Nidhi Yadav: From a 2BHK Flat to a ₹200 Cr Fashion Empire!

Imagine this: a young Indian woman, barely 25, cradling a seven-month-old baby in one arm while typing furiously on a laptop with the other hand in a modest 2BHK flat in Gurugram just to find some ideas for making her own brand.

No factory, no funding, no staff, just ₹3.5 lakh ($4,000), a dream, and an unshakable belief in herself.

This is the story of Nidhi Yadav, the founder of Aks Clothing, a brand that’s now a household name in India’s ethnic wear market, proving that big dreams don’t need big bank accounts to come true.

In 2014, Nidhi walked away from a cushy job at Deloitte, where she worked as a computer science graduate. It wasn’t an easy choice.

Born and raised in Indore to lawyer parents, Nidhi had followed the traditional path just like many other Indians: engineering and a corporate gig, but her heart wasn’t in it.

A pivotal moment came during a year-end presentation when a mentor asked:

“When was the last time you wanted to go to the office?”

Her honest answer?

“Never.”

That question sparked a fire.

Inspired by Meryl Streep’s The Devil Wears Prada, Nidhi knew fashion was her calling.

She didn’t just dream about it; she acted.

Nidhi enrolled in a one-year Fashion Buying and Merchandising course at Polimoda Fashion School in Florence, Italy.

There, she studied global giants like Zara and H&M, soaking in their fast-fashion strategies.

She even landed a job with luxury brand Emilio Pucci, but her heart pulled her back to India to be with her family.

Armed with knowledge and ambition, she returned to launch Aks Clothing, meaning “reflection” in Hindi, with a modest ₹3.5 lakh from her savings.

The early days were anything but glamorous. Operating out of her Gurugram flat, Nidhi and her husband, Satpal Yadav, an IIM Kozhikode MBA and then-operations manager at Jabong, juggled parenting and entrepreneurship.

With their newborn daughter in tow, they traveled to Jaipur every weekend to source fabrics and negotiate with manufacturers who initially refused small orders.

“They wouldn’t take less than 200 pieces,” Nidhi recalls in an interview with YourStory. “But we convinced some to let us buy 20-25 pieces.” Those small wins laid the foundation for Aks’s growth.

Nidhi’s vision was clear: make stylish, affordable ethnic wear for women aged 18-35. While others chased runway trends, she focused on speed and accessibility, launching 15-20 new designs every two weeks—a pace unheard of in India’s ethnic wear market at the time. “No one else was doing it,” she told YourStory.

Today, Aks releases 150 new styles monthly, boasting a 35% customer repeat rate. From kurtas to anarkalis, palazzos to mojris, Aks blends tradition with modern flair, sourced from artisans in Jaipur, Surat, and Ahmedabad.

The numbers tell a story of grit and growth. Starting with ₹1.6 crore in revenue in 2014, Aks hit ₹8.5 crore in 2015, ₹48 crore by 2018, and a staggering ₹200 crore by 2021—all without a single rupee of external funding (yes, without investors).

By March 2023, the brand’s annual revenue reached ₹86.4 crore, with Nidhi eyeing ₹500 crore by FY 2023-24.

Aks now sells on India's top eCommerce platforms such as Myntra, Flipkart, Ajio, Nykaa, and its own website, with offline stores in Nagaland and plans for more.

The pandemic tested Nidhi’s resilience. When e-commerce platforms halted non-essential deliveries, she pivoted, producing masks and PPE kits to keep her workers employed. “We didn’t want them to be laid off,” she told HerStory.

She also launched a kids’ wear line and a “Siblings Collection,” which became a hit.

Actor Neha Dhupia even promoted Aks’s maternity and nursing wear range, expanding its appeal to mothers.

Nidhi’s story resonates because it’s relatable. She wasn’t born into wealth or handed a silver spoon. She built Aks from her bedroom, often working until 3 a.m. after putting her daughter to sleep.

Her husband, Satpal, became her co-founder, handling finance and operations while she focused on design and aesthetics. “We fight like siblings, but we’re inseparable,” she shared with The Weekend Leader. Their partnership, rooted in mutual respect, fueled Aks’s rise.

What makes Nidhi’s journey truly motivational is her commitment to women’s empowerment.

• Nearly 50% of Aks’s outsourcing partners are women-led businesses, and the brand employs over 250 tailors and staff through its network.

Nidhi’s vision extends beyond profit—she wants Aks to be among India’s top 10 apparel brands, with global reach. In 2019, Aks raised $2.93 million from Myntra, valuing the company at $15.1 million, but Nidhi’s focus remains on organic growth and affordability.

Nidhi Yadav’s story is a reminder that you don’t need a factory, a fat bank account, or a fancy office to build something extraordinary.

All you need is a dream, a willingness to start small, and the courage to keep going. From a 2BHK flat to a ₹200 crore empire, she’s proof that real businesses are built on belief.

So, what’s stopping you? If Nidhi could start with ₹3.5 lakh and a laptop, imagine what you could do with your own dream?