How I Made The Career Shift From Investment Analyst To Fashion CEO
Eshita Kabra-Davies, founder of fashion rental platform By Rotation, wasn’t always such an influential figure in the industry. Back in 2019, she was an investment analyst with a vision and a dedication to her side hustle. Here’s how she laid the ground work and, ultimately, made the jump from finance to fashion.
What was the pivotal moment that inspired you to transition away from finance?
While I was planning my honeymoon to Rajasthan, India – where I was born – I started thinking about my packing list for the trip and realised there was a gap in the market in the UK for renting fashion. It was during my actual honeymoon when I witnessed first-hand the effects of textile waste in my suburban hometown and what it was doing to my fellow Indians that I had an epiphany for a community-oriented social marketplace for renting fashion. Akin to other sharing economy startups such as Airbnb and Uber, By Rotation was born.
How does By Rotation’s mission resonate with you on a personal level?
While I was born in Rajasthan, India – known for its textile mills and artisanship – I grew up in Singapore, the city-state very well-known for its stretch of shopping malls and consumerism (a la Crazy Rich Asians)! I never diagnosed myself then, but I can see now that I was a shopaholic until I founded By Rotation: confused about my personal style along with my lack of taste, and so indulged in any opportunity I had to experiment with fashion.
Tenacity is the single most important trait you need when set out on your entrepreneurship journey, and even more so if you are a solo founder.
How did you balance your time between being an investment analyst and your (then) side hustle?
I didn’t have much of a work-life balance, but that is what I was seeking – a challenge, a higher purpose and something more than my regular career in investments, pilates and brunch on the weekend, and working towards summer holidays and bonus season. I used my evenings and weekends to attend networking events within the fashion and sustainability realms and the remainder of the time to start building our platform – the By Rotation app – and grassroots community-building.
What are some lessons you’ve learnt (the hard way, or otherwise) from being an entrepreneur?
Tenacity is the single most important trait you need when set out on your entrepreneurship journey, and even more so if you are a solo founder. The good days are good, but the tough days are very, very painful – because it is all very personal, and you will be obsessed with your business. So I think you really have to be a bit of a masochist to be an entrepreneur.
This also brings me to my other observation: Thanks or no thanks to the new age of media, there is an over-glamourisation of entrepreneurs… It’s important to ask yourself, what is the real reason you want to become an entrepreneur? Is it to build something that consumers truly value and couldn’t live without, or is it for fame?
Fashion and sustainability seem like vastly different industries from finance. What are some of the biggest challenges you faced during your career transition, and how did you overcome them?
Both fashion and sustainability in the UK are notoriously difficult to break into: until recent, they were predominantly white spaces where I stuck out like a sore thumb – I didn’t look like them, I didn’t speak like them (besides having a fairly American/international accent, I also spoke less about fashion designers and more about considering regular paying customers), I didn’t sometimes share the same values as them. I realised quickly not to waste my time trying to break into circles that kept sharp elbows, but instead embrace the people that made room for me. Finding your tribe is key when moving from one challenging industry into another.
I realised quickly not to waste my time trying to break into circles that kept sharp elbows, but instead embrace the people that made room for me.
Another challenge many solo, first-time, female and people of colour founders face is the limited access to funding. It’s a well-published statistic that less than 2% of institutional, venture capital funding goes to female founders in the UK. While By Rotation is venture capital-backed, I found the conversations around the problematic fundraising environment in early-stage fundraising to be obsessed with the amount of capital raised, as opposed to actually creating commercially-viable and society-positive businesses. As an ex-investor, I also found it confusing that founders were celebrating raising tons of money while giving up large ownership stakes and control of their businesses. My approach, therefore, is to be self-sufficient as a business and focus on product and customers at all times. The rest will fall into place naturally, just watch the investors come knocking!
Finding your tribe is key when moving from one challenging industry into another.
What advice do you have for anyone else considering making a career change?
Do a cost-benefit analysis and figure out if the new path will be as fulfilling (both in quality and quantity) as the existing. If it is going to be, at the very least, as fulfilling then go for it! Life is too short to live with regrets and feelings of “what could have been” – make a well-informed plan and start jumping in.
Can you share one of your biggest ‘pinch me’ moments so far?
Ellie Goulding sharing her wardrobe with our Rotators in both the UK and US – I mean, she’s a huge proponent for sustainability and climate action… and then there is my dream collaboration which is coming this summer!
What’s in store for you and By Rotation in 2024?
2024 will be a year for more exciting app features (you can now rent from your neighbours!), new categories (you can now rent baby-related items like the Artipoppe carriers!) and a renewed focus on our community at a very grassroots level.
I’m finally achieving more work-life balance… I even set quarterly goals for my personal life!
And for me personally? I’m finally achieving more work-life balance… I even set quarterly goals for my personal life! I’m excited to be travelling more this summer and getting back in shape to feel more like my old, investment analyst self – except with a career and life calling that truly makes an impact.
