09/21/2026
A founder builds a company.
The next generation decides whether it becomes a legacy or a museum.
When I look at these two photographs of Asha Chaudhary, I don’t just see a little girl and the woman she has become. I see the same curiosity in both.
Even as a little girl, she was never someone who accepted things just because they were there. She always wanted to understand why before thinking about what next. Looking back today, I realise that curiosity never left her.
Today, people know Asha as the face of Jaipur Living. Under her leadership, it has grown into one of the leading hand-knotted brands in the U.S., built on quality, strong relationships, and a deep respect for craftsmanship.
Whenever people tell me how much Jaipur Living has grown, I find myself thinking about a very different journey that I’ve had the privilege of watching the person behind it. Her mornings in the U.S. begin before sunrise because India has already started working. One week she’s with designers overseas, and a few days later, she’s in Bhadohi (a village in U.P.) with artisans and our teams.
No matter where she is, one question follows her everywhere:
“How can we make this better?”
A few years ago, Asha shared a thought that stayed with me.
“For Jaipur Living, it was never singularly about the rug. This business was a conduit to a group of women who had perfected a craft that needed to be seen and elevated.”
When I read those words, I wasn’t thinking about Jaipur Living.
I was thinking about the little girl in the first photograph and how she had found her own way of carrying the same dream. Not by changing its purpose, but by helping it reach further than I had imagined.
These two photographs were taken years apart. A lot has changed between them. But looking at them today, I find myself grateful that some things never changed.
If you were to pass on just one thing to the next generation, would it be your business or the values that built it?
