Building a Thrift Community for Baby Essentials: The Story of Anisha & My Thrift Baby Loot
A simple decluttering effort on social media turned into a thriving thrift community for moms. That’s how Anisha built "My Thrift Baby Loot"! Read more about her journey here.
Anisha Kapur Shetty, founder of My Thrift Baby Loot, is on a mission to make thrifting for baby essentials mainstream in India. What started as a personal decluttering project soon turned into a thriving community of 23,000+ moms embracing sustainable parenting.
A former actor turned entrepreneur, Anisha’s journey has been nothing short of inspiring. Her impact has been recognised with the SheThePeople Award and Her Circle Bizruptor of the Year Award, which celebrates her efforts in building a purposeful and community-driven business.
For almost two decades, I lived in the world of lights, cameras, and action. Acting was my passion, my career, and a huge part of who I was. But everything changed when I was pregnant with my son. Television’s crazy schedules didn’t align with the kind of motherhood I wanted to experience, so I made the tough decision to step back.
The Shopping Spree That Started It All
Like most first-time parents, I went all out when shopping for my baby. I wanted the best of everything. But babies grow fast, and soon, I found myself buried under piles of barely used clothes, toys, and essentials. I tried giving them away to family and friends. When my second child came along, I reused as much as possible, but the pile still kept growing.
That’s when I thought- why not list some of these items online and see if anyone else could use them? I started a simple social media page, pricing everything at a fraction of the original cost, hoping it would help me declutter.
I wasn’t prepared for what happened next.
When One Mom’s Clutter Became a Community’s Need
What started as a personal experiment quickly struck a chord with other moms. Many reached out asking if they could sell their own baby items, too. That’s when it hit me- this wasn’t just my problem; it was something many moms were dealing with. There was a gap in the market. While some moms were selling through social media pages, there was no structured, organised platform for it.
That’s when the idea took shape, and My Thrift Baby Loot was born- my third baby!
The response was overwhelming. Orders poured in, and soon, managing everything through social media and Excel sheets became chaotic. I knew I had to automate the process. The challenge? I had zero background in building a business or handling tech. But I did have one huge advantage- I was a mom myself. I knew exactly what my customers needed.
I took a leap and outsourced the development of a basic platform. It was a pilot, an experiment to test the waters. There were plenty of lessons along the way- things that worked, things that didn’t. And even now, I’m still refining and improving the process, taking baby steps every day.
The Challenges No One Talks About
Building this hasn’t been a fast-paced success story but rather a steady, evolving journey.
Thrifting is still a relatively new concept in India. While hand-me-downs from family members have always been a common practice, many parents still hesitate to buy pre-loved baby items from strangers. A mindset shift is needed- one that moves beyond the stigma of secondhand goods and embraces sustainability, affordability, and practicality.
A big part of my journey has been spreading awareness and normalising this concept. I know it’s not an overnight shift, but seeing more and more parents embrace this idea motivates me to keep pushing forward.
Logistics, too, has been a challenge. My Thrift Baby Loot isn’t just a local marketplace- it connects moms from all over India. Managing deliveries from one home to another across cities adds complexity, but I’m figuring it out, one problem at a time.
Juggling Motherhood & Entrepreneurship
Running a business while being a mom is a different kind of challenge. It’s a constant juggling act- deciding what needs immediate attention and focusing on that while everything else takes a back seat.
Some days, I go to bed at 2 AM, wake up at 6 AM and keep going. There are moments when exhaustion takes over, but there are also moments of pride- like when my 11-year-old son starts coming up with his own business ideas, inspired by watching me build something from scratch.
My Advice to New Founders
One thing I’ve learned is that upskilling is key. Somehow, after school and college, we assume we’ve learned enough, but the world is constantly evolving. When I started My Thrift Baby Loot, I realised just how much I didn’t know. I read tons of books, took online courses, and studied more than my kids! My husband jokes that out of the three students in our home, I probably study the most.
For any woman out there thinking, “I don’t have the skills to build something”, my advice is simple: Just pick up a book and start. There’s nothing in this world you can’t learn or unlearn. Taking the first step is never easy, but it’s always worth it.
It's slightly unrelated, but I also learned the hard way that outsourcing doesn’t mean handing things off blindly. Delegation only works when you know what you’re asking for. As a solo founder, I had to learn to be clear about my vision before expecting others to execute it. Building My Thrift Baby Loot has been a constant learning process, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Finding Joy in the Journey
For me, every milestone- big or small- is a reason to celebrate. Whether it was launching the first version of my website, officially registering my company, or reaching 23,000 moms on social media, I made sure to pause and appreciate how far I’ve come.
Despite leaving behind a successful acting career, I have no regrets. The entrepreneurial path is challenging- there are days when it feels like a thankless job, working endlessly without immediate returns. But I’m grateful for my support system, which keeps me grounded. My background in acting has helped me connect with people, build trust, and grow a community.
My favourite part of being a founder is interacting with other moms. Hearing their feedback after a successful order and knowing I’ve made a difference in their lives keeps me going.
If Not This, Then What?
If I weren’t doing this, I’d probably go back to my corporate job as a research analyst. But honestly? I can’t imagine doing anything else right now. I’m exactly where I need to be, building something meaningful.
My journey from acting to entrepreneurship was never planned, but sometimes, the best things in life aren’t.
At Razorpay Rize, we love stories like Anisha Kapur Shetty’s, which are real, raw, and inspiring. She took something every parent struggles with- clutter of baby stuff- and turned it into a thriving mom community built on trust, sustainability, and shared experiences.
Some founders start with a plan. Others, like Anisha, start with a need and end up building something truly special. She learned on the go, tackled challenges head-on, and stayed true to her mission of making thrifting for baby essentials accessible in India.
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