Anshita Mehrotra began her entrepreneurial journey with something that many aspiring business owners dream about: an idea that could solve a real problem. In 2019, at just 19 years old, she started building Fix My Curls with a small collection of products, limited resources, and the determination to create a brand that customers could trust. At that stage, she had no large team, established infrastructure, or guaranteed customer base. What she had was a belief in her products and the willingness to take the first step.
For Anshita Mehrotra, the most meaningful number in the company’s history was not its current revenue or business valuation. It was ₹895. That amount represented the first payment received from a complete stranger who purchased four products. It was a simple transaction, but it carried a much bigger meaning. Someone who had never met her had decided to trust a brand that was still finding its place in the market.
The First Customer and the Beginning of Trust
Every business has an early moment that becomes part of its identity. For Fix My Curls, that moment was the first order. Anshita Mehrotra remembers the excitement of receiving that payment notification and wondering whether it was real. Until then, the business had largely existed as an idea supported by personal effort and hope.
That first purchase demonstrated something important about entrepreneurship: a business becomes real when someone outside the founder’s immediate circle believes in what it offers. The customer did not simply purchase four products. The transaction represented an early opportunity for the brand to establish credibility.
Anshita Mehrotra understood that building a business would require more than creating products. It would require earning customer confidence, delivering consistent experiences, and giving people reasons to return.
Building a Business Through Personal Effort
The early operations of Fix My Curls were far from the structured processes that larger businesses take for granted. Orders arrived through direct messages, and every conversation required personal attention. Anshita Mehrotra handled customer inquiries, confirmed payments, prepared orders, packed products, and arranged shipping.
This approach demanded time and energy. Each new order brought excitement, but it also created another set of responsibilities. Managing everything manually was possible when the business was small, but it was not a sustainable long-term operating model.
Many young entrepreneurs begin in a similar way. They become responsible for almost every department because there is neither enough money to hire people nor enough volume to justify a larger operational structure. However, these early experiences help founders understand their customers and identify the processes that need improvement.
For Anshita Mehrotra, this period became an important learning experience. She was not only selling haircare products but also discovering how customer service, payment collection, fulfilment, and operations influenced the overall business experience.
Why Infrastructure Matters in Entrepreneurship
One of the important turning points mentioned in Anshita Mehrotra’s post was the decision to move to Razorpay for payment processing.
At first glance, payment infrastructure may not appear as exciting as product development, marketing, or expansion. However, reliable systems become increasingly important as businesses grow. Manually tracking every payment can consume valuable time, create confusion, and make it difficult to handle increasing order volumes.
Moving to Razorpay helped Fix My Curls access a more organised payment process. Instead of spending so much time confirming individual transactions, the business could focus more attention on other operational priorities.
Anshita Mehrotra’s experience highlights a practical lesson for startup founders: growth is not only about acquiring more customers. It is also about creating systems that can support those customers without making everyday operations unnecessarily complicated.
The right infrastructure may not always be visible to customers, but it can have a significant influence on how efficiently a business functions.
From a Small Startup to International Reach
Seven years after that first ₹895 payment, Fix My Curls has developed into a much larger operation. According to Anshita Mehrotra, the business now has a warehouse with the capacity to move more than 10 lakh units every month. Its products are available across nine marketplace and quick-commerce channels and reach customers in more than 12 countries.
These developments represent a significant change from the early days of managing orders through direct messages.
However, expansion on this scale involves much more than increasing production. A growing consumer brand must coordinate inventory, fulfilment, distribution, customer expectations, marketplace relationships, and product availability. Each additional channel introduces new operational requirements.
Anshita Mehrotra’s journey illustrates how a business can evolve when its founder gradually moves from personally managing every transaction to building an organisation capable of handling larger responsibilities.
The difference between a small startup and a growing company is often found in its ability to develop repeatable processes. A founder cannot remain the only person responsible for every activity forever. Sustainable expansion requires systems, people, and operational discipline.
The Courage to Begin Again With Buttercat
One particularly interesting part of Anshita Mehrotra’s story is the upcoming launch of Buttercat, her second brand.
After building Fix My Curls, she is preparing to experience another first payment moment. Although she now has more experience, a larger team, and a stronger understanding of business operations, the excitement and nervousness remain.
This is an important observation about entrepreneurship. Experience may reduce uncertainty in certain areas, but it does not eliminate the emotional challenges of starting something new. Every new brand brings its own customers, expectations, market positioning, and opportunities.
Anshita Mehrotra recognises that Buttercat is different from the business she started at 19. The team is larger, the starting point is more established, and the experience gained from Fix My Curls provides a stronger foundation. Yet the anticipation of seeing the first customer notification remains familiar.
Starting a second business also requires a different kind of leadership. The founder must apply previous lessons without assuming that every strategy will work in the same way. A new brand needs its own identity, customer understanding, and operational approach.
What Young Entrepreneurs Can Learn From This Journey
The story shared by Anshita Mehrotra offers several practical lessons for people who are thinking about starting a business.
First, beginnings do not need to be impressive. A business can start with a handful of products and one customer. Waiting for perfect circumstances can delay opportunities that could otherwise become meaningful ventures.
Second, customer trust must be earned. The first ₹895 payment mattered because a stranger was willing to purchase something from an unfamiliar brand. That trust is the foundation on which customer relationships are developed.
Third, founders must recognise when manual processes are limiting growth. Technology and reliable infrastructure are not luxuries reserved for large organisations. They can help small businesses operate more efficiently from an early stage.
Finally, growth should not make founders forget their beginnings. The first customer, the first successful transaction, and the first operational challenges often reveal what matters most to a business.
The Value of Every First Step
Anshita Mehrotra’s journey with Fix My Curls demonstrates that meaningful business growth is built through a series of decisions rather than one extraordinary event. The first product, the first customer, the first payment system, the first warehouse, and the first international customer all contribute to the development of a company.
The ₹895 payment remains significant because it represents the moment when an idea received its first external validation. It reminds entrepreneurs that large outcomes often begin with small transactions and uncertain beginnings.
As Anshita Mehrotra prepares to introduce Buttercat, she is returning to the excitement of starting something new, but with years of experience behind her. The next chapter may bring different challenges, customers, and opportunities, yet the underlying principle remains unchanged: every business needs someone willing to begin.
For anyone building a business today, the lesson is straightforward. Do not underestimate the importance of your first customer or your smallest milestone. Those early moments may eventually become the foundation of something much bigger.
Here is to the next first payment, the next customer, and the next opportunity to build something meaningful.
