Building a Home DIY culture in India

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Current Challenge

Creating and maintaining a beautiful home involves multiple tiny tasks. Finding a good, reliable and trust worthy handyman is a challenge in the city (even in tier 2 and tier 3) Even if you found one that can do all that you need him to do, you have to line up work, get supplies, know what supplies are needed, project manage all of the tiny work and pray that the guy shows up on time and does the job in a satisfactory manner. A brand like Urban company helps in that matter to some extent. but the service is expensive on weekends, the handyman scheduled comes on a tight timeline and if anyone is a maximalist like me and has quite a few things to put up, the bill is long.

Scenario 1: I had to create a gallery wall for a store which had close to 50 pieces going on the wall. The client had set up a carpenter to come at the cost of 1000/- per day. He cancelled last minute, and she had to book Urban company. The job took 2 hours to put all 50+ pieces, he needed to drill 1 or 2 holes depending on the type of painting. At 49/- per hole, the bill was a little under 5000/- (5 times of what would cost to have a carpenter full day)

Scenario 2: Same situation, carpenter did not show up on the said day, had to book Urban company. A few shelves were installed and the girl from the store called me to say there was a hinge that had come loose and since the carpenter was there, can she get it fixed. I asked her to go ahead. 99/- added to the final bill (Hinge fixing) it was literally tightening 2 screws and under 30 seconds job with the drill machine. Super silly! Could have been handled by the staff there.

Scenario 3: An artist ordered an Ikea table for her studio corner so she can finally have a dedicated space to work. Located in a place where no Urban Company service is available. She had to wait almost for a month for her husband to have to time and the mood to assemble her table. Despite Instructions, tools and accessories being included in the kit by Ikea. She did not think she could handle it.

Also, for a DIY enthusiast, there are millions of DIY videos on Youtube, thanks to the DIY culture in the west. But to find products that are equivalent of what is sold in the west, is a challenge.

The Idea

To build a site that teaches basics of everything you need to know to create and maintain your home the way you would like to and at your own pace and on your own terms. There will be modules according to specific areas in the home that will explain the most basic things in simple terms, list products that are locally available in India, talk about pros and cons and also when you need professional help and when DIY works.

Scenario 1: The kitchen sink is leaking and water is pouring out from bottom of the cabinet. What could be the issue? What are the things that you can do to diagnose and fix the issue? You followed the instructions you saw on the site and fixed the issue. or you followed all the process and the leak is not fixed, now is the time to call a plumber.

Scenario 2: The Kitchen counter grout is chipped off, water is leaking into the cabinetry. You know there is a video on kitchen grout fixing on the site, depending on what kind of counter top you have, black granite, colored granite, quartz etc, there are instructions on how to remove the old grout, clean the area, what kind of grout to use, brands of grout, different color grout options, how to mix grout, how to apply, curing time, maintenance and even how to store the excess grout you have and also DIY project you can attempt if you don’t want to store it.

Scenario 3: You want to paint an accent wall and create a gallery wall. You find a video on how to do that on the site. The video has instructions on how to remove existing nails and screws, patch the hole, what to use to patch the hole, how to prime and paint the wall, what kind of paints to use, how long to wait between coats depending on the weather condition in your city and how to ensure a good professional finish. Once that’s done, you go to a video that is talking about art and paintings and see what kind of hardware you need to hang what you have in mind, what tools are needed, what to use if you don’t want to use a drill machine and how to space your art so it looks good together. Its detailed, seems easy, now you have the confidence to do it yourself.

The site will have 10 to 15 modules with basics of everything that you can safely handle on your own without having to depend on another person. Example

  • Everything you need to know to paint and maintain a wall
  • Everything you can handle yourself in electrical work (not wiring issues, more like fix a plug, wire a table lamp,etc)
  • Basics of plumbing
  • Basics of furniture
  • Tools for a DIY enthusiast
  • Organizing
  • Cleaning and Maintaining
  • Installing art, paintings and gallery wall
  • Basics of carpets and soft furnishings
  • Basics of Upholstery
  • Furniture and accessories painting
  • Styling
  • Everything you need to know when shopping for Home Decor
  • Basics of wallpaper

Target Audience:

Women, DIY enthusiasts, People who do not have the budget to hire professional designers or stylists.

The Revenue Model

All of the content will be offered as a membership model. 3, 6 and 12 months membership. Individuals can also purchase each module separately if they wish to and have lifetime access to that one module. For example, if there are 15 modules and assuming each module will be prices at 1500/- each. Members can gain access to all 15 for a year by paying a membership of maybe 5000/- (not decided yet) which individually purchased will cost 22500/-

Additionally, the site will also have specialty courses like Ikebana making, Mosaic art, Restoration of antiques, Making a table lamp etc. which will be again available for anyone who wishes to buy them individually.

Members who buy the 12 months membership, will get access to one specialty course every month for free (decided by me, same course available to everyone). So 12 specialty courses over the period of 12 months.

Conclusion

India has a tiny population of people who have the means to hire an interior decorator or stylist, but the majority fall outside of that. Whether someone is living in a sheet roof one room home or a decent apartment, everyone needs to have access to good design and home advise.

For those who have no money to spend at all, they can find good, unbiased advise on my blog, social channels and Youtube. Those who can spare a few hundreds can buy structured ebooks, with information collated in one place for easy access. Those who can spare a little more can buy memberships. There will be no compromise in the content, audience pays only for the convenience of having it all in one place.