"My bond with my brother can’t be expressed in words. He is seven years younger to me but we are like same age buddies who have always discussed all their problems, happiness, secrets and work," says Musskan Agarwaal Mehrotra (33) on her brother Vinayak Agarwaal (26) who together run Kiwi and Proleather.
The duo learnt to work together early on, when they hid each other's school complaints from parents, signed each other’s report cards, cooked together, and decorated their room… "I remember our dad always used to joke around that 'Tum dono ne kuch nahi karna'. We were not big dreamers, but we had an easy going attitude," Musskan remembers.
"When your bond is strong, your fights are equally strong. At times, we start fighting, but then we get back together in less than half an hour. Our day is incomplete without each other," adds Vinayak. In 2009, Musskan launched Kiwi by Musskan after completing her graduation from DU and a jewellery degree course from the Indian institute of Gems and Jewellery.
"Gradually, we started managing operations together. He dealt with the labour, and that's when I realised how instrumental Vinayak is in Kiwi. In 2011, we opened a store at Sainik Farms, which became our chill out zone, as my brother would drop by every evening," adds Musskan. After Vinayak completed his graduation from LLM, their parents felt he should open his own business venture.
"I started Proleather in 2014. We both did some initial designs together, and I started displaying a shelf of Proleather stuff at the Kiwi store. We started doing exhibitions together, and opened a Proleather store at the same location in 2015," adds Vinayak. Musskan is still his go-to for finalising colour combinations and styles, as he trusts her fashion sense.
"She supports me in every way. We plan out product shoots together and bring out money-saving deals for both the brands," he adds. To ease out work, both have divided roles and trust each other completely.
Musskan says, "I am more of a 'customer face' and Vinayak is more of a 'manpower face'. I design my pieces, and deal directly with customers in understanding their requirements, explaining the design philosophy, etc. Vinayak works on the execution and coordinates with all the vendors."
Working together does get overwhelming at times. "But it's a happy feeling, as I don’t feel like competing with my brother. We want each other to excel," she adds. And disagreements happen too.
"Whenever a situation arises, we go up to our parents, and their verdict is our command. Our bond is above any complexes. We believe in sharing, caring, and nurturing our relationship. If one is wrong, and the other one knows it, we overrule it to keep the happy spirit of our relationship alive," he adds.
Two months ago Musskan got married, and so the two end up meeting twice a week. "Apart from planning the work, we also love playing cards, spending time with our pets, shopping, and holidaying together," says Musskan.
Their siblings' partnership mantra is: 'believe in your partner as much as you believe in your own self '. Next, they plan to open stores in Gurugram.