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Akanksha Couture: From a School Project to a Growing Fashion Brand
For Maloo Sanal, co-founder of Akanksha Couture, entrepreneurship began much earlier than she expected. A small business project in 12th grade gave her the first taste of creating and selling something of her own. That experience stayed with her.
• Chaitra Divate • Category: Udyoginis Stories/ Stories
• 4 min read • Sept 12, 2026
How a 12th-Grade Project Sparked an Entrepreneurial Journey
For Maloo Sanal, co-founder of Akanksha Couture, entrepreneurship began much earlier than she expected. A small business project in 12th grade gave her the first taste of creating and selling something of her own. That experience stayed with her.
During her first year of LLB, Maloo and her sister decided to turn their shared interest in fashion into a business. That decision marked the beginning of Akanksha Couture—a fashion label built not from a long-term plan, but from curiosity, passion and the desire to create something independently.
Today, what started as a small idea has grown into a steadily expanding fashion business.
Building Akanksha Couture While Studying Law
Starting a fashion business during the first year of LLB came with its own challenges. Maloo had to balance academics with the demands of running a growing brand.
In the beginning, limited experience and resources meant that almost everything had to be figured out along the way. Without their own production unit, the sisters depended on external vendors. Finding skilled employees from different parts of the country and coordinating with them added another layer of complexity.
But these challenges became lessons in disguise.
With time, Akanksha Couture developed its own production unit, giving the brand greater control over its processes and growth. For Maloo, building the business from a small idea to a growing fashion brand has been one of her biggest achievements.
Reliability Is the Heart of the Fashion Brand
Ask Maloo what sets Akanksha Couture apart, and her answer is simple: reliability.
“We say what we’ll deliver, and we deliver exactly that.”
For her, becoming a trusted brand is more important than simply growing bigger. Customer confidence, clear communication and delivering on promises have played an important role in building the brand.
She has also learned that entrepreneurship is about balance. Maintaining healthy relationships with employees while knowing when to be firm, communicating honestly with customers and delegating responsibilities are all essential to running a sustainable business.
Why Maloo Sanal Never Considered Giving Up
There have been exhausting days, but Maloo says she has never seriously thought about giving up.
For her, Akanksha Couture is “our first child.”
When things become overwhelming, she chooses to work a little harder, plan ahead and bring clarity to what needs to be done. Building the business genuinely makes her happy. Even on difficult days, sitting down to work or planning the next step gives her a sense of peace.
Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women: Learning to Think Bigger
Her experience with the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Program gave Maloo a more structured perspective on entrepreneurship. One of her biggest takeaways was delegation—understanding that growth becomes possible when responsibilities are shared and the team is trusted.
The program also helped her become more comfortable with business finance and numbers, an area she once found challenging. The network of ambitious women entrepreneurs gave her new perspectives and motivation to think long-term.
The Future of Akanksha Couture
Over the next three to five years, Maloo envisions Akanksha Couture with more designs, a stronger team and a larger customer base.
Her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs is equally simple: you don’t have to know everything before you begin. There are people willing to guide you. We should be ready to learn every single day. Also something or the other will go wrong in the business everyday, we should have the resilience, discipline and courage to fix it.
If something genuinely excites you, she believes, it is worth giving it a chance.