By Lakhram Bhagirat
Our obstacles in life should not determine how far we go; they should not limit our growth, rather when we are faced with them, we should find other avenues of overcoming them. Whether it is by confronting them head on or going around them, we must use every possible avenue to ensure that we achieve whatever we want so when we look back we can say, “I made it.”
The drive to achieve his dreams and be successful is what led Ravi Latchman to do all that was possible to get where he is today. At 25, Ravi is a successful businessman offering the Guyanese people and even those further afield a wide variety of Indian clothing and accessories at unbelievably affordable prices. However, the ride to get to where he is today is nothing short of inspiring.
Ravi hails from the West Coast Berbice community of Bath Settlement and is the owner of Colours of India Clothing and Accessories Store. He is one of the go-to suppliers of Indian clothing and accessories in Guyana with a customer base that spans the length and breadth of the country. His customers would travel from as far as the Essequibo Coast to Bath Settlement just for him to supply them with their desired clothing and accessories.
He is considered the Indian bride whisperer since no bride-to-be leaves his store disappointed or empty handed. The variety that he stocks is expansive and caters to every budget. Knowing the struggles involved, Ravi would quite often scale back his prices significantly so that his customers can get their desired look without breaking the bank.
Ravi has not always been able to help those who would need it, since quite often he was in a position of needing help himself. His childhood was one that involved him being raised by his elderly grandparents while his parents and two younger brothers migrated to the twin-island republic of Trinidad and Tobago in search of a better life. His late grandparents showered him with immense love and supported his endeavours to the best of their abilities.
Being a little boy growing up with elderly grandparents meant that Ravi could have easily overruled them, and he took advantage of that fact quite often, since he would spend countless afternoons playing with his friends.
“My grandparents had a small grocery shop and a little chicken depot. Sometimes I used to steal the powder milk and sugar to make fudge. I would also take chicken leg and we would have ‘bush cook’ too,” he reminisced.
In exchange for doing as he wished, Ravi was tasked with making sure that he excelled in school, and that was something he did not take lightly. He was quite often referred to as the class nerd and when he graduated from Bath Primary School, he gained a place at the Berbice High School but only briefly attended there. Wanting a challenge, he enrolled at the Academy of Apex Education on the East Coast of Demerara, where he continued to be challenged. After sitting the CXC Examinations, he gained 13 passes, but unlike many students, Ravi was working with Qualfon while attending school because of the financial constraints.
Armed with the dream of becoming a doctor, Ravi moved back to Berbice with his grandparents and his parents moved back from Trinidad. Shortly after, his grandfather passed away.
“My family was not financially stable to help me fulfil my dreams of becoming the doctor I wanted to become. I was frustrated. I didn’t know what to do. I finally made a move to Trinidad; I was 18 at the time. I moved over and it was not easy. I did many different jobs like my very first job was working in a mattress factory, then I was a kitchen assistant. I was a bartender/waiter. I did carpentry, catering and even accounting,” he related.
He would live in Trinidad for a total of five years and remembers working 20-hour shifts just to make ends meet. The struggle was so real that Ravi slept on the floor of his apartment for over one year while making other sacrifices to ensure that the majority of his money was remitted to Guyana so that his family could have a better life.
“My life wasn’t easy, but I reaped the benefits after years. I eventually furnished my apartment after my ajie (paternal grandmother) said she wanted to come and see me, because I did not want my family back home to know what I was going through.”
As time passed, so did Ravi’s dream of becoming a doctor. Reminiscing on how he started Colours of India, Ravi says one day he was scrolling through Facebook when he received a message from someone in India asking if he was interested in being business with her. He related that to his family who were all sceptical, but it was a risk he took and in the end it paid off.
In October 2014, he received his first shipment from India and from then, he started selling Indian clothing and accessories. In March 2016, he decided to move back home to concentrate on building his brand.
“It was not an easy task at all, because of all the other competitors it have around. My greatest support is my family and I can always rely on them for anything. Colours of India grew, because I put all my spare time into advertising my business. Sleepless nights also when it is time to order goods from my manufacturers because to the difference in time between Guyana and India.”
Just a few weeks ago, Ravi remodelled his store to make it more spacious offering a wide variety of items. He has one of the largest collections of bridal lehengas, accessories, saris, and male Indian wear. Over the next five years, he intends to open at least two more stores to reach more people.
“The advice I would give to anyone who wants to start a business is to always put God first, always smile. Have patience, don’t be jealous and don’t ever give up no matter how rough that road maybe. It have people in our lives that would make us rise and some that want to pull you down. Never let the ones that want to pull you down succeed.”
(Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)
