AN INTERVIEW WITH 

Mahin Eshita

Everyone can relate to Mahin’s first step to becoming an entrepreneur – the desire to work only for yourself and no one else! That’s right, no 9 to 5 job, no boss sending emails at 9pm and working on your own terms.

Born in Dhaka and now living in Melbourne, Mahin’s seen a lot of the world. She started an online shop, ABY Trading, selling kitchen items and homewares nine years ago and now delivers to customers across the globe. But what makes her tick the most? Making sure she’s happy, every single day.

Where were you born and raised?

I was born in Dhaka, Bangladesh, but because of my Dad’s work we traveled a lot, my first school was in London and then multiple cities across Bangladesh including and mostly in Dhaka.

Where do you live now?

I live in Melbourne, Australia now.

Family?  Marital status, kids, etc.?

I come from a small family – Mum, Dad and elder brother. Now I am married and live with my husband in Melbourne, Australia and don’t have any kids yet.

Age (if you dare!)?

I am at my mid-thirties and enjoying every bit of this age. ☺

Tell us about your background before you decided to become an entrepreneur?

Coming from a small family and raised as the only daughter, I was influenced to have good grades, finish my studies, get married and focus on a 9 to 5 job. But after working at a school for a couple of months I realized that I am not the type of person who likes to be told what to do every day. I would rather work on my own terms, because I want to, not because I have to. Then I started my first online store and started my entrepreneur’s journey from there in around 2012.

How did you make the decision to start your own business?

My mission has always been to be financially independent. I almost never worked for someone else (only a few months in a school) and I always wanted to be my own boss, but when I first started my online shop using Shopify years ago, I didn’t realize that I had to have a ‘proper business’. Later on, I formed my own company and started to learn about what a ‘business’ means and am still working on making a ‘system’ that can run with minimal involvement from myself. 

Primarily I want to support myself, my family and the world around me financially and through philanthropy work. Over the years I have realized that to make an impact, starting with myself and then my intimate family, money is a critical element – to be able to lead a lifestyle that I desire and make an impact bigger than myself and my family, which is essentially other people who need help.

Can you explain to our readers what your business is all about?

I believe in affordability, convenience and efficiency. That means my customers should be able to get products that are affordable for them, they can get them very easily with a simple click and we should be able to efficiently deliver the product to my customers on time without any damage. 

That’s why I partnered with the world’s largest online retailer Amazon to sell and fulfill my products with the best available options in the world for my customers. We primarily sell kitchen and home-ware products through multiple online channels including Amazon.

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What was happening in your life and business when you first realized you needed to invest in personal development to make it to the next level of success?

At the first stage of my business I started to study what other successful entrepreneurs do to keep their work life in harmony and also be fulfilled with philanthropy work. All they have in common is one thing – that they read lots of books (not only blogs, podcasts) and they always invest first in personal development. Before hitting a rough patch I started to invest in my personal development to make my journey as smooth as possible.

What aspects of your business do you find the most challenging?

To keep the same momentum of growth. Sometimes, it is really hard to keep my 100% focus on one thing as so many things in my business can easily get me distracted.

What aspects of your business do you find the most rewarding? I love my business journey when I hit any complicated target or even any small goals, because I believe big success is a combination of small goals. So achieving every goal is rewarding.

What is your approach to work/life balance?

For me, it is work/life harmony (I learned it from Jeff Bezos) and I define it as when I know my priorities and at the same time my surroundings (my business and personal lives) are on the same page and growing together in harmony.

What do you do to keep your sanity?

Normally to keep my sanity, I focus on my happiness first. If I am not happy, nothing is going to be harmonious. I do what makes me happy every day and try to avoid negative energy.

Things that are just for “me time”?

Just for “me time”, I have black tea next to my plants and also write my gratitude journal every night.

What lessons have you most learned through your journey as a woman entrepreneur?

That you have to be okay with your failures and be proud of it. You cannot let other people get into your mind that if you are a woman you can’t do it or you can’t fail.

What’s next on the docket for your business growth goals?

Focusing on creating a women-only team for my business who can have harmony in their business life at same time as their personal life and I can help them grow.

What skills are next on your deck to learn? Learning leadership skills to keep my team growing, so they can not only be fulfilled at work but also in life.

Any advice or tips to share with our audience on how “ordinary” women can do extraordinary things?  

You can start living your extraordinary life when you start to believe that “no one can define you, except you’’. It always starts with you.

QUICK FACTS

about Mahin

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BUSINESS:
ABY Trading LLC

LOCATION:
Melbourne, Australia

FAMILY:
Married 14 years

AGE:
Mid-thirties

WEBSITE:
www.abytrading.com

SOCIAL HANDLES:
mahin.eshita.98