Articles on Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Form Group of 2 / 3 people and do the presentation. ARTICLE 1 :: Prathibha Sastryisthe founder ofthe magazine- South Movie Scenes-a magazineexclusively dedicated forthe South Indian Film Industryin English. She won the YoungScreen Entrepreneur Award 2008 organized by British Council. To follow Young Creati veEntrepreneur Awards on Facebook. Prathibha wasaspeakeratan International Panel in Lyon, France whereshespokeabout differencesbetween South Indian and Hindi Films. Shewasthe Jury Memberat Vilnius International Film Festival in Lithuania. Shehasbeen thecontributingauthor fora French/Englishbook on Indian CinemaWhat were the circumstances that led to you launching an English magazine about the south Indian film industry?I havegrown up watchingsouth Indian legends. I love moviesand theart of film making. When it comesto educati on, I have done my mastersin English literatureand a diplomain PR. I have done mypostgraduate diplomain mass communication and journalism. I started workingata veryyoungage. I started my careerby working fora newspaper where I l earntalotabout writing, production and differentaspects ofrunningapublication. Afterthat I joined Technology Media Group, thisis where I realized I wanted to pursue mediaasa career. I grew up wantingto bean IAS officerbut dueto circumstances I wasintroduced to mediaand I knew thisis what I wanted to do. From there I gotinto events, PRand afterthat I started workingat WorldSpaceasaRJ. I washosti ngashow related to Telugu cinema for which I wanted information aboutthe film industryin En glishbut I found outthatthere were notmanyaccurate, comprehensivesourcesaboutthesouth Indian film industry. I saw an opportunityin thisand started to gatherinformation and talk to peoplein theindustryaboutthisidea. Was it difficult turning an idea into a full-fledged business?Manypeople I spoketo found theidea veryinteresti ngand feasiblebut I had limited knowledgeand expertise ofrunninga full -fledged publication on my own. Nevertheless I decided to jumpin and go ahead. I thought: Let metakea chance, if I don· tthen thisissomething I would regrettherest of my life. In 2006 march I launched the firstissue. Ithasbeen aroller coasterridesincethen and I haveenjoyed mytime withthe magazine. I enjoyed the creativepart of my job ²producing new things, meetingpeople, exploring opportunities. I have worked hard to build it from scratch. There wasatime when I would personallygo to therailwaystation to seeifthe copies werebeingbundled upproperly. Was it difficult for a person from a non film background to make inroads in to the film industry?Through my work at Worldspace I would interact with Telugu film community. When I started the magazi ne I knew few peoplein the other film industriesas well. They connected me withpeople who havebeen in thisindustry fora longtime like veteran journalistsand actors. Althoughit wasabit difficultinitially I nevergave upand was focused on turning myideainto asuccess. How was the response from the industry?
Form Group of 2 / 3 people and do the presentation.
ARTICLE 1 ::
Prathibha Sastry is the founder of the magazine- South Movie Scenes- a magazine
exclusively dedicated for the South Indian Film Industry in English. She won the Young
Screen Entrepreneur Award 2008 organized by British Council. To follow Young Creative Entrepreneur Awards on Facebook. Prathibha was a speaker at an International Panel in
Lyon, France where she spoke about diff erences between South Indian and Hindi Films. She
was the Jury Member at Vilnius International Film Festival in Lithuania. She has been the
contributing author for a French/English book on Indian Cinema
W hat were the circumstances that led to you launching an English magazine about
the south Indian film industry?
I have grown up watching south Indian legends. I love movies and the art of f ilm making.
When it comes to education, I have done my masters in English literature and a diploma in
PR. I have done my post graduate diploma in mass communication and journalism. I started
working at a very young age. I started my career by working for a newspaper where I learnt a
lot about writing, production and diff erent aspects of running a publication. Af ter that I joined
Technology Media Group, this is where I realized I wanted to pursue media as a career. I
grew up wanting to be an IAS off icer but due to circumstances I was introduced to media and
I knew this is what I wanted to do. From there I got into events, PR and af ter that I started
working at WorldSpace as a RJ. I was hosting a show related to Telugu cinema for which I
wanted information about the f ilm industry in English but I found out that there were not
many accurate, comprehensive sources about the south Indian f ilm industry. I saw an
opportunity in this and started to gather information and talk to people in the industry about
this idea.
W as it difficult turning an idea into a full-fledged business?
Many people I spoke to found the idea very interesting and f easible but I had limited
knowledge and expertise of running a full -fledged publication on my own. Nevertheless I
decided to jump in and go ahead. I thought: Let me take a chance, if I don·t then this is
something I would regret the rest of my lif e. In 2006 march I launched the f irst issue. It has
been a roller coaster ride since then and I have enjoyed my time with the magazine. I enjoyed
the creative part of my job ² producing new things, meeting people, exploring opportunities. I
have worked hard to build it f rom scratch. There was a time when I would personally go to
the railway station to see if the copies were being bundled up properly.
W as it difficult for a person from a non film background to make inroads in to thefilm industry?
Through my work at Worldspace I would interact with Telugu f ilm community. When I
started the magazine I knew f ew people in the other f ilm industries as well. They connected
me with people who have been in this industry for a long time like veteran journalists and
actors. Although it was a bit diff icult initially I never gave up and was focused on turning my
The entire f ilm industry was extremely encouraging and we got great stories and articles.
This was the f irst wholesome glossy English magazine on the entire South Indian Film
Industry and very soon grew to be a very popular platform for the Southern Industry even
shipping abroad.
How was your experience with YCE?
I signed up for the awards as its one of the f ew awards in India and the world that tries to
recognize creative entrepreneurs. The screen entrepreneur award caught my attention as this is the only platform in India which showcases work in that category. I saw this as a great
opportunity to present my idea and magazine to media veterans and the jury. I was declared
the India winner and got to go to the UK. That was a very rewarding experience to meet
people f rom diff erent countries doing diverse things. I got to network with many people and I
am still f riends with many of them. We traveled across the UK and the entire program was
put together so that we could experience the various aspects of the creative industry in the
UK.
W hat are your future plans?
Having moved on f rom the magazine, currently I am working on a book on actresses in the
South Indian Film Industry. I also attend various f ilm f estivals and keep myself updated on
various things happening in the f ilm industry.
ARTICLE 2
MAN BEHIND THE IDEA : JAY GUPTA
A store by the name of ´The Lootµ is f ast being recognized as the biggest thing to hit retailtherapy in India in a long time. Jay Gupta is the man with the plan behind ´The Lootµ. A
second generation entrepreneur, he has already gained a foothold on the hearts minds and
pockets of shoppers with his unique yet simple concepts. In an interview with Yourstory
dynamic entrepreneur Jay Gupta let us in on the story behind ´The Lootµ.
Jay told us about how the idea struck him and how it all evolved saying ´I started business in
1996 when I stumbled upon an article in a magazine which selected ² Chain of Hotels, Banks
and Retail as ever growing prof itable businesses. I opted for Retail, initially to get into the
garment and footwear business by opening f ranchisees stores for brands like Colour Plus,
Adidas, Nike, Weekender, Provogue, Quickies coff ee shop etc. but soon realized that I was not
able to give the BEST to the customers. The customer wanted to buy brands at an affordable
price.µ
´Af ter a lot of pondering I got into the idea of giving the best brands to the customer at the
best prices under one roof by setting up the 1st ¶The Loot· store in 2004. The Loot can thus be
considered as the pioneer of multi branded discount chains. The Loot was the only multi-
brand retail venture that offered minimum 25% off ²upto 60% all 365 days of the
year on guaranteed products and prices. The concept was well accepted & appreciated by
both the customers & business associates. Soon there was multiplication of the stores & The
Loot has set up over 110 stores (approximately 300000 sq. f t. retail carpet area) in 75 cities
and 20 states throughout the country.µ
It is saf e to say that most of our readers by now will certainly be searching for their share of
´The Lootµ, however cheap prices are not their only attraction. Jay told us how the store
serves all customers young and old. He said ´Anybody and everybody can benef it by shopping
f rom The Loot. Earlier we targeted only the youth but today we are a f amily store and target men, women and children. The target audience is quite versatile and varies f rom upper, upper
middle class or middle class. We are targeting a mass audience. We have changed the
shopping habits of people and made big brands affordable to everybody.
The Loot was nominated one amongst the series of 12 startups ² ´Small Ideas Big Changesµ
by The Hindustan Times ² ¶For hordes of college students and youngsters who want to look
chic but don·t want to or can·t afford to pay hef ty sums to buy branded clothes- The Loot is
godsend.·µ
´The Loot is a multi-brand discount store off ering minimum 25% discount which goes upto60% - throughout the year. I think we have revolutionized the value retailing segment as we
are the pioneers of this concept. There is still a huge potential in this category and we are
def initely leveraging on it.µ
You may not have heard of The Loot before this but chances are you will in the coming days.
Jay plans to have at least one store operational near you in the coming year. He states ´The
concept has been well received and considering many f actors e.g. rising young population,
increase in disposable income, awareness about brands etc. there is huge scope for expansion
of the stores. We are therefore planning to be amongst the Top 3 retail companies in the next
5 years and have a plan to have over 1000 stores pan India by then.µ
His zest for entrepreneurship was implanted by his f amily. He explained how they influenced
him saying ´Belonging to a small business f amily, I have always been looking upto my f ather
and seen his dealings and day-to-day activities«that·s when the passion of doing something
unique on my own developed. A part f rom this I have always been independent and the
thought of service or working under someone never occurred to me.
Right f rom my younger days, I wanted to do something on my own & create an organization.µ
Once Jay decided to put his idea into action there was no stopping him. That does not mean
he had it easy. Jay told us about his diff iculties saying ´Environmental challenges were to
f ight stringent rules & regulations and red-tapeism «. In retail one needs to get 20+
approvals of various laws including licenses and non-practical laws, f ile various returns etc.µ
´The challenges were team management & f inancial management to take the company to a
much diff erent and higher level and keep fully equipped with inf rastructure and to handle
competition. It has been possible to meet these challenges by having a pr of essional
´To build a competent team for growth and development and to clear internal and external
misconceptions about the concept of The Loot was the challenge particularly convincing the
consumers about the quality of the merchandise and convey to them that we are not dealing
in seconds but are original surplus product stores.µ
His f amily and f riends supported him and backed him with f inances. However Jay was
contemplating something else entirely, he says ´The only thing in my mind was to recover andrepay the loans at the earliest.µ
Since then they did recover and in stellar f ashion. Jay reports ´We have grown at a very f ast
and consistent basis at the rate of about 80% increase y-o-y and we currently have over 110
stores pan India with 2 off ices in Mumbai, one in Bangalore and opening shortly in Delhi.µ
With over a 100 stores within 4 years of the inception of the company, ´The Lootµ happens to
be the f astest growing chain of multi branded discount stores.
It is no wonder then that the media sat up and took notice. The Loot was nominated one amongst a series of 12 startups ² ´Small Ideas Big Changesµ by The Hindustan Times.
A s per The Franchising World (2008), The Loot is amongst the Top 50 business opportunities
in India.
The Loot has been conf erred with the following awards:
´Star Entrepreneur Awardµ
´Pioneering efforts in retail concept creationµ
´Young Retail Achiever of the Y ear Awardµ
´Star Youth achiever Awardµ
Personally Jay regards the ´TATA NEN Hottest Start up awardµ as the most prestigious
award as yet. He describes his entrepreneurial journey saying ´It·s an adrenaline rush, seeing
the company grow at a f ast pace and watching content, satisf ied customer·s increases this
drive.µ
Jay is no stranger to success and passed on his views on how to attain it saying ´The idea has
to be stemmed out of customer needs and wants. There has to be enough market potential for
the business. I also think personal observation and experience should be put to use building
up this idea and the target audience should be kept in mind.µ
´My personal example: At a time when branded apparel retail was taking flight in
India, I sat behind a desk at the retail franchises outlet and watched several people
walking in but very few of them actually buying anything. That is when I realized
W hat is the most difficult part of being a W oman entrepreneur in India?
Being compared to my peers- in terms of experience & f inancially; as well as the mindset of
people that being a woman & recently married, I would eventually give up the dream of being
an entrepreneur as its more a man·s domain & also get bogged down by domestic
responsibilities
A s a society we have progressed tremendously in ¶allowing· entrepreneurship to blossom.
An Indian entrepreneur especially a woman may f ace discouragement for trying to make a
mark in a man·s world as the general assumption is that entrepreneurship is more suited to
men and marriage dimishes the prof essional growth and ambition for a woman. So, basically
society mental blocks may have to be dealt with. However, it·s not that bad. Persistence pays
W hat is the mistake that you have learnt the most from?
I wasted a lot of time initially waiting for ¶things to happen· Even though I read a lot about
how networking is very important when you start a new venture, it was lacking in my
approach. I thought people would eventually f ind out & contact me whereas it is completely
the opposite. You have to go out & present your idea to the world and conf idently so.
Has your work found you any acclaim or given you any achievements?
A s a start-up entrepreneur, the biggest achievement for me has been the positive,
encouraging & phenomenal response to my idea. This means a lot as instead to being advised
on how I should proceed as a beginner, I am being touted as someone with a great potential &
future in entrepreneurship
I have been f eatured in a well known global Sindhi magazine ¶Beyond Sindh· in the section
¶Strong Sindhi women & their Business Acumen· But that was while FemmeHire was still an
idea & more to do with my Human Resource blog www.karishmadaswani.com and work in the
same f ield. http://karishmadaswani.com/karishmadaswani/index.php/press/
W hat motivates you when you are really down?
A prof ession if a passion is a pleasure J I love what I do and very importantly my f amily is
very supportive. These are 2 things that really keep me going.
W hat are the things you intend to do in the coming two years?
It is my dominant intent to genuinely help f ellow ladies and make everyone f eel productive
and special and earn! I would love FemmeHire to reach a level wherein a woman reads the
blog and either already f inds answers to her queries there or gets other women to respondf rom their knowledge and experience. Its about giving, sharing and earning f rom your
passions J
W hat are the attributes that an entrepreneur needs to cultivate according to you?
Believe in yourself, believe in your idea. Be open to suggestions, criticism & praise so as to
recognise f easibility of change if required in your concept otherwise keep moving ahead.
Networking is the key! There are many forums online as well as associations meeting on and
off discussing entrepreneurship and ideas. A ttend these & know where you stand. Don·t be
af raid to express yourself. You·re here not because you·re one of them but because there
something diff erent you got to off er.
Article 4
Building an empire...
It all started f rom London. But kudos to young entrepreneur Joravar Singh Sachdev·s management, technical and prof essional know -how that made a western, state-of -the-art
concept a reality in India. Themed on London Street, White Summer Hospitality was
established in 2007 by three directors, Davinder Sachdev, Mony Sachdev and Joravar
Sachdev, who endeavoured to usher in an entirely new concept in India for the foodies and fun
lovers. The trio f irst set about realising their dream by opening a caf eteria called 11 East
Street Café in Pune, but so successful was their attempt at appeasing consumers with
something out of the ordinary that the company grew f rom one brand to six within a span of a
year and a half.
´The USP of our restaurant helped it become one of the most f avourite hangout destinations among tourists visiting Pune. Our f ive outlets that followed 11 East Street Café are Sheetal
A rch, a pure vegetarian restaurant; Red Bus ³ The Bakery Lounge, Crazy Balls, Pune·s f irst
authentic sports bar; Bougainvillea, a house event venue and Sheetal Banquets, a catering
division,µ said Joravar. ´We are also the exclusive food suppliers of Costa Coff ee, Barista and
Java Green of Reliance,µ he added.
The f act that the company caters to over 1,000 people every day explicitly states how dynamic
the scope of the organisation is. But thanks also to the directors, who believe not in stagnation
but in steering the concept towards incessant growth. ´We want to continue to cater to our
present customers and are on a drive to add more clientele to our prof ile. Plans are alsounderway to venture into resorts and hotels. From an experience in the restaurant business
to launching brands that will cater to mid markets, we aim to serve diverse segments of the
society,µ Joravar explained.
What diff erentiates the company f rom other similar enterprises in the f ray is its knack for
providing a unique experience to guests of all ages, an experience every guest can relate to.
Every brand zeroes in on a specif ic target market, but White Summer Hospitality delivers to a
wide range and on a daily basis.
When asked how they plan to scale-up the business Joravar said without a crinkle on his
temple, ´With the revenue generated f rom the existing business models. We are looking to
becoming even more prof essional, and launch more brands with specif ic product services. Say
for instance, a separate brand to promote desserts, another to off er donuts and similar
others.µ
Interestingly, Joravar had never planned this way of lif e, it is, as he says, something he grew
up living. ´The only decision I ever made was to become an entrepreneur because the 9 -5 job
is just beyond me. But even this decision wasn·t conscious. One day, I just read somewhere
that ¶The biggest risk in lif e is not to take one·. That got so deeply imprinted on my mind that
it became indelible. I knew I would be an entrepreneur and abide by my decision till the very
end.µ
The thrill of f acing something new everyday is like an adrenaline rush for Joravar, which he
believes, helps him overcome the challenges his entrepreneurial venture invariably lures, the
biggest being, proving himself adept in an industry which is too big and too complicated. He
was, in f act, discouraged f rom taking such a step by f riends and peers, but Joravar stoodundeterred. ´When people came to my restaurant, loved it, and started talking about it over
social discussions, is when I realised I have surpassed one of the greatest hurdles lying ahead
of me,µ he said with exaltation in his voice.
A s for the biggest mistake, it was when Joravar underestimated the extent to which his
competitors could pull him down in the race to win people·s heart, where he was the only one
new.
Equally contributing were the other two directors, who duly put in a part of the seed capital
for the venture and successfully managed a staff of 150. The other chunk, a whopping Rs1.5crore, was taken as loan f rom a bank. Today, the company·s turnover stands at an arresting
Rs6 crore a year.
Undoubtedly, the company·s most outstanding achievement is to be able to launch f ive
additional brands within a very short timeline. The enterprise has also been recognised by
various newspapers like DNA, Pune Times, Indian Express, Loksatta and Sakaal Express and
magazines like Femina and Timeout. But the most rewarding was the coverage it received by
MTv for its show ¶Eat Out·. ´We were the f irst restaurant their covered. Cyrus Barocha
anchored the episode, showcasing our restaurant and its delicacies and interviewing me and
some guests,µ said Joravar adding that a forthcoming Ra jkumar Santoshi f ilm, ¶Ajab Prem K i
Ga jab K ahani· starring Ranbir K apoor and K atrina K aif also has a considerable amount of
the dance sequence shot in the restaurant.
Article 5
Leaving behind a cushy well paid job at a top bank to pursue a passion is what real
entrepreneurial stories are all about, and that is what makes Parag Chitale a true
entrepreneur to the core. Born in a f amily were education was given the utmost importance,
what with Parag·s f ather Prof S.G. Chitale being a household name with the Chitale ²Joshi
math text book, Parag always knew he has to be associated with education.
An engineer f rom VJTI and an alumnus of JBIMS, f rom an early age Parag was driven by a
personal ambition to do something meaningful in lif e. Having proven his mettle in the
corporate world by working for big brands like Citibank and ICICI Bank, the desire to pursue
something meaningful and engaging soon drove Parag to restlessness. He lef t the corporate
rat race to pursue his f irst love education and as luck would have it he was informed by
someone that Maharashtra University was then looking for teachers with an MBA /MMS
qualif ication to teach BMS students. Starting as a visiting f aculty, his natural teaching skills
saw him becoming a full time coordinator f aculty at the university in double quick time while
also becoming visiting f aculty in various premier colleges. It wasn·t much later that S .P. Jain
chased him to off er him a f aculty position at the institute and Parag consented and joined
them. While at S.P. Jain Parag also become associated with IMS as a guest lecturer.
Interestingly, the adoration of students at both the places coupled with the realization that
the students needed a place for value education with personal attention, propelled Parag to gosolo and thus he made the proverbial plunge into the entrepreneurial realms. CPLC (when it
was founded in December 2002, it was known as Parag Chitale's Classes«which later came to
be known as Chitale's Personalized Learning Centre), started with a mere two f aculty
member team at Parag·s residence in a small room with minimalist inf rastructure but
abundant resolution to make a diff erence.
Today CPLC has become an education brand in Mumbai to reckon with. With 40 employees,
centres in Vile Parle, Santa Cruz, Dadar, Churchgate,Borivali CPLC is witnessing
phenomenal growth. Since its humble beginnings, CPLC has trained over 3000 students for
various competitive business school entrance exams and within 6 years of its personalised anddedicated training to students, CPLC has established itself as one of the leading training
institutes. CPLC caters for various national competitive examinations like MBA entrance
examination including CAT, CET, XAT, NMAT, SNA P etc and International exams like GRE
and GMAT.CPLC has initiated Integrated Education College tie ups with premier colleges
like Ruia and Jai Hind in Mumbai and many such other tie ups are in the anvil.
So what·s the diff erent value proposition that CPLC has to off er ² unlike institutes where
success brings more impersonalized structures, Parag at the heart remains a true teacher
who with growing centres and numbers doubly ensures that every member of CPLC is
committed to his vision of ' Value Education with Personal A ttention', CPLC takes learning
one step ahead, one level deeper. Parag has def initely created a breather f rom the crammed,
packed, impersonal classrooms that most CAT coaching classes provide. With just 25 students
in a batch, it is more like personal tutoring, with all books, courseware and tests provided to
the students. Parag has recently institutionalised a student body called FLY (Forum for
Learning and Youth Leadership) ensuring knowledge sharing and skill set development for
the youth.
And what is it that drives Parag af ter six years of personal and prof essional success ² ´To see
all my students excel and be better human beingsµ came the reply. Parag adds that ´education
has a larger role to play in shaping up lives of youngsters and I strive to ensure that students
who come to CPLC don·t just prepare for CAT entrances but are better equipped to handle the
challenges of lif e and better peopleµ. Now that is one inspirational driving force indeed.
ARTICLE 6
Always thought you were diff erent than the rest and wanted your lif estyle and gif ts to reflect
the same? Head over to www.happilyunmarried.com to f ind your match in a fun gif t items
and lif estyle products e-commerce website. The brainchild of Ra jat Tuli and Rahul Anand,
both post-graduates f rom the prestigious Mudra Institute of Communications, A hmedabad,
Strangely though their advice to other budding entrepreneurs is to not start up ´Y es, unless
one has the patience to give it 10 years, one shoudn·t thinks of being an entrepreneur. There
are easier ways to make money. Giving up a business model is ok but not giving up on being
an entrepreneur is the real challenge. It·s also the f astest way to get interviewedµ say the duo.
And what keeps them going? ´Love of what we do; there is no other incentive really. Our work
gets routinely f eatured in design magazines; Business today ranked us as one of India·s
coolest companies and we were even f eatured in the Limca book of records and we still don·t
know why. Awards are for artists and sportsmen; running a business is its own reward.µ
Admitting that they are happy with what they have achieved, Ra jat and Rahul claim that
acceptance of Happily Unmarried as a fun brand and f an mails - of which they receive one a
day are a great motivating f actor.
A s for future plans ´Taking our company public would mean the most to us. It will mean that
there are enough people in the world who trust us with their money and would like to share
our dream. For now, we are looking for people who would like to take up our kiosk f ranchise
all over the country.µ
ARTICLE 7
Everyone has a f avorite story that they like to tell. Some are funny, some not, a f ew are worth
repeating to new audiences, and some might make a diff erence to someone·s lif e. Stories are
like that, bursting f rom f ront to back cover with the experiences of another human being
seeking to enrich us.
Sadly enough not all stories get published, and not all great ideas reach their audience. In
this context however dynamic duo A bhaya A garwal and Jaya Jha would beg to diff er, because
they just might be the ones to take your story to its reader. The duo explains ´Pothi.com is a
print on demand backed publishing platform for printed books (hard copy). It provides tools and services to help prepare the book and an e -commerce store to sell them. The publishing
process is completely online. There is no upf ront cost for publishing and selling. Pothi.com
shares prof its with the author as the book sells. Paid services are available if the author needs
prof essional help in preparing the book.µ
´The various purposes for which users have used the platform are
y Publishing their books (the most obvious one)
y Publishing a book of a loved one for f amily/f riends
y Publishing a book as a gif t (Can be personalized)
y Testing a book by sending f ew copies to reviewers, f riends etc. before mass productionand hitting the market
y Off ering a print magazine to the readers of their online portal
y Taking our services to create a prof essional book before pitching it to traditional
publishersµ
´We have done over 120 books, most of which are available f rom our online store. Some others
have been done for private circulation or for sell through publisher·s direct channel. We are
adding 15+ books per month.µ
The money making aspect of their business comes f rom mutual success. Here no one is piggy
backing their way to the bank. The model is one that works for both parties and is as simple
as it gets. The duo elaborates ´The revenue comes f rom prof it sharing with the authors and
services. The aim of the business is to make it easy, technically and f inancially, for the users
to create and publish a prof essional quality book. We are diff erentiating by using technology
to create the tools for writers, which will help them publish smoothly and eff iciently.µ
They are also keen to expand their reach and by 2010 plan to make publishing - accessible to
all. They said ´We have identif ied a f ew specif ic segments where there is a high latent demand for this kind of off ering. We are planning to reach out to those segments specif ically.µ
Yourstory enquired how the duo came to be entrepreneurs, and we got two very diff erent
answers. Jaya says ´Did not want to regret later in lif e that I did not try something I would
have liked to do and could have doneJµ
Whereas A bhaya declares ´I have always wanted to be at the intersection of academics and
industry. Startups provide the f reedom and independence of academics and also the
satisf action of seeing things in use by real people!µ
The business of spreading ideas has not been easy for them, and for no other rationale but
ignorance. The duo is f ighting this, and is hopeful that Pothi.com as a concept will be better
understood in the coming future. They said ´User Education has been the biggest challenge
for us so f ar. The concept we are executing is pretty new in India and is a bit involved. A user
who has not previously been exposed to the working of a similar publishing method needs to
spend some time to understand the idea. Ensuring that is not easy and most of them start
thinking of a self publishing company as just another publisher in the league of traditional
publishers. This means that the idea that the author has to take control and responsibility of
the book does not get conveyed.µ
´We have tried to overcome this with educational articles on our site. We also handle queries
f rom the customers who need to be educated about the concept directly. We are planning to
come up with some more initiatives simply to educate the user.µ
The twosome had a bit of a misstep too. They told us a bit more about the initial learning
phase that they had to go through. They said ´We did not put systems in place which would
help us know and understand our customers better. That is a valuable piece of information
that we could use in planning our scaling up operations. Now, we are going back and trying to
dig out as much information as possible. But done earlier, it·d have been very useful.µ
A s with any entrepreneurial the ideas can make or break the business, but a certain amount
of it is also about the way we perceive things. Yourstory asked them if they had ever
contemplated a retreat; they answered saying ´We do keep thinking about where it is going,
how to grow it, whether it will work etc. but the point of giving it up has not come yet. But the
road of entrepreneurship is never easy and we·d probably f eel it sometime or the other. We
hope to be strong in those crucial periods.µ
They have enormous motivation to keep doing what they do. Forsaking their chosen path is
Yourstory asked Sanjay what make them diff er f rom the run of the mill stores. He replied
´We at Presidents group provide a variety of f abrics for customers sourced f rom the best mills
of the world especially f rom Italy and Japan. Custom tailoring f acility is also available for the
customers to suit their requirements. Being in the f ashion industry we provide the latest
designs and cuts to the customers in a wide range of f abrics and dress up for the occasion. ´
´We plan to expand the number of stores in Bangalore and be present in all the CBD areas of
Bangalore. We are also looking to position ourselves in the larger format stores and the MBO·S which will educate the consumers about our concept and products.µ
Sanjay explains why he entered the high stakes world of the entrepreneur he says ´The
reason for me choosing entrepreneurship was to work on my own terms and make it big on my
own rather than to work for others where your thinking can be ignored and not encouraged.
Being an entrepreneur makes you go through all the aspects of establishing a business and
the challenges that follow with it. Everyday you have something to learn and it gives you the
high that no regular 9 to 5 job can give you.µ
The biggest challenge in his path so f ar has been to make ´Groom Conceptsµ a success since it has been into retailing only a year old and also make a mark in the wedding wear segment all
over south India. The biggest mistake he has made so f ar was to take things too lightly as an
entrepreneur and being over conf ident at times.
The seed capital for the company was funded by the promoters of the company. Initially the
capital invested in the ´Groom Concept ´store was around 50 lacs.
The group has progressed over the years Sanjay says ´Presidents group has been growing
over the years since its establishment in 1982 and now has 6 stores all over Bangalore. The
company is growing at an average rate of 12% p.a. the company has over 80 employees at
present.
Sanjay believes that their biggest achievement is the customer relationship at their stores
which has helped them grow over the years and be prof itable. He says ´Customers who have
been very loyal to us have been coming to shop at our stores for over 20 years which is being
followed by their next generation also. The organization today has become a trust worthy
name all over Bangalore when it comes to f ashionable men·s wear.µ
Sanjay also revealed that even the successful have had second thoughts he says ´Y es at times
when things don·t happen the way you expect it to happen, you do get f eel like giving it up
and f ind some stable and secure job but when you believe in yourself and have the girt and
patience to pass through the rough times you will succeed. It·s a lesson that every
entrepreneur learns as he starts off and these f eelings do tend to come every now and then.
But sticking on to your work with conf idence will help you in succeeding.
He shared his motives and the reason behind his drive to Yourstory saying ´The lessons that
one learns, is that you don·t get everything in lif e very easily and you have to work hard for
every penny. The highs and lows come as a package, with commitment to your work and just
the experience that one gains all along the way makes it all worthwhile.µ
Sanjay says ´My vision is to expand our presence and increase the number of stores to 8 or
maybe 10 and reach wider and develop a huge customer base.µ Yourstory wishes President·s
group and Groom concepts success in their ventures.
ARTICLE 9
Creating Benchmark ´It was a complex operation but not a complicated one,µ says an ecstatic Dr
Ramakanta Panda, Vice Chairman and Cardio Vascular Thoracic Surgeon, Asian
Heart Institute and Research Centre (AHIRC), who successfully did a Redo Bypass
Surgery on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on January 24, 2009. An elated Dr
Panda informed that AHIRC also completed its illustrious six years, three days af ter the
operation on January 27, 2009 of delivering cardiac care f acilities in the country and globally
with an average success rate of 99.7 per cent.
Credited to have done 10,000 bypass surgeries and 800 Redo Bypass surgeries over a career
spanning a period of over two decades, Dr Panda attributes the success in the operation to his
conf idence in himself and his team. ´I attribute the success of operation to my team of doctors
and f aith in my surgical skills. The operation was complex as the PM is a Diabetic and was
suff ering f rom multiple blockages so a Redo Coronary Bypass on beating heart was
recommended and done.µ
Talking about the rising incidence of cardiac disorders across the country, Dr Panda opines
that there is a need for emphasis on the preventive aspects of cardiology to address the
burgeoning population of heart patients in India, which currently stands at 50 m illion people
and will rise to 100 million by 2020.
´A s of today, the trend is that seventy to eighty per cent of heart patients are treated through
preventive cardiac care approaches that is through medicines, 10 to 15 per cent through
angioplasty and 10 per cent through bypass surgery, Dr Panda informs.
´Treatment through medicines is the best option to reduce the risk of heart blockages, more
so, as Indian Healthcare system is poised to witness ma jor advancements in cholesterol
reducing medicines called as Statins in the coming f ew years,µ informs Dr Panda, who also
has the distinction of pioneering cardiac surgeries like Off -pump Bypass Surgery, Total
A rterial Revascularisation and Redo Bypass Surgery.
Boasting about AHIRC·s in achieving the lowest mortality and morbidity rate in cardiacsurgery in India, Dr Panda tells that it took him seven years to f ind a land and 18 months
time to construct the building, which today is amongst the best cardiac care centres globally.
Hailing f rom a f amily of landlords, Dr Panda did his cardiac surgery training f rom India·s
leading healthcare institute ² All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). The turning
point in Dr Panda·s career came when he went for a f ellowship training programme at the
Cleveland Clinic, USA. ´During 1985 to 1992, I visited villages near Cleveland in Ohio to
retrieve heart for heart transplants as a part of my f ellowship programme. During these
visits, I updated my knowledge and honed skills about the latest surgical modalities and
advancements. I conceptualized into what is today popularly known as ¶Hospital and
said the entrepreneur, who has a postgraduate degree f rom IIM- A and is an Honorary Fellow
of Australian- A sian Institute of Civil Leadership.
When asked why she decided to start Calorx Foundation instead of pursuing a regular job,
Manjula replied, "I always believed I possess the basic qualities that make a successful
entrepreneur, like risk-taking, a long-term vision and an ability to lead. I'd say if you want to
fulf ill your dream, you have to take that proverbial plunge."
The director of the foundation said unlike today, aspiring to start one's ownbusiness venture in "her days", especially for a woman, was akin to inviting
unwanted trouble.
Manjula said, "I started out at a time when young entrepreneurs were f ew and f ar between.
Being a businesswoman was also quite uncommon a decade and a half ago. These two f actors
caused some delays because people hardly took me seriously. But I persisted and f inally, my
dedication to my concept bore f ruit."
What was the turning point in your career? "During our 10th year celebrations, we launched
our own brand, CALORX, which I think was the turning point in my career because it opened
up a host of opportunities," replied Manjula, adding, "Prior to that, the Foundation
concentrated on inward growth and apart f rom the DPS f ranchisee, only social projects such
as Prerna and Visamo K ids were started."
The entrepreneur said it is her unbridled passion for providing good education and the need
to constantly create and innovate that drives her to meet higher standards of performance.
Besides, the elegant lady simply loves children.
Talking about the business model on which Calorx operates, Manjula said her
Foundation is a non-profit, professionally managed and self-sustaining autonomous
institution with excellence in education as its main objective. Absorbing the latest
innovative techniques to achieve this goal is also a priority.
The scaleabity model replicates Calorx's various units namely:
The Verticals: Calorx Pre-schools (Nursery-Prep-KG)
Calorx Public School (K -12, National Curriculum)
Calorx Institution of Education (Teachers' Training)
The Horizantals: Prerna for the Dyslexics
The Calorx School (K -12 International Curriculum)
When asked what are the drivers of her enterprise, Manjula said, "Our core values are
collaboration, academic excellence, being continuous learners, putting the organisation above
everything else and adopting a humanistic approach. Speed wit h accuracy is also one of our
mottos."
Calorx's vision for 2010, said the entrepreneur, "is to make the Foundation the f irst choice for
all possible target groups as f ar as providing quality education is concerned."
Did she, at any point, f eel like giving it all up and getting back to a regular job? Manjula
replied with a f irm determination, "Never. I am too creative, innovative and decisive to quit
being an entrepreneur. Having to run one's own venture provides the kind of flexibility and
f reedom that cannot be had in a mundane, 9 -to-5 job."
She added further, "Although Intrapreneurship ² a new term used these days for top-level
executives ³ indicates that they enjoy a lot of the inherent f reedom as does an entrepreneur,
the trails, traumas and rewards of an entrepreneur are well worth the effort."
Giving valuable tips to budding entrepreneurs, Manjula said, "The first and most
important step is to believe in yourself and never give up, no matter what. Learning
continuously and building a body of values and ethics by following the less trodden
path is also essential. Don't take shortcuts, they end too soon. And finally,
remember this: it's never too late to become an entrepreneur!"
PROJECTS UNDER CALORX FOUNDATION
DELHI PUBLIC SCHOOL, AHMEDABAD
DELHI PUBLIC SCHOOL, EAST, AHMEDABAD
PRERNA SCHOOL FOR DYSLEXIC CHILDREN
VISAMO KIDS' FOUNDATION
CALORX INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION, AHMEDABAD
THE CALORX SCHOOL
CALORX PUBLIC SCHOOL
BMK INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL, R AJKOT
CALORX PRE SCHOOL(3 Centres)
ARTILCE 11
It was the drive for making a diff erence to a student·s lif e that motivated K artik Raichura to
build a Management Paradise. Raichura, a BMS graduate f rom Mithibai College, Mumbai, is
still pursuing MBA f rom Welingkars Institute of Management and Research, but is
undeterred when it comes to taking his entrepreneurial venture to a greater height. He aims
to make MP a resource so powerful that every person interested in management education,regardless of whether or not he has a secured admission in a B-school, can become prof icient
in business management by learning f rom experiences of MBA students and prof essionals. He
started off while still a teenage and today, the forum he created is revolutionizing
management education on all f ronts.
W hy did you decide to become an entrepreneur and not pursue a regular job?
Taking up entrepreneurship wasn·t a conscious decision. I was very confused about what I
wanted to do, but was equally sure-footed about what I won·t do. Working at a company doing
mundane jobs that do not make a diff erence to anyone is something I clearly detested. On the
contrary, I enjoyed this small venture that I has started, it seemed to make a diff erence to
students, changed the way BMS students pursued education and was doing well in the MBA
space, too. It was only logical to work on something that interests you.
Can you tell us what kind of challenges you faced during the initial years?
Management Paradise (MP) has been in existence since November 2004 when I was still a
student in SYBMS. I had a strong urge to do something big, to change the way things workedand to better the education system. With this in mind I founded MP, which flourished with
the help of many like-minded people. However, we f aced a lot of problems initially because it
was diff icult to make prof essors, who were not tech-savvy, understand that web is all about
sharing information. A f ew even spread unf avourable opinions about the forum in the
beginning, but the same people asked me to ref er them students for coaching classes af ter the
forum showed signs of success. The forum is still misunderstood by many as a place where
project reports can be copy-pasted, but most of the members know that it provides an ocean of
information and is a double-edged sword that can be used either ways.
Getting people when we were not making enough monetary gains to pay them but still
expecting the same of amount of commitment and passion was another challenge. But I amlucky to have found people who like gems and have stood with me like pillars.
The initial months were very arduous. I was only 19 then and we only had one computer for
our venture. Moreover, it required a lot of manual work through telephonic Internet
connection, which was very expensive in those days. But it·s all paying up now. What started
with less than 10 hits a day is now running with over 10 thousand people visiting the site
every day and over a million page views every month.
W hat was the turning point in your career?
We are yet to witness that. But I hope to see that turning point as venture capital money in
the near future.
Did you, at any point, feel like giving up on your venture?
Quitting was never an option. But honestly, I did think of taking up a regular job many a time
during a years· gap between my graduation and MBA. I even applied to a f ew companies but
they also believed I was meant for business. May be I was aiming at the wrong companies but
a BMS graduate did not have many job options back in 2005. Now, I·m thankful to those who
re jected me; it has got me this f ar.
W hat drives you?
The passion to reinvent management education and helping people keeps me on my toes. For
instance, our BMS exam results were due and got delayed because of riots in Mumbai. I,
along with a f riend Pratik Mehta, went to K alina University where the results were put up.
We manually typed the whole list of over 5,000 students and delivered it online. We got
innumerable calls thanking us for our efforts. It·s the joy of making a diff erence to a student·s
lif e that drives me.
Could you please elaborate on your business model?
Everything that touches management education is our kingdom. We cater to BMS, BBI, BAF
and MBA students to handhold them in their journey f rom being a Bachelor in management
to obtaining a Masters degree. We bridge the gap between education that an IIM student
receives and one that is imparted to St Francis MBA through research dissemination. With
over 89,000 members, MP is revolutionizing management education on all f ronts.
MP helps students in their research reports. If a person is confused about what he should
include in his report on "Venture Capital", he can log on to MP website and place a request.
We then provide help on the sub ject and person has to post the report on the forum once his
project is completed. Another student working on similar project can use this same report as a ref erence point. Our TG started f rom BMS and we expanded into MBA. Af ter knowing that
the market for Banking and Insurance has become lucrative, we spearheaded into it and now
we are weighing our options with BAF and BMM courses as well.
Do you plan to scale up?
Y es def initely. We are almost a 100 thousand member strong with an alexa ranking of top 20k
sites in the world and nearing the top 10k rapidly. We have not approached any venture
capitalist because of the current global meltdown. But I have great ideas for MP and if any
venture capitalist is interested in discussing funding opportunities, I would love to network.
W hat are the growth drivers / vision for your enterprise?
Reining MBA aspirants and prof essionals who wish to revisit MBA education online. Today,
management education is given a lot of signif icance and with the CAT going online, the
industry will only expand and so shall we, both geographically as well as in terms of domain
penetration.
Can you give some tips to budding entrepreneurs?
Always think you are right. The world might not be ready for your innovations; you may even
be considered a wannabe or a whacko, your ideas may be laughed or f rowned upon. But if you
truly f eel that your idea is going to help change lives, nothing should stop you f rom giving it
your best shot. Your passion will drive your team to achieve excellence. Never shy away f rom
experimenting.
ARTICLE 12
A garage not just repairs your vehicle but kick-start your dreams too. Lock, stock and
business. Neera j Gupta will tell you as he toyed with various career choices before starting a
garage in 1998. Today, his company V -Link Group steers 3000 vehicles daily across four
metros to provide world class taxi services and employs more than 700 people.
What better way to interview Neera j than to hire a Meru cab-brand under which V-Link
operates taxi service- to reach his off ice. A call to their board number and f ive minutes later, a
green taxi rolled in to our location. Dashboard looked straight out of Knight Rider, a popular
western TV series of 80'. GPS, Mobile Dispatch Terminal (MDT), touch screen showing
distance and destinations.... driver tried his best to explain various services to us as we drove
towards the destination.
YourStory Team walked into his swanky off ice in suburban Mumbai and saw scores of people
with their ears plugged in to requests for cab service coming f rom diff erent parts of the city.
"We ensure round the clock availability of cabs backed by a location tracking GPS-based
dispatch technology and a 24x7 customer service center. This means a quicker pickup and
f aster response time to your call for a cab," explains Neera j.
It is hard to believe that this company had its humble origins in a ramshackle garage in
Oshiwara, Mumbai. "There were 50 other garages lining the road," says Neera j in his sof t,
aff able voice. "I partnered with my f riend, who had good technical knowledge and started
off ering annual maintenance contract to individuals and corporates."
Elite Class, his garage service caught f ancy of corporates as he started off ering f ree services on break-down, maintenance, and annual servicing of vehicles. "Within 8 -9 months, I had
corporates clients such as Blue Dart, Sony availing my services," says Neera j.
This was just the beginning. Soon, he came to know about Tata InfoTech giving contract for
bus service for transportation of their employees. "I put in Rs14 lakh, bought a bus and
started the shuttle service for 5 off ices of the company," Neera j reminisces. A s luck would
have it, employee strength increased as Tata tied-up with Sitel to start a BPO. "The travel
time for shuttle services increased and i introduced small vehicles in 2002," says Neera j. In
next four years, company put in 1300 vehicles on the road, providing transportation services
to various corporate companies.
However, the real break came in August 2006, when Neera j applied for taxi service license
off ered by the Maharashtra govt. "The main challenge was capital. India Value Fund, a PE
f irm came on board as a partner and I started with 30 taxis in March 2007."
However it wasn't a smooth ride initially. Private companies were not allowed to get new taxi
permit and had to convince the existing the 'black and yellow' taxi-owners to join their
company. "We invested heavily in drivers and the latest technologies," says Neera j. The
company started its own Meru Driving Academy to educate drivers in traff ic rules, hygiene,
topography, latest technologies, handling of emergency situations etc. It pa id dividends as
drivers started approaching them and company has expanded its taxi fleet to 2000 vehicles
now. The balance 1000 vehicles are used by corporate companies for shuttle service.
All the vehicles have tamper-proof digital cab meters, integrated with the GPS-system to
ensure every f are is tracked, thereby ruling out any possibility of over charging by the driver.
It also gives a printed receipt for every f are, providing details of d istance traveled and total
amount payable
"Our target is to have a fleet of 10,000 taxis in next three years. Expansion plans will need
capital infusion of Rs500 crore and we will consider both debt and equity route for funding,"
says Neera j.
What next?
Neera j has plans to develop his company V -Link into an end-to-end transportation company
as he mulls over entering into bus rapid transit system and looks forward to a private-public
"Bus travel" - the words conjure up a troublesome picture in mind, one that is even more
pronounced in the minds of one billion Indians, for whom travel by bus equates to an evil of
last resort. A gainst this populist norm, one young entrepreneur is f ervently working to
repaint the inconvenient portrait that bus travel has drawn for itself in India. Yourstory
caught up with Phanindra Sama, the man behind redBus.in, on how redBus.in is seeking to
unsettle rooted cutural belief s by popularizing bus travel through its innovative business
model. ´redBus.in seeks to modernize bus travel in India by bringing in the convenience f actor
- akin to how the airline and rail ticketing industry has evolved in India. redBus.inaggregates bus tickets inventory f rom hundrerds of bus operators and makes it available
online for consumers. Add to this, we distribute our bus inventory to thousands of retailers
like travel agents, large retail chains like Sif y cyber caf es, post off ices, OTA s like
MakeMyTrip, Y atra, and mobile VAS providers like OnMobile etc.µ
Founded in late 2006, redBus.in is a market leader in the industry (a category that it has
literally created and organized) with an inventory f eaturing 500+ bus operators for 5000+
services covering over 15 states in the country. We serve customers f rom 7 call centers spread
across South, West and North India.
When it comes to the scope and the eff ects of his venture, Phanindra seems to have been a
heaven-sent for an industry running on outdated principles. He states ´Our solution is a win -
win solution for the bus operator, the travel agent and the customer. Bus operators gain
because with redBus, they now have access to a strong distribution network. Today their
tickets are available in multiple outlets, geographies and channels such as on mobi le, internet
and home delivery. Travel agents gain because they now have access to an inventory f rom
multiple bus operators. Besides that they can sell return tickets as well. Customers gain
because they now have information on a comprehensive list of buses plying between any
routes.µ
´We work like an agent to bus operators. The bus operator pays us a commission for the seats
we sell.µ, says Phanindra, elaborating his company's business model.
On bus-ticketing coming of age in India, Phanindra comments. "The Indian bus traveler was
suff ering f rom mutliple handicaps before the advent of redBus.in. For starters, commuters
could not book return tickets at the source location, pre-book seat locations or compare travel
f ares. Moreover, the industry was suff ering f rom lack of information dissemination on a
comprehensive list of bus operators plying on various travel routes and a review and rating on
parameters like quality, punctuality and service. With redBus.in, we aim to make these
inadequacies a thing of the past."
And the commuter response has been more than just merely encouraging. In the past two and
a half years redBus.in has been exponentially grown as reflected in their numbers. From a
meager amount of Rs 50 lakh of gross bookings in their f irst f inancial year-end of Mar 07,
redBus.in clocked over Rs 30 crore in gross booking this f inancial year end. In the meanwhile,
redBus.in has gone f rom people in a single location to about 150 direct employees spread
Phanindra says ´the biggest achievement in the growth of the organization has been that we
were able to grow every month consistently. We have an extremely good team which is honest,
mature and hardworking. We enjoy great trust f rom our suppliers (bus operators) as well as
consumers (passengers).µ
With the way his business seems to be taking off, we asked him what his plans are for
expansion. He revealed his plans saying ´We plan to scale up the business by understanding
customers better and creating products/processes to serve them better. I believe that having greater emphasis on the consumer is a foundation for scaling up a business like ours.
Phanindra also shared with Yourstory on why he took to entrepreneurship« ´I think I chose
entrepreneurship to explore learning outside technology. I was always curious to understand
and experiment with things such as branding, product pricing, advertising, HR activities etc.
Entrepreneurship provides unrestricted opportunity to explore such things.µ And Phanindra
has seized the unrestricted opportunities well indeed. Besides clocking a steady month -on-
month increase, he has also won accolades - being recognized as India·s Most Promising
Entrepreneurs: No#3 by Business World, selected as Endeavor Entrepreneurs
(www.endeavor.org) and TiE Entrepreneurs (www.tie.org). Af ter meeting with him, we are sure this is but a start of the things to come for this steely entrepreneur.
The biggest challenge for him has been to keep his management and business expertise at par
with the company's growth. He says ´I am trying to overcome it by seeking advice f rom
mentors, reading up books on management, leadership, biographies and psychology". Like
most young entrepreneurs he has had a spot of self doubt too« Phanindra reveals his past
misgivings saying ´I had not internalized early enough that I ought to be a leader. A
leader has many qualities such as courage, maturity, forgiveness, trustworthiness
etc. Until I internalized this, I behaved like a young 20 something with a juvenile
myopic view of things and lost time and opportunity. W hen I told myself that I was
a leader, the world changed for me.µ
A s is the case with most success stories there was also a low point which almost terminated
the business. He says ´Y es. I f elt this af ter the f irst f ew months of our launch. During those
days we were just selling 10 seats a day and I was f eeling guilty. I discussed this with the
Sudhakar (Co-Founder) who gave the much needed conf idence for us to continue.µ Phanindra
relishes the possibility of doing much more; while learning the nuances of running a company;
also being liked and respected by f ellow teammates are the things that drive him to stay
focused.
He says ´We want to continue to be known as a respected company and cross INR 150 Crore
in gross bookings.µ Yourstory asked him what he considers to be his most prestigious
recognition. He says ´It is being recognized as an Endeavor Entrepreneur. Endeavor has a
rigorous selection process and a very good selection criteria. I am happy to be selected af ter
Any Corporate worth its coff ee break knows that the HR makes or breaks the functionality of
a company. There is good news on the way for any seeking HR service with plugHR surging
ahead under Prashant Bhaskar.
In other words ´plugHR is India·s first subscription based HR department. In a simple
subscription, it allows companies to set up and run their HR departments at a cost that is at
least 30% lower than any other alternative. Currently managing over 30 companies across 7
industries in 5 cities in India, plugHR manages the entire HR function by deploying its proprietary knowledge model, motivated manager on site and sharp monitoring. A reas like
training & development and employee engagement get fully taken care of. So to set up a fully
compliant and industry benchmarked HR set up all you need to do is sign up for a plugHR
subscription.
So aside f rom the obvious where else can plugHR be of use?
Prashant answers ´While the platform has attracted companies f rom various industries and
sizes, primary focus of plugHR remains small & medium businesses. There are some 8 millionenterprises that need a service like this across India, almost $15 billion is being spent
annually by the industry in a hope to build a good HR department. Currently plugHR would
be servicing over 6000 employees through its subscription platform, the number is bound to
grow exponentially as more companies sign up.
plugHR seems to be a good concept and a step aside form the usual HR f irm«µThe Business
model is simple. plugHR charges a f ixed annual subscription f ee for running the HR
department. Subscription includes f ee for model licensing and f ee for keeping the bandwidth
deployed. There are some other value added services that companies can buy into once they
are on the platform.
´K ey diff erentiators of our model are 1. Our proprietary delivery model that has been
developed by our product team. 2. High quality training & monitoring of execution bandwidth
that actually executes the model, 3. Constant Updates of the model that brings value to all
clients without them investing in research at all and 4. Economies of scale that our clients get
f rom service providers because of plugHR relationship.
Prashant plans to move forward and shared hi plans with Yourstory« µThe plugHR
business model allows for rapid scalability, within two years of operations, plugHR
has scaled up to Pan India operations. In next 6 months, we·d move to 8 cities in India.
By end of this year Singapore and Middle East operations will get going. There is enough
management bandwidth available in the company to undertake rapid ramp up.µ The founder
Prashant Bhaskar himself has over 10 years experience in building large scale businesses as
part of Hutchison, BPL Mobile, Jobs A head.com.
He says ´Entrepreneurship allows one to fully utilize one·s potential as well as satisf ys one·s
risk taking appetite; regular jobs don·t off er the latter. Also entrepreneurship fully rewards
innovation & risk unlike a job. I didn·t want to just sell my time, but always wanted to create
products and model that will create value in time. Also I got excellent grooming for
entrepreneurship during my corporate years f rom successful entrepreneurs.
Yourstory asked him if he had ever suff ered a setback of any kind he reminisces ´Biggest
challenge for me during startup years had been to attract bright and experienced
professionals to join me in spite of resource limitations. To some extent my track
record helped and then I had to really drive the team from upfront to instill a sense
of purpose and confidence in them. Another big challenge was initial fundingneeds. W e decided to bootstrap rather than losing equity early and ran the business
without taking on fixed costs like office infrastructure etc. W e worked from coffee
houses across cities and even parks while maintained sharp eye on revenue
opportunities"
´I underestimated the need for strong accounting and compliance machinery early
on and relied on freelancers to pull this off. Similarly on the marketing f ront we used
start up f irms. I realized that if you are a startup, your vendors should be well set companies,
otherwise it becomes like one blind man leading the other (no off ence to the blind).
So with all the tightening of belts that was going on, how did he f ind his seed capital, we
wondered, Prashant answered ´Like I mentioned, we did away with the need for seed capital
to a great extent by bootstrapping. Some initial investment was put in by my wif e, who also
sits on the plugHR board. I put in f rom my savings and we could pull off. Most of the
investment was notional in form of my own opportunity cost, as I used to be paid well in
corporate roles.
They have also made some headway af ter all the hard work. Af ter all forbearance and the
sweat of one·s brow do provide gains« ´We have been on the growth tra jectory f rom the word
go. Barring one quarter we grew quarter on quarter right through two years. Over last year
we have grown over 200%
Prashant told Yourstory what he considers as his crowning glory«µThe biggest achievement
in the growth has been that we grew on many counts. Our average price point per customer
grew, our product portfolio grew, we expanded business in multiple geographies and we
covered more than 7 industries. We could also gain good managerial bandwidth while growing
and we still enjoy two day weekends.
´We got recognized early on when The Economic Times f eatured plugHR as ´Big Out of the
Box Ideaµ in December 2007, we were really small then, it was big encouragement. plugHR
got nominated for TATA NEN Hottest Startup Award in 2008 and that was an exciting time
for the team. The Hindustan Times also spoke good words about us in their bus iness daily
´MINTµ. Our biggest recognition comes f rom the f act that over 90% of our clients have come in
through client ref errals. We are ref erred by venture capitalists, private equity investors to
their portfolio companies and we work with many non -prof it organizations.µ
When asked if any job off er was good enough to entice him into working a normal job again he
guff awed ´Ha Ha, I think I might not f it in back there, but I do fondly remember those days.
You had to deal with limited concerns then; those days were easy I·d say.µ
He explained his love of the game saying ´I think I love entrepreneurs, and I like being one
myself. I see an unlimited opportunity, unsatisf ied consumers, people craving for better
products & services, brilliant prof essionals ready to execute good ideas, enough capital ready
to get deployed, young men and women wanting employment. I f eel they all are looking up to
entrepreneurs. A s an entrepreneur you can make such a huge diff erence. I belong here.
A s for future goals, plugHR will be the largest HR platform in India by 2010 with over 100
companies on the platform and plugHR would be the choice place of work for brilliant HR
prof essionals.
Yourstory also coaxed a f ew nuggets f rom Prashant concerning his personal bests he said ´I
got Indira Super Achiever·s Award at the age of 26, it was a great experience.
Each of the awards ² Champion Sales Manager at BPL Mobile, Innovator Award at
Jobs A head, Fast growing region Award at Jobs A head etc have been great motivators all
along.µ
Prashant advises ´Talk to enough entrepreneurs and understand what they say, there is no
point repeating the same mistakes. Work on the business model; make sure all energies are
put on a business that will scale. There is nothing called limited entrepreneurship or part
time effort, you·ve got to take the risk f inally, so do it or don·t. Ideas help you take risks,
good execution makes things work, so EXECUTE.µ
ARTICLE 15
A GIFT FOR ALL OKASSIONZ -
Human beings have an urge to venerate the Almighty, to celebrate the small and the big
blessings in lif e and nowhere do we celebrate as much as we do in India. With our multiple
religions and multiple Gods it's only to be expected that when it comes down t o ritual and
protocol, some of us will be stumped. A t least I am, when it comes to rituals and rites, I
cannot tell my A rrathi f rom my Shardhanjali. Perhaps with this in mind, in 2008 Hanish V
Pherwani decided that he would be the shining light that guides "Okassionz".
A s founder and C.E.O. of his company "Okassionz" (pronounced occasions), he hit upon the
idea of manuf acturing Designer Puja kits.
Starting with a Diwali Puja kit, Vehicle Puja kit, Grih Pravesh kit, K arva Chauth, Ugadi kit,Pongal, Ganesh Chaturthi, Muslim Namaz kit, Rangoli kit, "Okassionz Puja kits" have
become an Ethnic Gif t everyone would cherish.
Hanish says" Readymade Puja kits have made lif e much easier for people who are unaware of
the Puja items required to perform a Ritual correctly. It is also an ethnic form of gif ting to
clients/ relatives in f estivals. People can easily conduct a Puja with the kit which contains
everything f rom A garbatti to Ghee, Deepak, Clove Cardamom, Sindoor all 32 items required
for the Puja in mind, labeled and packed neatly with high quality material" The kit also
contains Puja vidhi on how to perform the Puja so that the hapless worshipper can now have
There are certain pitf alls to being an amateur Entrepreneur. "Okassionz" didn't launch
Shraddha pack in the f irst year but got a lot of enquiries for the economy pack. With that in
mind the "Shraddha" pack is already hitting markets. With a certain amount of satisf action
Hanish notes that 9 lacs turnover in just three months without any big advertisement
expenditure or PR is itself an achievement for "Okassionz". Add to that, orders f rom Walmart
(Canada) & Piramal Health Care for their customized designs and I do believe that we have a
winner here.
So what inspires someone like Hanish and has he ever thought of giving up on his dreams?
Hanish replies "Not at all, because I knew the idea would work. I struggled to f ind products,
cut down labour costs, even arranging all 34 items and packaging solutions. The kits that you
see are all designed by me. So that also took time, to get the ethnic/ look. I did not get the kits
designed by any designer, the Puja vidhi booklet in Hindi is typed by me word by word af ter
learning Hindi typing."
With so much effort and focus on his dreams we at Yourstory asked him how he stays
inspired. To this he says he has a vision that the product is needed in the market, provided
the marketing should be done well and quality should be maintained.
And as a spot of advice to those who would take the Entrepreneurs leap he says "Y es, lot of
times people are af raid to take risks. Needless to say that you require conf idence in yourself,
but risk taking ability is something that should be there in everybody who looks forward to
starting business. . If you can handle it and have f aith in your idea / concept, you are surely
going to win."
ARTILCE 16
When history reaches a turning point, there are those who watch and those who act. We at
Yourstory are both, participants and spectators in the making of economic history. Our
purpose of existence is to evaluate, expound and showcase the awesome spark of creation in
every entrepreneur. Our passion for entrepreneurship and its resounding global resonance is
only matched by the zeal to bring our peers onto a singular platform for f ree flowing exchange
of ideas and visions. We work f rom all over India to bring the best and the brightest Young
Entrepreneurs into the limelight they deserve. This has been Our Story and we believe that
this is YourStory Too«
The Yourstory team operates across India remaining in touch through the miracles of modern
technology bringing Entrepreneurs to the foref ront, come rain, hail sleet or snow«
The YourStory Team brings you entrepreneurial news, trends happenings and stories f rom allover India. This small but robust group has given you week af ter week of entrepreneurial
content since YourStory was founded despite working in diff erent locations.
Shradha Sharma, Founder and Chief Editor
Shradha Sharma is the Founder and Chief Editor of YourStory.in. Prior to starting
YourStory, Shradha was A sst.Vice President with CNBC TV18 and Brand Adviser at Times of
India. Shradha holds a bachelors and masters degree in History f rom St.Stephens
