Here are five motivational women entrepreneurs of Kerala in 2025 – each doing something different, overcoming obstacles, and paving the way for others.
1. Maria Kuriakose — Founder, Thenga
- What she does: Maria started Thenga (2019), an eco-entrepreneurship company in Thrissur. It converts waste coconut shells into kitchenware, tableware, décor & lifestyle products.
- Impact & scale: Locally handcrafted by artisans (most of whom are women), the focus is on sustainable material and traditional craftsmanship. Thenga currently exports to markets outside Kerala, including international clients through its online portal.
- Challenges she overcame: Maria quit her corporate career in Mumbai to follow this route. Early challenges were sourcing regular raw materials (coconut shells), handling artisans, selling natural products, and finding acceptance for green design.
- Why she is inspiring: She integrates sustainability, women’s work, preservation of crafts, and business skills. Her business is a testament to how local material + intention + design + hard work can become sustainable, scalable businesses.
Also read: Adwaita Nayar Biography
2. Rani Sunny — Entrepreneur, Eden Jackfruit Products
- What she does: Idukki resident Rani Sunny started Eden Jackfruit Products, converting jackfruit (in plentiful supply in her area) into foodstuffs and traditional foods.
- Background & growth: A homemaker with pre-degree schooling, she used local materials and traditional expertise. Her venture now generates approximately ₹12 lakh per year.
- Importance: Her case illustrates that entrepreneurship should not rely solely on formal education or metropolitan privilege. She proves that rural/agricultural resources and available local food culture can be leveraged into sustainable businesses.
3. Arunakshi — ViFlowers founder
- What she does: Arunakshi began ViFlowers, creating pillows and beds (house furnishings) from an industrial unit near Kanhangad, Kasaragod.
- Journey: She began at 42 years old, overcame personal challenges (financial, family, health), and struggled to get bank loans. Nevertheless, she developed the business to a turnover of over ₹1.5 crore.
- Why this matters: A late-start entrepreneur who challenged social norms. She demonstrates that age or traditional career tracks are not the only measurement of success.
4. Large Women-Led & Grassroots Initiatives — Collectives & Support Systems
Apart from individual entrepreneurs, Kerala boasts numerous women-run collectives and organizations that themselves are entrepreneurship narratives:
- The Subicsha initiative (Perambra block panchayat + IIM Kozhikode) engages 588 self-help / Kudumbashree women’s groups to construct microenterprises from coconut and vegetable products.
- Greenaura International, begun by a home maker at Thrissur (Sumila Jayaraj), which grew from the manufacture of virgin coconut oil to 13 coconut-based products (milk, desiccated coconut, beauty, foodstuffs) from a small shed.
These instances demonstrate entrepreneurship not as an individual success story, but as community-driven, resource-based and inclusive.
5. Sheila Kochouseph Chittilapally & Beena Kannan — Leaders in Traditional Retail & Fashion
- Sheila Kochouseph Chittilapally: Managing Director of V-Star Creations, a lingerie/innerwear company. From boutique work, grew into a successful, crores-valued business, with mass rural employment through a supply/tailor network.
- Beena Kannan: Head of Seematti, a highly popular saree retail and design company, with ethnic fashion, spread across Kerala, designing exclusives, always one step ahead of fashion.
These entrepreneurs exhibit resilience in competitive, conservative, and in many instances, supply-chain dominated markets. They integrate design, branding, growth, jobs, and retain cultural identity.
Key Lessons & What Makes Them Special
- Utilization of local materials & craft: Several converted waste or under-used material (coconut shells, jackfruit, local fabric) into value-added commodities.
- Empowerment of women: Many hire local women, offer flexible terms, restore traditional crafts.
- Risk-taking & resilience: Leaving secure jobs, coping with rejections, working with low finances.
- Tradition + innovation: Merging tech, design, marketing with culture, heritage, sustainability.
- Support from the ecosystem: From government / panchayat initiatives (Kudumbashree, STARTUP Missions), SHGs, grants and expos.
Also read: https://everythingbollywood.in/top-10-universities-in-gujarat-in-2025/
