It all started with simple tea-time conversations. A group of friends, sitting together and talking about future plans and life, kept asking one question again and again: Why not start something of our own?
Those talks slowly turned into an idea, and today that idea has become a small streetwear startup in Thiruvananthapuram near the University College.
Unlike regular clothing stores, the team runs a mobile street cart that brings affordable fashion directly to the streets, a concept that is still new to the state. They call their venture June Fashions.
For the team, this was their first time trying such a venture. There was excitement, but also a lot of fear.
“We knew it was risky,” says Sandra S, who is part of the team. “But we just decided to start.” The project was founded by Sujith S, Karthik U S, Vishnu J, Kiran A J, Arun H M and Adharsh.
The first two days were disappointing. Not even a single product was sold.
“We honestly felt like all our money was gone,” recalls Arun. Along with that came negative comments — people saying it wouldn’t work or that street clothing stalls don’t survive. Still, they decided to wait a few more days instead of giving up immediately. Things changed after they posted a reel on Instagram introducing themselves as Kerala’s first street clothing cart.
The reel went viral and crossed nearly three lakh views in one day. A big part of this online visibility came from the digital marketing efforts handled by Sandra and Vimal S Kumar, the team says.
On the third day, their first customer arrived. Only one piece was sold, but it felt special. Later that night, just before closing, a few more customers came, and they sold five more pieces.
Within five days, almost half of their stock was sold. Good reviews started coming in, and some customers even returned to buy again.
“What makes us happiest is the support. Sometimes strangers support you more than people you know,” says Karthik.
The team members are from areas around Nedumangad. Some of them are college students, while others are working professionals, with one member currently abroad.
Day-to-day operations at the stall are managed by three members after college hours, usually from 6 pm to 10 pm.
The cart itself is fully handmade by the team. Transport, lack of space and physical effort made the first few days really tough.
“There were moments when we felt very low. But seeing people appreciate our work gives us energy,” says Arun. “Only women’s clothing is available now; we are hoping to expand in the future,” Sandra adds.
The team had initially planned to try setting up the stall during a temple festival near Nedumangad in February. But once everything was ready, they decided not to wait and brought the cart straight to the city.
All their clothing stock is sourced from Bengaluru and selected in person to make sure quality is not compromised. Even though it is a street setup, the clothes match studio-level quality and are sold at affordable prices.
So far, there have been no complaints, only positive feedback. One moment that stayed with them was when a customer who bought clothes on the first day returned later to buy again. “That made us feel like we are doing something right,” says the team.
Starting from a tea-time discussion to now being a full-fledged moving fashion cart, Fashion on Wheel’s journey is a reminder that an idea can turn into something real. The struggle exists, but so does hope. For these students and their friends, this is just the beginning.