Tariffs, Tough Calls, and Diwali Prep – 1,700 Entrepreneurs Gather in Surat with Strategy on Their Minds

And yet, the room didn’t feel worried. It felt awake.

A Setback or a Setup for a Comeback?

That was the question hanging in the air, even if no one asked it out loud.

Kamal Deora, the founder of Progress Alliance, didn’t sugarcoat the situation. “Yes, the tariffs are going to sting,” he admitted, pausing before adding, “But they also remind us what self-reliance really means.”

Referencing Prime Minister Modi’s Atmanirbhar Bharat and Swadeshi push, Deora called for a redoubled focus on Indian-made products, stronger local networks, and smart digital adoption. The applause wasn’t thunderous – it was thoughtful. It came from people who understood that patriotism isn’t a slogan when you’re running a business. It’s a choice made in sourcing, pricing, hiring, and delivering.

Strategising for Diwali: Less Panic, More Planning

With Diwali around the corner, most participants didn’t have the luxury of delay. They dove straight into brainstorming – how to adjust product lines, manage costs, and tap into local markets if export pipelines get choked.

The event’s heartbeat was in its B2B meeting rounds, where deals were discussed and partnerships shaped over handshakes and cutting chai. Some spoke of shifting focus to domestic orders. Others floated the idea of joint ventures for shared logistics.

One dry fruit exporter from Rajkot summed it up in a sentence: “If America sneezes, we learn to carry an umbrella.”

It was also refreshing to see women entrepreneurs and first-gen business owners taking center stage. Separate sessions were held on digital marketing, branding, and leadership – not in theory, but grounded in hard-earned stories. One young participant from Ahmedabad shared how Instagram Reels helped her textile business grow by 220% in just eight months. Her phone buzzed through the session with live customer pings.

A Platform That’s More Than Just a Network

The Progress Alliance isn’t your typical business group with surface-level greetings and vague promises. Founded in 2014, it has grown into a 5,000-member strong community across 13 cities. But more than numbers, what stands out is how hands-on their approach is.

From debt recovery support (₹400 crore and counting) to facilitating ₹2,000 crore worth of loan repayments, their model is action-oriented. In fact, many MSMEs credit the platform for helping them survive not just market swings, but personal crises – unpaid invoices, sudden liquidity crunches, and unscalable sales models.

Their programs have quirky names but serious intent:

• Shikhar helps members master the sales game
  
• Yoddha focuses on team training
  
• Vandan honours parents in business families
  
• Udaan is designed just for teens – because why wait to build leaders?
  

These initiatives aren’t an afterthought. They’re what keep the engine running between big meetings like this one.

What Comes Next? Building, Not Bracing

It’s tempting to wrap up a meet like this with big promises or punchlines. But that’s not how this crowd operates.

As people stepped out – some onto overnight trains back to Vadodara, others to WhatsApp catch-ups with teams – there was a shared understanding. The game has changed. Global policies can throw punches, but India’s entrepreneurs have never relied solely on perfect conditions.

“If there’s a tariff, we adjust,” one manufacturer shrugged. “If there’s demand, we deliver. And if there’s a challenge, we do what Gujarat’s always done – we adapt, and we move.”

That may not sound dramatic. But it’s exactly the kind of grounded grit that will define the festive season ahead – and the long road beyond it.