Balancing Books and Business: Aashraya’s Entrepreneurial Odyssey

Aashraya Adhikari, a 3rd-year international student from Nepal at Ashoka University, has made a name for himself both as a young entrepreneur and as a content creator. With a focus on Economics, Finance, and Entrepreneurship, Aashraya is also the Founding CEO of Lovsy, a startup dedicated to bringing the Nepali hog plum (Lapsi) candy to a broader audience. His entrepreneurial journey started quite early, as he was the youngest contestant on Nepal’s startup pitching competition, Ideapreneur. In addition to Lovsy, he is a passionate content creator and has posted multiple videos on entrepreneurship and economics on YouTube and TikTok in Nepali, aiming to inspire and educate others.

Aashraya started Lovsy along with Suprabh Raj Joshi, a 2nd year international student from Nepal studying Sociology and Anthropology, Environment Science and Entrepreneurship at Ashoka University. Suprabh is the founding COO of Lovsy. He has a history of trying to start businesses, mainly The Kapada Company, a nepali hemp clothing line. He is a passionate musician with over 5 original singles on spotify.

In a candid chat with us, Aashraya shares about his passion for entrepreneurship, his venture Lovsy, and the inspiration behind his entrepreneurial path at Ashoka University.

Can you walk us through your journey of starting your venture and what sparked your interest in entrepreneurship?
Lovsy started in the 2023 iteration of the CfE’s Startup Ashoka. We both grew up eating Nepali hog plum candies and took great pride in being Nepali. This shared interest and background led us to believe that having a brand around the Lapsi and its products could help the fruit reach the world, which otherwise was deeply neglected. After pitching the startup in the event, and placing 4th, we decided to pursue it properly.

How did Ashoka’s liberal arts education contribute to the development of your entrepreneurial mindset?
Ashoka’s pedagogy has allowed both of us to embrace criticality to a great extent. Having the option to study multiple disciplines has allowed us to grow holistically. Our research abilities in the past years have reached new heights allowing us to pursue the start-up in a more systematic and strategic way. Additionally, training in multiple disciplines has allowed us to think in ways, which we didn’t before coming to Ashoka. This has enabled us to pick and choose from different disciplines the specific skills we like and pragmatically use them in the real world.

What were the major challenges you encountered while launching your venture, and how did you address them?
After reaching a certain scale, entrepreneurs have to reach out for external help. We were doing all of our packaging, branding and selling. While this meant we had full control in the company’s operations, we also stopped having time to do academics and other things on campus. Packaging became a big problem for us, as we were packing over 500+ packets by hand. We solved this problem by reaching out to the Spread Smile Foundation in Sonipat and assigning our packaging to marginalised women.

How do you manage the challenges of running a venture while also balancing your academic responsibilities?
Our contrasting yet complementary skills allowed us to balance the demands of running Lovsy on campus with academics. A big part of how we have sustained ourselves is our teamwork and interesting compatibility. Additionally, we understand our priorities and can pick and choose when necessary.

What key advice would you give to students or alumni who are considering starting their own businesses, based on your personal experiences and insights?
We think the only thing that matters is to try and do it with consistency. Things don’t always work out especially on campus as there are so many factors at play, but working hard and consistently for an extended period of time matters the most. Additionally, one needs to be able to make the best use of all the resources the Ashoka University campus provides us with. It is a great place for anybody willing to start something.

What positive change do you hope to make with your venture?
There are three ways we feel we are making some kind of impact:

• Lovsy works with marginalised women both in Nepal and Sonipat, enabling women’s empowerment as well as the creation of an equitable society.
• We are trying our best to showcase that entrepreneurship can be a career path for Nepali youth and if done systematically, can be a great career choice for all.
• We are also taking the Lapsi to the world, which otherwise was neglected by farmers as well as the government in terms of protection and policy.

About Lovsy:

Lovsy is a brand founded by passionate young Nepali entrepreneurs with the vision of bringing products made from the exotic Himalayan fruit, Lapsi, to a global audience. Initially focusing on handmade candies, Lovsy aims to showcase authentic Himalayan delicacies and introduce the unique flavours of the region to the world.