For many young Nepali creators, getting a visa approved feels like the gateway to a bigger life. For Prasuna Thapa, a 22-year-old from Kathmandu, that gateway slammed shut in an instant. But instead of letting the rejection break her spirit, she used it as the spark that ignited one of Nepal’s most inspiring new fashion brands.
Today, her label is quietly becoming a favorite among young Nepali women who love culturally rooted outfits with a modern, wearable twist. This is the story of how a single “no” led to a life-changing “yes.”
The Moment Everything Changed
After months of preparing documents, saving money, collecting letters and pouring her hopes into a study visa application, Prasuna heard the words she feared most: Visa Rejected.
For a moment, everything felt like it collapsed — the dream, the plan, the future. But once the shock faded, something unexpected happened. She began thinking about staying instead of escaping, building instead of waiting, and creating instead of depending on foreign opportunities.
That internal shift led to the beginning of her business journey.
The Birth of Prasuna Clo
With the money she had saved for her visa and flight, Prasuna launched her clothing brand Prasuna Clo from a small storage room in her home. The room was cramped, stacked with bundles of fabric, shelves overflowing with stitched pieces and unstitched materials, and a small corner where she kept a notebook for orders and accounts.
Her mission was simple but bold:
Create comfortable, affordable and culturally inspired Nepali fashion that today’s youth would actually wear.
She started with:
- Tailored kurta sets
- Elegant printed co-ord sets
- Soft cotton loungewear
- Festive wear inspired by traditional Nepali motifs
Every design was personally sketched by her. Every fabric was sourced locally. Every order was packed by her own hands.
The Struggle Behind the Scenes
In the beginning, business was far from glamorous. Prasuna handled everything alone:
- Visiting wholesale markets for fabric
- Negotiating with tailors for stitching
- Quality checking every piece
- Packing and dispatching orders
- Shooting product pictures on her phone
- Editing reels late at night
- Answering customer queries between meals
- Maintaining accounts in a simple notebook
Her first few sales came from friends, neighbors and Instagram followers. Slowly, word spread about her dedication and unique aesthetic.
Social Media Became Her Superpower
As Prasuna’s journey unfolded, social media quickly became her biggest strength. She didn’t depend on paid ads or expensive marketing agencies; instead, she relied on honest and consistent storytelling. Her reels captured the real hustle behind her brand: a tiny workspace filled with fabric bundles, stacks of newly stitched clothing, and quiet moments where she planned upcoming designs in her notebook. She shared behind-the-scenes tailoring sessions, late-night packing routines, and heartfelt clips of real customers wearing her outfits. This level of transparency built a strong sense of trust. People weren’t just buying her clothing — they were connecting with her resilience, her cultural roots and the authenticity in her process. Within months, her Instagram page gained organic visibility, engagement shot up and repeat customers started becoming her core community. What began as a small homegrown project soon grew into a national conversation starter.
Scaling the Brand
As orders increased, Prasuna’s responsibilities multiplied, pushing her to grow beyond a one-woman operation. Slowly, she formed a small team by hiring skilled local tailors, bringing in a part-time quality checker and adding a packaging assistant to manage rising demand. At the same time, she elevated her brand’s identity by launching limited-edition festive collections, offering custom-fit kurti and suit options, expanding into size-inclusive designs, and introducing a clear return-and-exchange policy. She even upgraded her packaging to more polished, branded wraps that matched the aesthetic of Prasuna Clo. With time, her cramped workroom transformed into a more organized studio featuring cutting tables, fabric storage racks and an efficient production setup. Today, Prasuna Clo ships across Nepal and consistently receives inquiries from India and the Middle East, proving how far a determined creator can go with vision, grit and consistency.
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