The Transerve Story

Transerve’s data analytics is a unique proposition in the world of data analytics as it puts the result of large data on a map. Visualisation of data on an arithmetic map helps Transerve’s clients realise the power of data in realtime to assess the geography in a more complete (mapped) sense. Ashwani explains how the larger goal remains to utilise data for business, “Like managing territory for the sales team, understanding consumer behaviour on top of a map, marking zones for targeting customers and other demographic information has become necessary for larger businesses who are still struggling to penetrate the market. At one point in time, no matter how much you are spending on marketing, you don’t generate revenues and there is a need to reach out to each and every potential customer and that is where mapping technologies can take you.”

Ashwani, despite Transerve’s healthy growth, isn’t satisfied with the lookout of investors towards niche markets, “Without the validation model, investors don’t get much confidence. Awareness is one issue. Secondly, there are not many companies in this space. If an investor is investing in every country on the globe, they might catch a global trend and extrapolate it in India. Though, for an Indian investor who has not seen such businesses, it becomes difficult for an entrepreneur to validate his prospect. India being a highly volatile market, investors are already low on confidence and, economically, India hasn’t shown promising results. This is why there are not many SaaS based startups that have succeeded in the last decade,” he remarks. Have things changed, I ask him back and Ashwani answers, “Yeah! As far as the Geospatial industry is concerned, people have realised it is going to be a game-changer. Thanks to Covid19, companies have understood that they have to deploy Geospatial engines or Geospatilaly enabled IT solutions in the company. This is because all of them have a large market base, customers are spread everywhere, their presence is in all parts of the country and they want to penetrate even more. So they are more open to us.”

Instability Of Ecosystem and Leadership

A stable ecosystem from both financial and policy-making side is important for startup culture to thrive and sustain in a  country. Almost every time there has been a knee-jerk reactionary type decision making from the government, Ashwani as the Founder of a company, shares how it has acted like almost a professional setback every time. “The lowest I must have been, was 2012, then 2014, then demonetisation, then GST and now this draconian lockdown which came in place. Back when the dollar started strengthening and the rupee’s value depreciating, we lost a lot of contracts. Then the demonetisation and a badly implemented GST followed. We being at the bottom of the pyramid, it affected us a lot. My opinion is, when you have such a huge structure of the base on which everything is standing for the last 60 years, you can augment it but not suddenly change the whole foundation. Startups generally function hand-to-mouth, we are not sitting on a pile of cash. In such tough situations, we can barely sustain three to six months with some planning.”

How do you handle such rough patches as the guy on top of the vertical? Ashwani answers by exemplifying absolute acumen of a leader. “During such phases, I get into the mode of being a father to everyone. I imagine the company as my family. So if something happens to a family, the father takes the hit. He takes the pain and brunt but never reveals it. I think one has to really behave like that. It is very difficult, I know. You get lonely and you cannot share things with anyone, but it is the need in such times. In such scenarios, leadership will develop naturally in you. This also includes listening to great people, your family and taking all kinds of pieces of advice. That is how leadership will slowly develop in you, naturally.”

Previously many inspiring leaders have spoken with Dutch Uncles while discussing the idea of networking. Some have called it an irreplaceable part of the business to some shunning it as an overhyped concept. The discourse keeps on moving while taking different routes and perspectives. Ashwani Rawat adds his cogent opinion to it, “Irrespective of differences, I go out and network with everyone. I’ve done many beautiful deals with almost strangers whom I met, like by an accident. 

Networking is important but it takes time and effort to build a relationship for a longer-term. Also, you will meet people who will give you great feedback, they’ll ask you brutal questions and you’ll get to learn a lot of your shortcomings that way. It will make you uncomfortable but trust me, we all need that devil’s advocate in our lives.”

Don’t Dare To Give Up

Sharing the turning points of his life, Ashwani mentions his selection in IIT was a humbling experience where he learnt an important lesson, “You meet all these people who are smarter than you and you realise, you need to learn a lot. It is a great experience. You then know that you need to start learning afresh.”

“The second turning point for me was these Covid days. There was a lot of uncertainty. I realised this that okay surprises can come at any point of time. In business, personally, I hate surprises, be it good or bad.” He further admits how awareness could have saved him even more and that he has learnt from it. “Had we been clearly aware of everything happening around us in November or December, we could have been better prepared to tackle this challenge of Covid. We need to come out of our silos. You can’t be an Ostrich! You have to look around. It is a great learning for all of us, especially for me.”

Ashwani calls out young fellow entrepreneurs to not, at any point, give up despite chaos around. “Giving up is not a solution at all. In India, business is chaotic. Every day there will be some fight, money problems, every day you’ll be chasing customers, this is just the nature of the business, so embrace it. You might fail but you have to try and learn from it.”

Generally asked at the start of Inspire interviews, Ashwani is asked right at the end, what kind of a person he is, to which he replies succinctly, “I’m absolutely a tough nut to crack. No matter how much you try to beat me, I’ll never give up. I hate to give up!”

Counting more goof-ups in his personal life than professional, in his youthful voice, Ashwani says he is going to bed peacefully. “I don’t have any regrets in life. Goof-ups happen but that is part of life. An entrepreneur is always going to be lonely, I tell all fellow wannapreneurs the same. However, the thrill you get is just yours. That is also something others are never going to get. So yes, I’m sleeping well.”

Co-founder of Transerve, Ashwani Rawat continues to make the most of his time in the serenity of Goa. As he concludes by sharing his love for nature and related photography with a promising smile which conveys that his modelling ambition in a parallel universe still stands a chance somewhere.

You want your employees to be happy because happiness can be translated as productivity in the workplace. But how do you make your employees feel happy if they dread coming to work every morning? That’s where culture comes in. A culture should create a positive environment for the employees, make them happy at work, and not add more stress to their lives even if the nature of the job is stressful. This is why culture matters because it sustains employee happiness and enthusiasm.

At the deepest level, the culture of an organisation is derived from the nature of the employees and management. How are the managers and the leadership team? Are they good or bad? How do they look up to their employees? How employees interact with their peers and customers? The next important factor is the organisation’s relationship with its environment. How is the culture supported by the business strategy, which emotions people are encouraged to express, and which ones are suppressed? All these play an effective role in sharing the organisation’s culture. 

Benefits of having an organisational culture

The core of having an organisational culture is when employees resonate with the organisation’s culture. They feel more attracted to it. Employees who fit in the organisation’s culture tend not only to be happier but are more productive too. 

Company culture is beneficial not only for employees but for employers too. Employees who fit in the right company culture tend to stay longer, ensuring better employee retention. Further, organisations that offer positive culture tend to foster a better relationship between co-workers, employees, and managers. When they share a common goal that aligns with the organisational goal, everyone collaborates and works towards achieving it. 

What is a supportive people culture?

Company culture is unique to its organisation. Among different company cultures, a supportive people culture is the most desired company culture that a company should have. A supportive organisational culture creates a positive social and psychological environment that optimizes overall employee health, safety, and well-being. It helps to foster positive relationships between employees, management, and their work. It is important because a supportive people culture engages everyone in the organisation, which can be interpreted as an increase in productivity. 

Why it is important to have a supportive culture

In our previous article, we have seen how a hiring bias can lead to wrong hiring. A wrong hire can have several detrimental effects on the company culture. It can lead to employee turnover, a bad reputation for the company, and finally, a toxic work culture. On the other hand, a supportive culture means a place of joy, having a sense of purpose, and feeling connected to the people and your work. That’s the kind of workplace everyone wants to work in. This kind of workplace makes every employee happy. As an employer, you will want to build a supportive people culture. But how do you build and nurture it?

How to build and nurture a supportive people culture

To build a supportive work culture, you need to define your core values that have mutual trust, respect, and empathy for each other. As an employer, you may set restrictions and goals, but know that your employees will succeed only when the limits are controlled and nurtured in a supportive culture. We will now take a more in-depth look at different ways to promote a supportive people culture.

Instill teamwork

A supportive culture involves a strong team, and to build one, leaders should go beyond their roles to support their people. For example, managers and supervisors should be willing to pitch in and extend help to their subordinates, even if it means going beyond their job roles. When each person in the team contributes towards a shared goal and extends help to each other, the team emerges as a strong team. 

Hiring practices

Start with hiring the right people. Hiring bias can lead to wrong hires, which can affect the bottom line of the company’s revenue. Instead, devise a hiring strategy, that is skill and aptitude base. Offer fair opportunities to all the candidates without bias taking over your judgment. For example, include at least three people in the hiring process so that there is no scope of discrimination. Each interviewer will have a different perspective and hence will make it a fair evaluation. Encourage the candidate to speak candidly during the interview. Hear them out before you talk about your organisational culture and your expectations. 

Integrity, honesty, and empathy are traits that you should look for in your desired candidates. Design scenario-based interview questions and test how they would react. Are they dealing with a lot of empathy? Can you identify integrity as a trait? 

Retention strategies

Employee retention should be a part of the active strategy towards building a supportive culture. For example, employees must have access to enough leaves to take care of their personal life. Managers and supervisors should make conscious efforts not to disturb employees when they are on leaves. In short, a culture should be built where employees are respected. And when the whole organisation works towards this, top talents are retained, and new talents are attracted. After all, everyone wishes to work in such an organisation where they are respected and heard.

Onboarding programs

How you onboard your employees leave a lasting impression on the mind of your employees. Design an onboarding program that helps the employee to settle down in the new environment well. Imbibe your company culture and values from the first day. Right from the employee handbook to onboarding process, leave an impression that you care. Be genuine in your efforts, and you will just turn an employee into a happy and engaged employee. 

Performance management

Performance management can significantly affect company culture and vice versa. Employees who receive constructive and timely feedback, share a clear goal and have a clear outline of what is expected from them tend to outperform their peers who work in environments that lack cohesiveness or shared common goals. HR leaders must draft a well-planned performance management system to nurture a supportive people culture.

Networking is often considered the linchpin of entrepreneurial know-how. Professional friendships often become imperative as an entrepreneur goes ahead in his journey. For Pankaj, friendships are way above any business interest and it cannot be mingled. “I don’t make friends for business. It takes a very special place in your heart. So, connecting with somebody, just attending an event for business purposes, I don’t do it that way. We don’t think about business when there is friendship.”

In entrepreneurship, easy scaling and early exit are no surprise. Not many CEOs, founders make it to the top with a consistent attitude. Consistency requires discipline. Discipline requires ethics. Pankaj is clear when it comes to what an entrepreneur should do when it comes to ethics, “Shortcuts at the end are shortcuts. They do not pay you in the longer run. And, taking that shortcut might give you a hike in a shorter run but deep inside, you remember what you are doing, consciously or subconsciously.” Pankaj cites the tale of Mahabharata, where Karn had to make a choice between the two sides in the battlefield and he chose what he felt was ethically right. You might judge it in any way but he was ethically correct.” he adds.

One thing that every entrepreneur should know is that the ability to take risk is what will define them in the race. Pankaj has a backstory that amusingly fits the narrative of risks in entrepreneurship. “I got married in December 2006, I started my start-up leaving everything else in 2007 January. So, risk taking has been my life. Risk will only help you to achieve your potential to its fullest. If you just do not take any risk, it is like not walking on the road or driving a car fearing an accident. . So, for things to happen in entrepreneurship, risk has to be life.”

MagicPin smartly created its business model around this concept. However, it is their magical recipe behind the success of the hyperlocal discovery that they have garnered. They do not just collect the data of offline retailers. They apply smart algorithmic approaches to that data and also, use big data algorithms to analyse user behaviour. So, their data then becomes a gold mine for all the parties involved. MagicPin to start with, gets highly efficient filtered data of consumer behaviour, their purchase choices, their ratings of services and their likes, dislikes. This helps them target different categories of their users with need-based advertising. They can also offer rewards, discounts which are specialised per the demands of the user. MagicPin uses this data to map the locality better, hence improving their hyperlocal discovery with every new input.

For retailers, MagicPin is a boon. They are the ones on the discovery end. The better services, discounts and application experience MagicPin provides more their chance to get seen. Plus, they get to target customers with like-minded shopping attributes. Or they can always pitch in their ice-cream flavour to a customer who had a scoop, the other night. Since local brands do not get the loyalty customer base other than what they build locally through trust and quality, recurring customers are sparse. MagicPin follows its reward system, where a user can collect MagicPoints, whenever they visit a store and upload their receipts to get these points. Now these points can be only redeemed at MagicPin partner stores. Hence, these stores get recurring footfall. On top of that, every good experience is converted into a visually enriching story by MagicPin. This lets other users also get an idea of what kind of stores are doing well in terms of quality, pricing, hygiene and offers. Which finally comes down to, more discovery and better business. Finally, consumers are no lesser winners either here. They get coupons, rewards through MagicPoints which are redeemable at local shops, as mobile recharges or such other services. They also get to like, comment and interact with other application users. It is like a social media platform for the offline marketplace.

MagicPin is an exemplary model of self-sustenance, A template that is created to run like a mill. In an attempt to exploit the offline retail market, all the major entities of their model from a retailer, consumer to MagicPin itself are being benefited. Data which is gold in today’s valuation is coming to them for no cost. The data is simply verifiable and is much refined as the rating and review do not affect the MagicPoints a user will receive. For personalisation, they go every length possible. Even Wifi signals are used by MagicPin algorithms to quickly point the customer towards the nearest store.

Revenue Model

Merchants and brands use the MagicPin platform and its data to direct their offers to potential customers. These brands, merchants then pay two sets of payment to MagicPin. First, when there is a recurring customer in their store, they pay a recurring fee. Second, is a set commission every time a customer from MagicPin’s platform does some kind of a transaction with the merchant. Anshoo Sharma is often quoted saying that MagicPin is a merchant and brand-led data technology company. The commission that MagicPin charges from merchants per transaction range from 10-12%.

This is not the only way MagicPin earns revenue, they also host advertising on its platform.  A lot of brands are regular advertisers on MagicPin and this helps these merchants and brands to reach out to their customers with an extra push.

As the business model is based on consumer data, the revenue model also tries to leverage it through marketing and advertising.

The interesting point here is that the business model from just the user end would appear to be dependent on the multinational merchants. While in reality, around 70% revenue is coming from small retailers. This makes the whole model even more sustainable as the future of the offline retailers remains very well tied with MagicPin’s support. Hence, the potential to exploit the small retail sector even when the partnerships with big chains drop down is huge.

Big leaders of the market

It is not that MagicPin was the first to think of hyperlocal discovery concept. There were early attempts to cash in on the same as well. The list can even go as far back as Foursquare. However, MagicPin’s door to door tie ups with retailers was unprecedented. Their model was the easiest to follow for local stores. These stores are often not run by people who understand complex technology. An easy application that just scans your location is all they wanted. Today, per the official website, the user base is a mega number of five million who have by now accumulated five million-plus experiences. In terms of merchants, it is also a leading figure with more than a lakh merchants already onboard.

Entrepreneurship is a spirit-driven field. That spirit, as per Dr. Yeluri, could come out of anything. He backs research that says the motive of revenge could be a guiding force behind successful entrepreneurs. “It is! Sometimes out of shackles, when we get the space to do things our way, we get that drive. It is a big factor. If it is revenge against the restrictions that one might have been put under, then so be it.” 

During the 1990s, Yeluri was in Karnataka completing his bachelors in dental surgery at the SJM Dental College. He got his first business experience during this period. In his third year of studies, he started a food-joint with his cousin. An affordable meal-joint for students that served Andhra food. He chose Andhra food as their serving because many Andhra students studied in his college. By this time, Yeluri was still in the grooming age of 22.  He credits this early start to time and his friends. “I would study a day before exams and get through. I used the free time to talk to people,” he says. 

Networking for an entrepreneur starts right from an early age. It is a skill to possess. The difficult part is to separate the wheat from the chaff. Dr. Yeluri, however, has an interesting rule in making friends, “So I make two types of friends. These are clearly defined types. One who are intellectuals, skilled people who know their trade. The other end is on the opposite extreme. These are the sets of people who have no idea what needs to be done. They are just living day by day. No hope, no care. They are fun people to get along with it. See, both the spectrums are happy, you see. Both have clarity in what they are doing (chuckles).” On being asked, which side of the spectrum does he lie on, he adds, “I like to be on both the ends. I want to live as I want to live, carefree but by being of some use to the community”.

What Is Risk?

At one point in the journey, the risk becomes a crucial word in an entrepreneur’s life. There is always some lingering fear of failure. In the ever-relaxed voice of Dr. Yeluri, he quickly does away with the idea of risk. “What is a risk? What will happen if you fail? You lose money, that is it. How much will you lose, only the amount you have, right? No problem, there is always going to be something you can do. Become a cab driver or maybe teach people in a village. Do something, whatever gives you a 3-time meal, that’s all. In India, your family will anyway feed you at least. A small amount like five thousand can easily give you some Pani Puri for breakfast and meal in the night.” Dr Yeluri believes entrepreneurs should become comfortable in the easy mantra of “start early, fail early”. As per him, there is nothing much you can do with, “You lose only the amount you were worthy of, isn’t it? You can’t lose something that was bestowed upon you more than your worth. That is unlikely for an entrepreneur. So why worry,” he asserts. 

Often entrepreneurs are seen as smart horses of the business stable. Their approach is expected to scale operations at a demanding pace. In turn, the competitive mindset bends the ethical backbone of the individual. Are you a principled man? I ask Dr. Yeluri. His reply is prompt, “Totally. Nothing without principles. Business of any kind shall not be done without it. This is what your employees, investors and other people would look for too. Our lives get shaped too through such principles. You might lose some money now but on a longer run, ethics are good.” 

Honesty, Fearlessness And Trip To Agra

Vocal about space for improvement, Yeluri opens up on his weaknesses, “On the top of my mind comes this lack of daily order. As I said, I never had a proper classroom-type education. So, the day-to-day operational management is not something I’m good at. Micro-management is something I don’t do generally. That means I’m trying to work upon it.” Dr. Yeluri is a believer of fun in life. “I don’t call myself busy. Unless it is a new start-up, I’m mostly free. I enjoy my time with family. I like to sing a lot and play guitar in my free time.”

For Dr. Yeluri, there is no scope for excuses if you want something. Fear of losing as per him is just another palliation. He braved his way early in life with decisions that made him the fearless entrepreneur that he is today. For that, he turns a few pages back in his life and shares an incident that has a lot of learning for budding entrepreneurs. “In a market in Bangalore, I used to see nice pairs of shoes being sold at around 350 rupees. Back in my hometown Vizag, the same shoes were being sold at 750 rupees. I enquired a bit and found out; it was Agra from where these shoes were coming from. I knew, since the margin shift between Bangalore and Vizag is such, Agra markets must be selling them even cheaper. Next day with a little cash, I was on a train to Agra. In less than 48 hours, I was at my own stall for shoes back in my hometown. We sold well and I realized, how many business opportunities are there to work with!” 

Accept the reality and move ahead

She opens up about this phase and it has a strong message for budding entrepreneurs. “It was a new world for me.  It was my return to academic life, so it was fun that way. However, from day one I realised this place has a different level altogether. It has a competitive mindset and the success this institution has garnered is immense. I had to buckle up. It was really a realisation. There are so many brilliant minds out there. I had the best of schooling available in Delhi. I was sure, I’ll do well from the start. It wasn’t really the case. I had to give my best after a few semesters in order to match up.” While sharing this experience Jyoti shows exemplary honesty, in which she says, “See in entrepreneurship, or in anything, living inside a bubble will never help. You have to understand and assess your weaknesses. You have to accept the shortcomings. And this can’t be just learnt in business. It starts with everything you do. So, I don’t like to mix things up. It is better to be honest.”

Entrepreneurship is often not the first thing that might come to an individual who is interested in business. It can be a result of years of doing many different things which did not fruit into self-satisfaction. Jyoti’s journey and her insistence on patiently exploring the opportunities are an example of an entrepreneurial trail. “After IIMC, I got the job at Yes Bank. It was a hasty choice. I was cold calling people and doing things that weren’t really the art I’m capable of. I knew my skills could be better put to use somewhere else.” After Yes Bank’s role, Jyoti goes on to do her consultation job at Feedback Ventures. For years into professional life post her academic cycle at IIMC, she still wanted something different. As fate would have it, it was there in the making. “My time with the corporate circle as an employee ended after 2014. I got married. I gave time to myself to figure out something meaningful for my life. I focused on my fitness and read a lot about how fitness is perceived. I was disillusioned with the kind of wrong idea of fitness that there is.”

Jyoti converted the break she took into a remarkable opportunity to explore a new idea. Her exploration of the fitness-related businesses around Gurgaon led her to even more surprising revelations. “People had no idea how crucial health was. Some offices were trying to connect the dots of health but most were still clueless. Streamlining these services and talking to gyms in order to connect them with these corporates was the plan. This is coming after my liking towards fitness. It is quintessential to give yourself time instead of being caged in something that pays well and does well.”

As the entrepreneurial life goes, everything is a risk. Especially when you are leaving a stable, handsomely paying corporate job. On risks, Jyoti shares her thoughts with Dutch Uncles, “I don’t fear risks. But I would also not go stupid altogether. There is something called calculated risks. You have to understand what Plan B is.  There are so many things you learn from these risks as well. The rigour that I went through during my corporate career, the ups and downs, the hierarchy of power in the company and similar learnings are all there with me, just because I went through these experiences. Like It or not, the lessons should keep on coming. For example, I was able to call these gyms, corporations with the full ‘cold calling’ feel to it. If Yes Bank experience had not been there, it would have been really difficult.”

Humble Start And Challenges In Business 

Terragreens was running in an ecosystem that did not have many options or alternatives established back in the early 2010s. However, it proved to be a silver lining for Likitha’s business. As there were no organic brands back in those days, Terragreens Organic got picked up by national chains. Within 6 months they got catapulted to the national market. This led to a whooping growth of 300% in her first year of business. Since then, there has been no looking back for her. 

Likitha remembers Terragreen’s humble start very well, “We started with a 400 sq. ft. warehouse and today it is a 40,000 sq. ft. packaging unit. Today there are 12,000 farmers with us, the product line is about 60 scales. We are also the backend for one of the largest companies. We do everything now, from bulk trading, packaging, distribution to retail.”

Likitha’s involvement with nature, surroundings, life and sustainable culture is forming the backbone of the company. For an industry that revolves around growing crops, money cannot be the sole motive. More so, when the talk is of organic growth, it becomes a mission. Entrepreneurship with a vision and mission is more fruitful in the longer run. Likitha puts light on this, “In this space, we need to have that mindset, more so because we are in the long-term game. When we started, the questions were, ‘What is organic?’. Today we are being asked different questions. The increasing awareness makes our customers wonder, what am I eating, where is my food coming from, is this food really good for me. At least, with time, the conversation about organic has opened.”

Entrepreneurship is about starting something new. It is about taking the step which was either avoided, neglected or left unexplored. And in these times, building a name and trust amongst masses is crucial to surviving. As per Likitha, Indians have a rule of precedence, “It is like somebody always needs to show proof. That is the mindset in India. We start or fund businesses at times only when the world has shown some kind of precedence before. The difficulty for us is in carrying out a business model that has not been tried and tested before. In the FMCG space, companies are either involved in production or marketing or packaging or do trading. No one can do it all. Especially start-ups. Now, when you are in organic space. It is important for you to have control over the complete supply chain. This is because you don’t know what you are buying. If your farmers are actually supplying you with organic food. So, there is no other way to do it than to have your foot in every step.” 

When a business model requires a company’s engagement from A-to-Z steps, the scaling is bound to get hit, on which Likitha continues, “It becomes equally harder to scale. You have 100 rupees and all your money gets divided into ten different verticals over putting the whole focus of resources on one area. So, a lot of companies are there struggling with this new model. We constantly have to work around our ways but in the organic sector, this is how things go, yes.”

The Idea Of Organic

The notion of healthy food and the whole organic industry got itself naturally hyphenated with luxury or a premium way of life. However, with perils of life at our doorsteps now, the idea of health has to change. Likitha explains it her way, “You need to listen to your body. We need to eat clean. We need to eat local food. We need to eat food that feels good for our body. Health is both mental and physical for me. Health has to be holistic.” Often organic food products get questioned about the trustworthiness of its originality, naturality of source. On this Likitha clarifies, “We need to understand what organic is. While growing a crop if no use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides is involved, then the produce is called organic. Still, after that, it goes through a three-year time period. In the third year, by which time any residue or chemical that could be present gets washed off. Then only it is called certified organic. So, when we talk about organic, there are guidelines in place which act as a benchmark for the product to be given that certification of quality. It is also a matter of education when it comes to organic products. For example, on our products, you’ll find a barcode, by which you could tell the geographical location of the farm and farmer.”

Just like Likitha quashes every doubt with a thorough understanding of her industry, it is imperative for an entrepreneur to be aware and updated about his or her field, all the time. This becomes instrumental in niche sectors which are trying to raise awareness for recognition. 

Marketability of a product is an essential factor. FMCG products do well in terms of advertising and have devised a number of ways to get their products to the kitchen. While for an organic food product, marketing even now is much more conditional to customer awareness and needs. For Likitha, value is above all, “For me people who buy organic food, have to see a value in it. I constantly strive to create value in our work and product. Our customer needs to see that in our product. Value for their health, family’s health, farmers health and planet’s health. We try to build a conversation around that.” In entrepreneurship, the confident face of the brand goes a long way in the market as well. An entrepreneur has to be a leader who leads from the front. Likitha despite being an introvert understands the need to be out there and present her business. She calls it doing “justice” to business by representing it at every stage.

We Are Different

Role of women in the growth of entrepreneurship in India is slowly cementing its footing. It is only fair to expect more and more women joining this long yet exciting journey of entrepreneurship. However, as society goes, there are limitations, hurdles and challenges that are thrown at them at every step. Likitha, who believed in the teachings she received on gender equality, slowly got exposed to the harsher practicalities of this society. “As I got into the business, I tried to scale, I tried to present myself in a certain fashion, I got reminded more often that I was a woman. I am not talking about opportunities. The other gender needs to really accept the fact that we are ‘different’. We are not males. We bring something different to the table, that is different and is valuable. My biggest challenge was, I was required to act like a man! I refuse to act like a man because I’m not one.” While there was a time such nuisance would irritate Likitha Bhanu, today she tells herself, “They are uncomfortable because you are different. I will have to make them comfortable about the fact that a woman is dealing with them and it is okay. I feel like we stick out like sore thumbs to them at times, in my sector the representation of women is quite low anyway. So, now I do act like the situation demands and I try to be myself. Today I’m like, ‘you got me! Deal with it’, however things have improved for all since 2012.”

The Co-founder Fortune

It is always beneficial for the synergy of the team if the co-founders go along well. Though, it cannot get better than Likitha’s case either. Her Co-founder is her mother, her mentor, Padmaja Bhanu. Likitha’s experience of working with her mother has been a guiding force for her throughout her journey, on which she adds, “She has shaped me as a human being. As a business person too. She taught me the principle of turning up for the people who work for us. For their families and for our customers too. We have our moments of arguments too but then I’m the closest to my Mom.” I ask her, if in a hypothetical situation, would she would want to work with someone else. To this, she assertively declares, “No! I will work on my own rather.”

Things are never sailing at the start. More so when something big is in the boiler! Initially, with the payment gateway concept in mind, the co-founders went off to discuss it with nearby banks. As near as the bank next door. Finding the right kind of person to understand the vision that Razorpay was trying to ensue in the mainstream financial manner of working. From banks to banks, door to door, it was a tough nut to crack for Razor pay. Going by the start-up culture folklore based out of actual words of the maverick, Harshil himself, as he has shared publicly, Razor pay was rejected by almost 100 banks before getting finally noticed. A young bank manager, to their luck, finally understood their concept. This was Razorpay’s first major milestone.

Their success then ushered in its own path with their correct choices along the path. The Razorpay intent was clear: Help start-ups grow, their growth will help Razor pay grow. It would be wrong to say that Razor pay was the first major payment gateway service provider by that time. Despite that, the caveats were staring right at the face. The target for most of the biggest players was of enterprises. Enterprises are easy to provide payment services because of their readiness with compliance, legalities and infrastructural demands. Not a single payment gateway company was ready to lend a hand to newbies of the business world. Companies that just grew like a sapling from an idea. Those that did not have logistical know-how of working with banks and integrating themselves with their modus operandi. All that these start-ups had to offer was their services. For Razorpay, that was enough. 

This opportunity was spotted timely by Harshil and Shashank. Razorpay kept a vision of faith in the world of start-ups in India. The traditional sector like housing, hospitality, public administration and health were eventually going to get replaced or moulded into the start-up ecosystem. And so, they did.

Taking start-ups under their wings was to scale parallelly with the start-ups. Several Razor pay’s major clients today were newly seed funded companies. As their days bloomed, so did the payment volumes they accepted. Whom did they carry out these transactions through? Razorpay.

Another breakthrough moment for the company was in the year 2015. Razor pay got selected for the highly coveted start-up funding and accelerator program based in the US, Y Combinator. Getting into such globally recognised start-up funding programmes is never an easy task. Y Combinator has a reputation for launching start-ups that are now household names. Gitlab, Reddit, Airbnb, Twitch to name a few. That was their first official seed funding amounting to $2.5 million.  From there on till 2010, things have been smoothed for Razorpay when it comes to raising funds. Latest of which is from Sequoia Capital India, GIC with a mix of more investors bringing in a huge $100 million investment. Making it India’s newest unicorn member.

Proposition and Business Model

Let’s talk about the business model of this payment gateway service, Razorpay kept a visionary stance that moulded gradually in their business profile rather than pushing it in one go. Instead of unnecessary early diversification, they kept things at minimum and took a smart short-cut route to get a footing in this side of fintech. Footing before foothold for any new start-up is a tough self-constraint to have, however Razorpay were perfectly cautious. They initially only offered only payment gateway services. To capture the market provided by new start-ups, which was initially limited to offering easy to be integrated application programming interfaces for businesses which enables them to carry out online transactions. This is a reliable and complete suite which offers management of invoices, disbursement of payment, reconciliation and keeping track of other monetary transactions. This is the first and foremost requirement of most new businesses. Razorpay was ready to serve them the same. As is often quoted by the founders of Razorpay, they had “300 businesses onboard from the day of launch.” The credit to such a fine start was in the change they were trying to bring by proving to be instrumental in the growth of businesses by bringing them in the financial ecosystem.

Expanding the wings

After a while, Razorpay could finally expand and become the providers of the financial ecosystem for start-ups and not just processing of payments. This is when after a few initial years, they launched Razorpay Capital and Razorpay X.  While the former is a lending venture to help small and medium enterprises, the latter is a neo banking platform. Today, their standing is not as a payment gateway provider but as a solutions provider of all kind’s financial services. You want to lend money, borrow money, manage money to accept it, one size fits all approach of Razorpay effectively does it. 

The latest of Razorpay’s offering is the neo banking solution that is simply replicating the options a bank could provide to a disruptor business but with much smarter solutions. As Dutch Uncle understands from Razorpay’s humongous success, once the trick of the trade is learnt from the industry in initial phases, a business idea could very well later on expand to become a de facto revolution in the industry itself. 

Their revenue model is simple. A commission-based integration of services. More the transaction that the start-ups do, more will be their profit based on a set commission.

Intense Competition

Razorpay was neither the first and nor will it rule like a monopoly despite its growth rate. The competition in the payment gateway industry is getting stiff. However, competition for Razorpay seems to be walking on an equal tightrope because for Razorpay, growth has been in triple digits. In the year 2020, Razorpay in a press note shared that their growth is over 300% in the later months of the year. This is of importance to note that this growth is being talked about when the world has come to familiarise itself with only one word and that is “slump”. Economic slumber led by a pandemic has stiffened the spines of this start-up which grew even more aggressively. Since the world started parking its buses at homes and internet solutions started mushrooming everywhere, Razorpay now had to just focus on quick integration. New merchants were bound to appear and so they did.