Shivam Traders Co.

Shivam Traders Co. sits on the second floor of Shreeji Bhavan, which is at 51 Mangaldas Road. If you know Lohar Chawl, you know how crowded and loud it gets during the middle of the day. It’s one of those classic old Mumbai areas where every building is packed with different shops and traders. Our unit is number 220. Getting up to the second floor usually involves navigating past people carrying boxes or waiting for the lift, so most of us just take the stairs if we’re in a hurry. The office is tight, filled with files, samples, and the sound of the ceiling fan clicking away. We’ve got a couple of old wooden desks where we do all the billing and talk to whoever walks in. It’s not the kind of place where you’ll find modern art on the walls. Instead, we have calendars from years ago and stacks of ledgers. Outside on Mangaldas Road, the noise never really stops until late in the evening. We get used to the shouting of the loaders and the horns of the tempos. It’s a bit of a maze inside Shreeji Bhavan if you aren't familiar with it, but once you find Unit 220, things are pretty straightforward. We keep the doors open mostly to let some air in, and there’s always someone coming by to talk about an order or just to drop off a delivery.