For shoppers, charity begins online

The Ascot couple, along with friend Neil Gibson have developed eKarma: an online shopping portal that raises funds for a number of charities.

Mr Sharma said the karma seed was planted in him when they lived in India.

"We always knew that apart from hard work and street-smartness, you need karma to survive and prosper in the world," he said.

He said they had wanted to make a difference in the world but never had the courage, resources, understanding or time.

While in India, the couple opened their home to visitors to India.

"We picked them from the airport, dropped them, paid for taxis and cooked for them for no commercial gains because we believed it was good to give and loved the connection with the world," he said.

When the couple came to Australia, they believed karma came back to them and they received help and guidance in finding a home and jobs.

Mr Sharma said he got his "eureka moment" in 2014 when he decided to combine his experiences with online shopping.

"Thus the idea was born and it was simple: an online shopping platform which uses the power of technology to raise funds on a daily basis without it costing a cent more for the customer," he said.

eKarma is based on an e-commerce platform which raises funds for charities on a daily basis by using the power of online retailing.