With Women Entrepreneurs’ Day approaching on November 19, it is the perfect time to celebrate the vision, creativity, and resilience of Indian women entrepreneurs who are reshaping the business landscape. These women entrepreneurs come from diverse fields—fashion, communication, mental wellness, etiquette coaching, and culinary arts—yet they share a powerful common thread: leading with purpose, creativity, and impact beyond profits.
Women Entrepreneurs: Meet the Trailblazers Leading Change
Niti Gupta: Visionary Curator of Global Fashion Experiences
Niti Gupta, founder and creative director of The AFRA World, bridges cultures through fashion by curating international events across Dubai, London, and India. A graduate of NIFT and London’s Heatherley’s School of Fine Art, she blends technical expertise with artistic vision to elevate global fashion. Alongside event curation, her ventures into product design and branding, plus the nurturing community she built with the NIFT Alumni Networking Group, showcase her leadership as a cultural connector in the fashion world.
Shweta Powar: Innovative Communication Strategist
Founder and CEO of Aria Communication, Shweta Powar brings over 20 years of experience across diverse sectors including technology, real estate, healthcare, and Bollywood. Shweta champions purpose-led, action-driven communication strategies that elevate brand perception and drive growth. Her leadership is marked by integrity, creativity, and a commitment to transformative results beyond conventional limits.
Namrata Jain: Mental Wellness Advocate and Psychotherapist
Namrata Jain is a renowned psychotherapist and founder of OutAloud Wellness, empowering over 5 lakh individuals through mental health programs and corporate training. Combining traditional psychotherapy with innovative techniques like breathwork, Namrata’s work spans executive coaching, relationship counseling, and mental wellness advocacy. Honored as a TEDx speaker and Top Women Achiever 2025, she inspires others to prioritize empathy, healing, and authentic living.
Taylor Elizabeth: Emotional Intelligence and Etiquette Coach
Known as ‘The Elegance Advisor,’ Taylor Elizabeth coaches individuals worldwide on emotional intelligence, etiquette, and communication. With 13 years of global coaching experience and multiple certifications, she bridges modern needs with traditional values. Taylor advocates early education in emotional intelligence and etiquette to prepare future generations for authentic, graceful interaction in both digital and physical worlds.
Shivani Sharma: Chefpreneur Revolutionizing Clean Eating
Founder of Gourmestan, Shivani Sharma redefines food with her millet-based, gluten-free gourmet offerings. Leveraging cloud kitchens and her international experience, Shivani’s brand champions sustainability and clean eating. With a clientele including top athletes and celebrities, she combines culinary innovation with education and consultancy, advancing mindful dining on a global scale.
Shared Values: Courage, Creativity, and Impact
While their industries differ, these women entrepreneurs share courage to forge their own paths. Their creativity drives innovation in products, services, and leadership style. Central to their success is a deep focus on customer experience, community building, and authenticity. They demonstrate that impactful entrepreneurship today means leading with heart and vision, not just profit.
CXQuest had a common question for all these Women Entrepreneurs
Q. How do you define success in entrepreneurship beyond financial gains, and what personal values guide you in building a purposeful brand?
Here are the respective responses by these Women Entrepreneurs:
Shweta Powar
As a first-generation entrepreneur, success multiple layers of meaning for me – on one hand, it means crafting a strong and innovative brand that is immediately recognised for our pathbreaking footprint in what has always been viewed as a field dominated by a select few. It also means creating genuine value for my clients that complements their business objectives and showcases their strengths and business proposition in the most meaningful way. It also means creating a strong team that’s driven by ethics, a brand that is values-led, and a legacy that inspires future generations of forward-thinking women.
As an entrepreneur, what truly shapes my thinking is the ability to do things differently – whether in terms of out-of-the-box strategies, forging unconventional but lucrative partnerships, or even reshaping popular discourse around not just PR but the sectors that our clients operate in. When all of these parameters are met, financial gains become a natural and inevitable part of the journey – and they enable us to go further and do more, and to become real change-makers in our field.
Shivani Sharma
I believe that as a conscious entrepreneur, financial gains alone cannot be the sole motivator of the ‘why’ of your business. That said, they are an important determinant of longevity and a marker of how the market is receiving your product and the underlying thought process. But when you are able to connect to what your end-user is really seeking, seek out and fill a gap in the market, are sensitive to the changing dynamics of the ecosystem and are able to adapt and be nimble to respond to market dynamics and the complexities of entrepreneurship while staying true to your long-term vision – to me, that is a true indicator of success. And I am proud to say that we’ve been able to achieve that kind of success through Maison Gourmestan.
We’ve understood that customers are increasingly conscious about where the food they’re eating comes from as well as its impact on the body and the environment, without compromising on the finesse that’s associated with gourmet food. That has inspired me to keep innovating, keep elevating the most basic pantry staples into edible objets d’art and to keep seeking out new ways to make an impact on not just the way we way but also the way we think about food in general.
Niti Gupta
For me, success in entrepreneurship isn’t just about profit margins or milestones — it’s about the impact your vision creates. True success is when an idea, innovation, or strategy goes beyond individual growth and starts making a meaningful difference to the larger community. Personally, my journey has always been guided by the intent to uplift deserving talent, discover hidden voices, and build networks that empower people to grow together. Every project or collaboration I take on is rooted in that philosophy. I believe that when we create spaces for others to shine, we naturally expand our own horizons. Another key value that shapes my work is cultural and creative sensitivity.
In today’s global landscape, every brand and region brings its own unique story and identity. Understanding and celebrating those nuances — rather than blending them into one mold — is what makes a brand truly global and inclusive. This belief forms the foundation of The AFRA World, which I envision as a global community for emerging designers — a space where creativity meets consciousness, and where fashion becomes a bridge between cultures rather than a boundary.
Taylor Elizabeth
For me, success goes far beyond numbers. It’s about creating work that genuinely touches people’s lives and inspires them to grow. When your brand becomes a catalyst for confidence, clarity, and transformation, that’s a deeper kind of fulfillment than anything financial.
The values that guide me are intention, integrity, and meaning. I believe in building a brand that reflects who you truly are your strengths, your purpose, and the impact you want to make. I always ask myself: Does this feel aligned? Does it create value? Does it elevate others? When the answer is yes, you know you’re building something that matters, not just something that performs.
Namrata Jain
As a psychotherapist and relationship expert, I define success in entrepreneurship as the ability to align who you are with what you build, in other words – transforming passion into profession or finding passion within your profession. True success is when your work carries meaning, sustains your values and creates impact beyond profit. Financial growth matters, but it’s not the sole marker of success. For me what truly counts is:
- Having meaningful relationships with customers and collaborators
- A genuine connection with my product or service
- A culture rooted in psychological safety
Entrepreneurship to me is about reducing stress, creating opportunities and leaving people and communities better than you found them. Core values like curiosity, integrity, compassion, boundaries, transparency, accountability and empathy keep both the vision and the people aligned. Ultimately, if one wants to go a long way it’s about responsibility, value creation and meaning while money is the byproduct that follows.
CXQuest individual question to these Women Entrepreneurs:
Shweta Powar (Communication CEO):
Q: How do you integrate purpose and integrity into communication strategies that transform brands and create meaningful connections?
SP: At the heart of all our strategies is our clear understanding of our clients’ business, their objectives, goals and values. We build from this foundation and layer it with our insight about what our clients’ audience needs, what appeals to their sentiments and new ways of reaching out to them – whether via social media-led campaigns, offline activations or even omnichannel messaging. We also realise that there is no single proven formula that meets every client’s needs. Customisation is important, as is recognising ways to disrupt the market, at the right time with the right verbiage.
For us, the true value of PR lies in changing the way audiences view the brands we represent, strengthening relationships and fostering new ones, and leading our clients to spot gaps in the market and tailor their solutions (or communications) accordingly. To do so, we must have a constant finger on the pulse of the market, while being intent listeners and strategic thinkers.
Shivani Sharma (Chefpreneur):
Q: How does your commitment to sustainability and clean eating shape the innovation behind Gourmestan’s offerings and your long-term vision?
SS: I think that for most food entrepreneurs, sustainability can no longer be an afterthought but an integral part of the discourse about sourcing, ingredients and fair practices. For far too long, the terms ‘clean’ and ‘sustainable’ have come with associations of being too idealistic or elitist in terms of their prices and the labour involved. I hope to change that notion by offering insight into how the most basic and everyday ingredients can come together to create the most unique and yet healthful combinations.
My own belief in sustainable and responsible consumption is reflected in all of Maison Gourmestan’s offerings. The most noticeable outcome is our use of millet, which is used in our menu in the most surprising, palate-pleasing ways. Of course, hits and misses have been part of our process. But that is also how my long-term vision has developed. I want to take sustainable and clean eating far beyond the urban boundaries.
Niti Gupta (Fashion Curator):
Q: What role does creativity and cultural sensitivity play in your approach to curating global fashion experiences, and how does that influence your vision for The AFRA World?
NG: Creativity is the language through which we connect the world. But creativity without cultural sensitivity can easily lose its depth and authenticity. When curating global fashion experiences, I see it as my responsibility to ensure that every culture represented is treated with equal respect, voice, and visibility.
Fashion is a reflection of identity, heritage, and emotion — and when approached thoughtfully, it has the power to tell stories that unite rather than divide. At The AFRA World, that’s exactly what we aim to do — to create a platform where diverse design philosophies coexist, and where emerging designers from different parts of the world can share their stories, learn from each other, and grow together on a truly global stage.
Taylor Elizabeth (Emotional Intelligence Coach):
Q: In your work bridging etiquette and emotional intelligence, what key skills do you believe are essential for leaders in a rapidly evolving digital world?
TE: In today’s digital world, leadership is really about emotional clarity and conscious communication. Technology moves fast, but human connection is still at the heart of everything. How you speak, how you respond, how you manage your emotions—these things shape culture more than any strategy.
Leaders today need three things: self-awareness, empathy, and intentional communication. When you understand your own emotional triggers, you can lead with calm and clarity. When you understand others, you create trust. And when you communicate with purpose—whether over email, Zoom, or in person—you strengthen relationships and reduce misunderstandings.
In a world where everything feels urgent, the ability to stay grounded, thoughtful, and emotionally intelligent becomes a true competitive advantage.
Namrata Jain (Psychotherapist):
Q: As a mental wellness advocate, how do you see empathy and emotional intelligence influencing leadership in today’s business environment?
NJ: Empathy and emotional intelligence are essential leadership skills in today’s business environment. Leaders who understand and respond to emotional cues foster psychological safety – the foundation for trust, creativity, risk-taking and honest feedback. Emotionally intelligent leaders regulate reactivity, manage conflict with care and engage in difficult conversations without causing harm. Practically, this looks like active listening, regular check-ins, coaching, supervision and policies that prioritise wellbeing. Leaders who model vulnerability and self-care inspire their teams to do the same, cultivating trust, resilience and a culture where people can truly thrive.
Lessons for Business and CX Leaders
– Lead with empathy and purpose to build genuine brand trust.
– Embrace adaptability for sustained growth amid change.
– Foster community and collaboration to amplify innovation.
– Prioritize education and customer engagement to deepen loyalty.
Join the Celebration
This Women Entrepreneurs’ Day, spotlight the work of Niti, Shweta, Namrata, Taylor, and Shivani. Support women-led brands, share their stories, and inspire future leaders. Together, these actions fuel progress and empower women entrepreneurs across India.
