Day in the life of a business owner, Dina Mistry, The Playful Indian

Dina Mistry

Dina founded and runs The Playful Indian. Established in 2011, The Playful Indian is a small business that’s all about putting smiles on people’s faces in the form of funny, food-related greeting cards and gifts such as mugs, coasters, and more!

I set up my business because…

There was a lack of funny, modern Asian greeting cards, especially Diwali and Rakhi cards. I had the skills already (my background is in graphic design and illustration) so I thought why not design my own range?!

My heritage and lived experience have played a part in my career decisions… 

I love that I'm Indian, I mean, we have such good food! I think it’s important to know something about the amazing colorful celebrations we have to pass on to future generations. If I can do this by creating relatable, modern, and funny cards and gifts for occasions then I will continue. It was part of the reason I started this. 

A typical day for me…

I don’t really have a typical day. Usually, the gym sets me up for the day in the morning then I go to work and print and pack any orders that have come through. I will usually write a to-do list on a Monday and then transfer tasks into my diary so I know what I'm doing each day. This holds me accountable and I make sure I don’t miss any deadlines. There is always product development, website edits or social media content to be done too, and of course, answering emails. If I do feel inspired by ideas, then I will take advantage of that time and make some notes or sketches which I can come back to later. 

The biggest challenge of running my business is… 

Learning to deal with wearing all the hats! I had to learn so much. From photography to accounts to social media and admin. I think a lot of people think that having a creative business means you just create stuff but I bet 90% of the time we’re doing anything but being creative. Another challenge is that I've gone outside the cultural norm of parents’ expectations. My parents would have loved me to go into something medical or a more financially secure 9-5 job but I love what I do and I'm good at it. It's only in recent years that they see my love for it and support it. It's sometimes hard to explain the feeling as I guess they never would have thought that as an opportunity in their lives.

But the biggest reward is…

For me, the biggest reward is having the ability to make people smile with my work. I love that the cheesy puns can make people laugh and sometimes that’s all you need to make someone feel better. 

“Failure” in business isn’t always a bad thing…

I am a big believer that you need to make mistakes to learn in life. If you make mistakes it means you’re trying. 

The best career advice I’ve received was…

I don’t think I can recall any career advice that’s stuck with me. But, I do thank my college art teacher for encouraging me to be creative. If it wasn’t for him I might have gone down a whole different path. 

The advice I’d give to women / women of colour wanting to set up their own business is… 

Go for it but make sure you are able to deal with the struggle that comes with it. It’s a hard process, setting up your own business and the journey can be so up and down. You have to learn to be strong but if you have the passion for it, do it.  

The three qualities I think you need for this career are… 

Self-discipline, motivation, and persistence!

What I do to switch off…

Have a Netflix binge! Either that or find a creative art form that isn’t in front of a screen such as punch needle, drawing, or painting. I also love going to the gym which is usually how I start my days as it helps me with my mental health but also I find that I can think through problems or things that I need to figure out.  

You can shop the Playful Indian here.