Our Story

From a 10×10 Prayer Room to Your Wardrobe

My name is Mahesh, and this is the story of CHIK — built with borrowed money, built with belief, and kept alive by love.

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2008. ₹84,000. One Dream.

I started CHIK with a loan of ₹84,000 — not in a factory, not in an office, but in a 10×10 prayer room inside my home in Chennai.

With that money, I bought sample fabrics, worked with artisans on zari embroidery and kalamkari designs, and found a small stitching unit to bring my first garments to life. Then I packed those samples and walked into shops — one by one.

Shopkeepers gave me 15 to 20 days of credit. I used that window to source fabric, run production, and deliver on time. Every rupee was planned. Every day was a gamble that paid off.

Those early orders turned into a rhythm. ₹2 lakhs a month became a foundation.

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Growing — One Kurti at a Time

Through the 2010s, CHIK grew into a serious wholesale business. By 2017–18, we were supplying women's ethnic wear across Tamil Nadu, turning over more than ₹3.5 crores a year. What started in a prayer room had become a real manufacturing unit — 40 machines, 60 skilled workers, and thousands of happy customers across India.

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Then Came COVID.

The lockdown stopped everything. Retail shops closed. Orders dried up. Year after year, sales fell — from ₹3.5 crores to ₹2 crores to ₹1 crore.

By 2025, I seriously considered closing CHIK forever.

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She Said No.

My wife, Padmavathi, wouldn't let me.

“You built this for 17 years. Don't close it. Take it online.”

That was the turning point. Padmavathi took over CHIK's online journey — managing the website, the products, the customers, and the ads. While I focus on design and production at our manufacturing unit, she runs the digital side with the same heart she brings to everything she does.

From February 2026, we went all in on CHIK online — together.

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Meet the Founders

We are not a big corporation. We are a husband and wife — Mahesh & Padmavathi — shipping 2 to 3 orders every day, personally overseeing every garment that leaves our unit in Chennai.

Every kurti you order from CHIK is designed, cut, stitched, and packed by a team that has been doing this for 18+ years. We know fabrics. We know fit. We know what women want — because we have been listening since 2008.

Thank you for being part of our story. 🙏