Best Bargains owner makes top entrepreneur list

by eyetee | November 15, 2010 12:00 am

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Rajeshwari Agrawal, owner of Best Bargains Jewellery in Toronto, has been named to PROFIT magazine’s W100 list of Canada’s Top Women Entrepreneurs 2010.

“It’s an honour to be recognized as a small business owner and Canadian manufacturer,” says Agrawal, who credits her husband, daughters, and staff for the company’s success. “I’m very proud we were the only Canadian jewellery manufacturing company on the list. I think this gives us optimism, considering the jewellery sector has been one of the hardest hit over the last three years during this global recession. This year has been an exciting year for all of us at Best Bargains, where we celebrate 20 years in the jewellery industry.”

The W100 list ranks entrepreneurs based on the size, growth rate, and profitability of their businesses.

After earning a bachelor of arts in economics and a masters in Hindi literature, Rajeshwari emigrated to Canada from India in 1976 with her husband. She spent the next four years raising her family before taking a position at a daycare. Two years later, Rajeshwari earned a business diploma from Calgary’s Henderson College of Business. From 1984 to 1990, she worked for several small businesses and non-profit organizations as a bookkeeper and data entry clerk.

In 1990, Rajeshwari started Best Bargains out of her home, importing and exporting affordable silver and gold jewellery. It wasn’t long before she realized she could manufacture similar jewellery in Canada at comparable prices. Five years later, Rajeshwari relocated the company—which is known for the 50 or so trade shows it attends every year—to the heart of the jewellery district in Toronto, where the business continues to operate.

Ellen Kral, publisher of Jewellery Business (Kenilworth Media Inc.), was also named one of Canada’s Top Women Entrepreneurs 2010 by PROFIT magazine. Kenilworth is a full-service media firm whose magazines represent a diverse cross-section of some of North America’s leading sectors, including franchising, jewellery, signage, and backyard leisure living.

Source URL: https://www.jewellerybusiness.com/news/best-bargains-owner-makes-top-entrepreneur-list/