India’s very first certified tea sommelier, Snigdha Manchanda is known for her delectable tea brand Tea Trunk. Established in 2013, Tea Trunk curates the finest teas directly from farmers and crafts them into unique tea blends with all natural ingredients. Having trained under Japanese Tea Master, Nao Numekawa, she is today a recognized author and spokesperson for the Tea Board of India, as well as the Indian representative for the Indian Tea industry in international publications and tea conferences around the world.

Women make good entrepreneurial decisions that are not just good for one team or a few people, but for everyone associated with the brand. Trust that instinct.

1. What is your definition of an empowered woman?

In my opinion, there is no set definition or mould for an empowered woman, but having financial freedom, the freedom to make choices, and/or having access to information is what makes a woman feel empowered. This is what will open paths to equal opportunities for more women everywhere, thereby enabling them to lift other women up who don’t come with the same privilege.

2. What are some lessons you have learnt through the mistakes or challenges along your journey?

I think one of the most important lessons I have learnt in the challenges I have faced in my journey, is to say ‘No’ when I don’t feel excited about something. The second vital lesson every entrepreneur has to learn is to truly learn to listen to their audience for they are the ones who consume your ideas, your products, your creation, so involve them while making decisions. Instagram and Linkedin are powerful tools to converse with your audience and I have been working on making myself more accessible to the audience, listening to them, striking a balance between what they want from the brand and what our vision is.

3. What are some of your most cherished milestones in your career?

One of the most cherished milestones in my career was to be featured as one of the global Tea personalities, alongside the iconic Mr. Merrill J. Fernando, the inspiring founder and CEO of the beloved Srilankan tea brand – Dilmah. It was a lifelong dream to interact with him as I look up to him for so many reasons, but primarily for how vastly he has contributed to not just the global tea industry but also take Ceylon teas to the global stand under a home-grown label.

Another moment would be when a previous colleague of ours, who was the sole breadwinner of her family, managed to buy a car for her family with her earnings from Tea Trunk. I truly felt like I was a part of that moment of joy and pride in her life. It felt like what I had managed to build over the years had some visible impact in someone else’s life.

4. As an entrepreneur, how do you best believe in building the right leadership?

I think to build the right kind of leadership it is important to have a keen understanding of each and every person in the team – what excites them to take initiatives, what are their strengths, and how to give feedback that empowers them instead of demotivating them. I feel that giving clear, concise feedback is important and to also be comfortable with receiving feedback, for it’s a two way street. My style of leadership involves giving agency to my team to make their own decisions and to not mico-manage. I have staunchly followed this and it works. Last but not the least, always take out time to acknowledge and appreciate a job well done.

5. Your success mantra or motto?

My motto is to underpromise and overdeliver. It’s pointless to promise ten different things to people and end up giving deliverables with subpar quality at best. Rather, promise five deliverables or goals and give them your all.

6. Lastly, any word of advice for budding women entrepreneurs and aspirants?

If I had any advice for aspiring women entrepreneurs, that would be to listen to your gut and not give in to peer pressure. It is easy to get swept in the advice pouring in from different sources, and while it’s important to pay heed to good advice, learn to sort through that. Women make good entrepreneurial decisions that are not just good for one team or a few people, but for everyone associated with the brand. Trust that instinct. Secondly, have a vision of why you want to do what you want to do. Without a vision, it is difficult to manoeuvre in a sea of uncertainties. Your vision can keep evolving, sure, but remember the ethos of where you started from.