Access to a dream

Two young women entrepreneurs Surekha Rao and Aditi Khandelwal belong to the same school of thought when it comes to ideas of having a good time. Graduates from the Stern School of Management, New York University (NYU), these two are not only friends but also co-founders of a portal called Accessed.

According to Surekha Rao and Aditi Khandelwal, their main focus is to provide unique experiences and offers to their members

But one may wonder why among many other start-up portals did we choose to write about this website in particular? Accessed is not just a website that focuses on good life but has many more offerings. Speaking to SUNDAY MiD DAY Rao says, "We started Accessed with a vision to provide people with various services and fun events all under one umbrella. It is a unique portal which has three primary platforms - experiences, offers and personalities."

"The first platform offers access to the city's best restaurants, clubs, bars, spas and gyms. The second has special events created by our portal or in association with event partners. The third one is till in its nascent stage and will provide members an opportunity to interact with noteworthy personalities through bidding. The amount collected from this would go as charity," adds the 25-year-old.

At the College War event, youngsters bartended for their family and friends

The portal has organises various event such as Girls Brunch at Vinetoca where girls were taught to make preparations such as Sangrias, Tapas and Salsa, Cocktail Wars at Cheval where the best cocktail with the names of the winners was featured on their menu for a month and College wars at The Irish House where members bartended for their friends and family and served them drinks made by themselves.

"It is very rare in Mumbai to find someone giving us opportunities to attend unique and fun events. I attended Accessed's College Wars and those are the kind of events I am going to keep looking forward to," says Summiyya Patni, member of the portal.

Yashita Suchde, a home-baker, knew how to make mouth-watering chocolates and indulgent brownies but wanted a platform to reach out to people with her desserts. This is where the website helped this damsel in distress.

"We had organised a Dessert Edition at Ave 29. We provided an interface to the home-bakers to feature their baking skills and get maximum exposure.

Hidden Treasures provides a platform to young entrepreneurs to showcase their business skills

Similarly, in yet another event, we gave a platform to young entrepreneurs below the age of 26 to showcase their business skills. We also offer services such as getting customised swimsuits and accessories from a Bandra-based brand Mezzaluna. All a person has to do is become a member of our website which is totally free, avail of our voucher and head to the shop. On becoming our member, they will not only get discounts on their purchase but their orders are delivered within 10 working days," says the 24-year-old, Khandelwal.

The portal is organising yet another event - The Status Style at the Intercontinental where young girls will get to glam up themselves, get their hair, nails and make-up done and head for a dome party where food and drinks are complimentary.u00a0

The website has already received tremendous response from people across the city. The two women entrepreneurs are confident about taking this business venture a long way. But making a mark for their brand in the market is no simple task. It has a lot of challenges.

"Accessed stemmed from very strong personal interests where we wanted to explore the E-commerce and experiential based businesses. It was a challenge to get good brands on board. People had their doubts whether two young girls could sustain in the market. But once we got these brands onboard and worked with them, they were happy with us. As partners, we do have differences of opinions but we respect each others' thoughts. Our purpose is to provide unique experiences and offers to be enjoyed by all. With the tremendous response we have received so far, we soon plan to expand to Delhi & Bangalore," conclude the ladies.u00a0