The Turnover Of This MBA Chai Wala Will Make You Want To Quit Your Job!

Prafull Billore, a 20-year-old B.Com graduate from a Madhya Pradesh village, arrived in Ahmedabad four years ago with the intention of launching a firm that would help him overcome his sadness at not being accepted into any of India's famous business schools.

Within three months, he had borrowed Rs 8,000 from his father and opened a roadside tea business, which he named MBA Chaiwala.

He made a transaction of Rs 150 on the first day and hasn't looked back since as his business has taken off.
He's tried a lot of different ideas, like selling tea at political rallies and named the tea after the parties' programmes, and by FY 2019-20, his revenue had surpassed Rs 3 crore.

Prafull's business approach drew media attention and an invitation to speak to students at IIM Ahmedabad, where he had once wished to study.

His narrative can serve as an inspiration to everyone who has given up on life after failing to attain their goals. Prafull was unable to pursue his dream MBA programme, but he did not let his sadness deter him.

When many individuals his age are still hunting for work, he charted a new course, dreamed a new dream, and now shares his success stories on many platforms to inspire others!

In fact, he began working while still in school. Prafull developed a name for himself as an expert Amway marketer while pursuing his commerce degree, earning up to Rs 25,000 each month.

"I was able to mix work and studies since an average student has a lot of free time because he doesn't have to worry about studying too hard or competing with the top students," he laughs.

He promoted the company's products and recruited new members. He did, however, leave the position after about a year since he saw no future prospects in it. That's when he learned about MBA programmes and CAT (Common Admission Test) tests from a friend, and he decided to give it a chance.

"The attractive compensation offered to MBA grads drew me in," Prafull explains. "I moved to Indore (from my hometown) to prepare for the CAT while residing in a PG (paying guest) hotel."

He had previously completed a six-month spoken English course in Dhar. He was disappointed, however, when he was unable to obtain the necessary grades to gain admission to any of the best institutions.

"I didn't give up hope and chose to retake the examinations." "I scored an 82 percentile in 2017, but it wasn't enough to get into any of the top universities I wanted," says Prafull, who decided to forego his MBA aspiration in favour of a lesser-ranked college.

"My family was urging me to enrol in any college," he adds, "but I wasn't ready." "In May 2017, I decided to go around the country and visited Ahmedabad for the first time. I found a PG room right outside of IIM Ahmedabad, where I planned to pursue my MBA."

He'd picked Ahmedabad because he believed Gujarat was the best place to establish a business, and he was planning to do just that.

"I began riding around the city on a borrowed motorcycle from a friend. The folks I met were friendly, humble, and respectful. "I enjoyed the city a lot," he says.He soon got a job at McDonald's. "I volunteered to clean the silverware and place fresh foil papers on the plates. Every day, I worked for 10-12 hours and earned roughly Rs 32 per hour. He recalls his first and last jobs in Ahmedabad, where he earned roughly Rs 300 per day before going out on his own.

"I used to read a lot of motivational literature and discovered that big business tycoons all over the world had done comparable work in fast food restaurants like McDonald's." The profession instilled in me a sense of humility, civility, and manners. During my time there, I also picked up a lot of business tips," he recalls.

It only took him three months at McDonald's to summon the guts to strike out on his own.

Prafull claims that his initial idea was to borrow Rs 10-12 lakh from his father to start a full-fledged restaurant.

"But then I realised it was a dangerous situation." I was worried about losing money if the company collapsed," he recalls. "I chose to start small because I believe in the philosophy of 'Dream Big, Start Small, and Act Now.' I considered gradually growing the company."

He eventually came up with the idea of opening a tea stall and borrowed Rs 8,000 from his father to get started. "To be honest, it took me around 45 days to build the guts to open the tea shop. Prafull claims, "I got money from my father under the guise of taking a professional course in export and import."

Because he didn't rent a business, his initial investment was minimal — just Rs 8,000 for a few utensils, tea packets, and milk.

"I established my company on July 25, 2017." I used to just open the stall in the evenings, between 7 and 10 p.m., at first. "In the mornings, between 9 and 4, I worked at McDonald's," he recalls from his early days as an entrepreneur.

Despite the fact that his was a roadside shop, he set himself apart by providing tea in earthen pots, complete with bread and tissue paper, for Rs 30.

He performed some marketing as well, approaching people in their cars and inviting them to taste his tea.

"I spoke to them in English and encouraged them to taste my tea." People used to be startled when they saw a tea seller speaking English and would buy from him," he adds.

"On the first day, I made Rs 150 by selling five cups." Because there was no rent or other overheads, the income was good."

On the second day, he made Rs 600 by selling roughly 20 cups. He was selling 10,000-11,000 cups a day within a month. After a YouTuber published a video about him, his family learned about his business.

His family was initially hostile, but they eventually warmed up. By that time, he had also abandoned his job at McDonald's and was focusing solely on his business.

Other tea merchants in the region were jealous of his success and recruited goons to force him to close his tea station.

Prafull relocated to a new area and, this time, established a good outlet with a large verandah. There were numerous colleges and offices in the neighbourhood.

He sold snacks, shakes, coffees, and a few other types of tea, as well as turning his tea stall into a networking platform for young people by allowing them to post job advertising and other information.

He also organised small events such as business programmes and musical nights.

In 2019, he created a full-fledged restaurant in a 300-square-foot space and began setting up tea kiosks at political rallies, partnering with the parties and calling the tea after their popular programmes.

Prafull has given multiple talks at various colleges, including one at the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad.

In 2019-20, his private limited firm, which now employs roughly 20 employees, had a revenue of Rs 3 crore.

His advice to aspiring entrepreneurs is to believe in themselves and to never give up. Maintain your concentration on your work. Give it your all in all you do. The outcomes will appear.