Now, textile tycoons to hand-hold women entrepreneurs

Tirupur: The AIC-NIFTTEA Incubation Center for Textiles and Apparels has decided to provide hand-holding support to a group of aspiring women entrepreneurs in the district.
“We are committed to absorb at least 15 budding entrepreneurs as incubatees in our scheme, in which 25% would be reserved for women. We plan to select three young women entrepreneurs and five to six girl students, who have innovative ideas to become entrepreneurs,” head of research and development of the NIFT-TEA College of Knitwear Fashion CP Senthil Kumar said here on Thursday. He was speaking at an interactive session for aspiring women entrepreneurs and student innovators, conducted at the college, on the occasion of the International Women’s Day.

“We have a team of women mentors, who are successfully running textile companies. They will help the incubatees on time management, stress management and financial management, apart from addressing the problems they face,” added Senthil.

The center will also provide a platform for product development and marketing, apart from helping the entrepreneurs avail bank loans and subsidies that focus on women empowerment, chief executive officer of the center R Periyasamy said. “The incubatees will have easy access to materials, machineries and technological support for product development,” he said.

Philomena John, managing director of a leading garment manufacturing company, one of the mentors in the project, told TOI that unlike other industrial towns, Tirupur is always ready to welcome women entrepreneurs. “Schemes like this incubation centre would help mould aspiring women entrepreneurs,” she said.

The incubation center, functioning in collaboration with the NIFT-TEA College and NITI Aayog, was established to provide facilities for budding entrepreneurs.