How a TCS engineer went to selling LED lights and afterward constructed a Rs 14 crore turnover sun oriented organization in his old neighborhood

 

What is the name of a man who quits a Rs 6 lakh per year job at TCS Mumbai and returns to his hometown and starts selling LED lights. And what if the person told you that he only earned Rs 60,000 in one year in his new business.

Before jumping to conclusions, let's tell the whole story. Karen Chopra, 34, the man in question, is now a successful businessman in Champion, in the Buddha district of Maharashtra. Karen's persistence and passion to do something for himself drove him to quit his low-paying LED business and look for new business ideas. Then he became interested in solar energy and started a solar installation business, which became Chirpy Power Private Limited, a company with a turnover of Rs 14 crore today. With over 250 customers, Chirpy Power is now a well-known solar power EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) company in Maharashtra with offices in Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, in addition to that in Champion. Chirpy Power has instar brought up to one megawatt solar solutions for Champion industries.

Today, Karen leads a 100-member team of civil engineers, electrical engineers, and sales and marketing personnel. “As everyone in my family is into business, I also wanted to be an entrepreneur and never wanted to work for anyone,” says Karen, explaining his decision to quit a well-paying job at TCS after there. Worked for only one year. Coming from a middle-class family background, Karen completed his studies in Computer Engineering at

Vivekananda College, Chem bur in Mumbai. Karen's father runs an industry that grinds cottonseed to extract oil and supplies edible cottonseed oil to refineries. The unit is located in Champion Industrial Zone, from where Karen also operates Chirpy Power. Her mother is a housewife. He has an elder sister who is married and settled in Hyderabad. After completing his engineering in 2009, Karen joined TCS as a programmer in Mumbai. Although he got a good job with a salary of Rs 6 lakh per year, he was determined to leave after a year.

On the day she received her letter of appreciation and promotion, exactly the 365th day of her job, Karen submitted her resignation. Khamgaon and joined his father's business. After a few years, Karen realized he had no business being in his father's unit." It was more of a mechanical job. I couldn't think of extending it. It worked the old-fashioned way. I decided I had to do something myself," Karen explains. In 2014, Karen saw that India's LED lamp market was booming, with people accepting LED lamps for incandescent lamps. He obtained samples from some local producers and started selling these products. "I took two to three samples and walked around Champion Industrial Zone. Able to sell five to 10 pieces per month," he shares.

Karen earned around 60,000 rupees in one year by trading LED lamps. From an annual salary of Rs 6 lakh at TCS, his earnings within a year have dropped to just Rs 60,000. The idea of ​​joining a company to earn a lot of money crossed Karen's mind several times. "I led a lavish life working at TCS. I spent everything I earned in a year on myself. I never had any savings," Karen says. When Karen started out on his own, it was very clear that he wasn't going to take a penny from his family. LED manufacturing being a capital-intensive business, Karen had started trading, which he soon discovered was not profitable. In 2015, he saw that the solar energy industry was booming. Karen studied solar energy extensively for six months. He attended solar seminars and events, met with various industry experts, and did little experiments. At that time, one of the friends allowed him to install a small solar power system worth Rs.30,000. This was Karen's first project.

"I had no knowledge of electricity. Besides, I was very scared of electricity," Karen laughs, adding, "But if you have to do your own business, you have to do your homework and your research."

In the Tier 4 and Tier5 cities in and around Champion, no one knew that any industry or facility could run on solar power. It was a new concept. Initially, no one entertained me or gave me time to present my solution. But he soon started doing many OEM projects for various renewable energy companies and gained experience. In late 2015, he started getting small residential and commercial projects based on his referrals.

Karen turned his business into a limited liability company in 2016. Chirayu Power was the first Buddha company to be registered as a distribution partner of the Government of India (Ministry of New and Renewable Energy - MORE). Karen secured a Rs 5 lakh project for Buddha Urban Bank in 2016, his first major client. The bank encountered load shedding problems. They like it.

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