An electronics engineer by profession, Anandan Palanisamy always had a deep-rooted connection to agriculture stemming from his family's agricultural background. After years of running a company that supplies semiconductor chips to electronics manufacturers, he found himself longing for something more fulfilling, something that takes him back to his roots. In 2016, he moved back to his hometown, Namakkal, and started organic farming.
"Ultimately, we work so hard to put food on the table, so that food should be of good quality. That's why I turned my attention to agriculture," Anand reflected.
The business
Near the scenic Kolli Hills in Tamil Nadu, Anand began practicing farming. In 2018, he launched Ulavar Anand, an organic store focused on selling organic products, predominantly indigenous seeds.
"Farmers generally buy seeds from the market for growing their crops, but we wanted to offer authentic seeds that are native and sourced directly from farmers' produce," Anand explained.
Today, Ulavar Anand owns a community seed bank with a collection of over 400 indigenous seed varieties, ranging from greens and vegetables to millets and tree seeds. However, Anand’s vision was much more than just a local store.
"I didn't want our produce to be limited to my locality. I wanted to reach a wider audience," said Anand. As he pondered over this idea, he met a challenge that pushed him to adopt an organized system.
The challenge
During the COVID-19 lockdown, home gardening became a popular hobby among Indians. Around that time, Anand gave an interview about organic farming in Pasumai Vikatan, a local magazine. It immediately went viral; the demand for his native seeds grew, and orders began to flood in. Managing them through WhatsApp became overwhelming.
"We were sending product catalogs as PDFs on WhatsApp, and the process involved at least five back-and-forth conversations with each customer before a purchase was made." explained Anand.
This not only delayed transactions but also made it difficult to provide timely support, especially when orders and inquiries arrived late at night. The inefficiency was evident, and the engineer-turned-farmer knew he needed to automate and streamline the process.
The solution
Already familiar with Zoho through Zoho Books, Anand decided to give Zoho Commerce a try.
"Other ecommerce platforms were either too expensive or required technical expertise. Zoho Commerce, on the other hand, fit my budget like a dream, offered all the functionalities I needed, and was incredibly easy to use."
— Anandan Palanisamy, Founder, Ulavar Anand
With Zoho Commerce, Anand was able to build his business online from the ground up without needing any coding knowledge or third-party apps. The platform automated his entire operation, from listing products to tracking deliveries, freeing him from the manual processes that once bogged him down.
"The user-friendly interface and the tight integration with Zoho Books made it easy for me to run my business on the platform," he shared. "I was able to manage everything myself, with unfailing support from the Zoho Commerce team."
Zoho Commerce also improved Ulavar Anand's overall customer experience. If customers inquired about their orders, the team could easily access the order history within the application and provide quick responses. Previously, this was a challenge when customers contacted them from different phone numbers.
"Zoho Commerce also automatically recommends other products our customers might be interested in, beyond what they initially came for," Anand added. "This has amped up our chances of increasing order value and improved our revenue stream."
Today, Ulavar Anand's customer base is spread across South India, with loyal customers now purchasing internationally as well.
The results
The adoption of Zoho Commerce brought immediate and tangible benefits to Ulavar Anand.
“Before Zoho Commerce, it took at least 3 days for a customer to complete a purchase. Now, transactions happen within minutes,” Anand shared. Ulavar Anand's online store now serves thousands of customers simultaneously, allowing them to make their purchases without waiting.
"Zoho Commerce has saved me so much time and resources. It's like having an extra team of staff handling everything from product listing to shipping around the clock at a much lower cost."
— Anandan Palanisamy, Founder, Ulavar Anand
Ulavar Anand's online store, powered by Zoho Commerce, now ranks among the top search results on the internet, too.
"The in-built SEO capabilities are outstanding," Anand began proudly. "A friend of mine in the USA searched for native seeds in India, and our website appeared among the top searches. Thanks to Zoho Commerce, our online store's visibility has increased significantly without any paid promotions."
The platform not only improved Ulavar Anand's efficiency but also enhanced customer trust. The secure payment process and instant acknowledgment boosted customer confidence, leading to higher sales.
"Our customer base, order volume, and overall revenue have all increased after moving to Zoho Commerce. Our business has grown by 40%," noted Anand.
Looking ahead
Ulavar Anand is looking to broaden their product range by introducing agricultural tools, herbal products, and organic beauty care items.
By adopting more tools from Zoho and optimizing their business operations further, Ulavar Anand aims to become the number one provider for native seeds and organic products in India. They also plan to double their turnover next year.
"When I choose a software for my business, I carefully consider what I need for the next five years before making a decision. With Zoho, we're confident that the applications will continue to evolve with regular updates to the UI and features."
— Anandan Palanisamy, Founder, Ulavar Anand
Click here to check out their website.