nearly 12 years ago. It currently employs 21 people and generates annual revenue of more than Tk 1 crore (Tk 10 million).

Last Tuesday, we spoke with Ortha founder Nitai Sarkar at his office in Paikpara, Mirpur-1. During the conversation, he shared stories from the various stages of his entrepreneurial journey.

Nitai Sarkar’s ancestral home is in Ghagra village, Kachua upazila, Chandpur. His father was a government employee, while his mother was a primary school teacher. After completing his secondary education locally and higher secondary education at Cumilla Government College, he earned a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree in Marketing from Eastern University in Dhaka in 2012.

Nitai Sarkar said his first major challenge after completing his BBA was securing an internship. With no personal connections or professional network in Dhaka, he struggled to find an opportunity despite trying for six months. Rather than remain idle during this period, he started a mobile phone top-up business next to his uncle’s pharmacy in Old Dhaka. Later, with the help of a university teacher, he secured an internship at Fortuna Bangladesh, a footwear company. He subsequently worked at the company for nearly three years.

His responsibilities at Fortuna were not limited to any particular department. He handled almost everything, including collecting customer feedback, product photography, inventory management, supply chain operations, managing the company’s Facebook page, product deliveries and participating in various trade fairs. The experience gave him hands-on knowledge of how an e-commerce business operates on a day-to-day basis.

He later used that experience as the foundation for his own business. “While working at Fortuna, I didn’t just learn how to sell products; I became familiar with the different aspects of running a business from beginning to end,” he said. Moreover, participating in various trade fairs helped him build an extensive network, many members of which later became his customers.

He left his job and ventured into business in late 2015. Initially, he planned to work in event management. Even before that, in late 2014, he had created a Facebook page called ‘Ortha’. However, things did not go according to plan.

During this period, Nitai Sarkar became involved in various activities of the e-Commerce Association of Bangladesh (e-CAB), where he expanded his network of fellow entrepreneurs. This exposure inspired him to start selling different products online.

He initially began selling jewellery by posting product photos on Ortha’s Facebook page. He collected pictures from various shops and business owners and posted them on Facebook. Whenever he received an order, he would collect the product from the supplier and deliver it to the customer.

Through this approach, he generated sales of approximately Tk 16 lakh (Tk 1.6 million) in 2016 from various products, with three-piece outfits accounting for the bulk of the sales. He also began selling bedsheets and pillowcases online.

One of Nitai’s well-wishers told him that the three-piece clothing market was highly competitive, but there was an opportunity to build a specialised brand around products such as eight-piece bed sheet sets. Taking this advice, Nitai decided to give up selling three-piece outfits and focus exclusively on bed linen. This decision changed the course of his business.

Initially, he sourced fabric from Islampur in the capital and had bedsheets made by tailors. He then sold them online. In 2017, he rented a room in Paikpara, Mirpur, installed sewing machines and hired a skilled craftsman.

At the time, his initial investment was approximately Tk 90,000, covering the cost of machinery, room rent, advance payment and other expenses.

As the business expanded, so did its capital requirements. Securing his first loan proved quite difficult. The lack of necessary documents and a guarantor posed major obstacles. According to Nitai, accessing financial institutions and preparing the required documentation are major challenges for new entrepreneurs.

His business currently has a total investment of more than Tk 50 lakh (Tk 5 million), of which approximately Tk 32 lakh (Tk 3.2 million) comes from bank loans.

Ortha’s main products currently include bedsheets, pillows, curtains, mosquito nets and duvets. According to Nitai, bedsheets account for approximately 70 per cent of the company’s total business, while the remaining 30 per cent comes from other products. Last winter, the company sold around 10,000 duvets. So far, Ortha has sold its products to more than 100,000 customers. In addition to a small factory in Mirpur, the company also operates a showroom and an office.

Ortha’s bedsheets and duvets are priced between Tk 1,000 and Tk 3,500 each. Mosquito nets sell for Tk 500 to Tk 1,200, while curtains are priced between Tk 500 and Tk 3,500 per piece.

The company serves a diverse customer base, ranging from walk-in showroom customers to online shoppers and visitors at trade fairs. Its products are also supplied to various hotels and resorts, hospitals and corporate organisations. However, approximately 80 per cent of Ortha’s total sales come from online channels.

However, he now wants to reduce the company’s dependence on online sales and expand its showroom network. He also plans to introduce new products, including items made by combining jute and fabric. For Nitai Sarkar, business is not just about selling products and making profits; building long-term relationships with customers is equally important. That is why he reinvests a portion of his profits in initiatives for customers.

Nitai Sarkar believes that while people are conscious about the quality of their clothing and food, they pay comparatively less attention to their sleeping environment. Yet people spend nearly eight hours a day in bed. Therefore, he believes that fabric quality and comfort should be given greater consideration when choosing bedroom products. Accordingly, Ortha places particular emphasis on fabric, stitching and accurate measurements to ensure product quality.

During difficult periods in his business journey, his mother's words repeatedly gave him the courage to carry on: “Never cheat anyone, and you will never be cheated yourself.”

For him, this advice from his mother is more than just an emotional reassurance; it is also a source of strength that continues to inspire him as an entrepreneur.