“I possibly have more shoes than my wife and two daughters,” says Utkarsh Biradar, Co-founder of Flatheads. A self-proclaimed lover of shoes, and previously the founder of fintech startup MomoE, Utkarsh realised one thing - in the startup world, we are mostly on our feet!
"You start work early in the morning; working hours are long and then you have meetings. If you look at the shoes available in the market, there’s nothing that is work and fun appropriate. People look for something different, something that matches their personality, and we saw this gap in the market,” Utkarsh says.
This led him and Ganesh Balakrishnan, co-founder at MomoE, to start Flatheads, a brand of men’s footwear that focuses on semi-casual and casual styles. The startup began operations end of last year, and the brand’s products will be available online from Diwali this year.
The flatheads team
Why footwear?
Ganesh and Utkarsh had earlier started MomoE, a fintech startup, which was acquired by Gurugram-based ecommerce platform Shopclues in 2016. The duo were at Shopclues for a couple of years for the transition. Utkarsh worked as the CPO while Ganesh managed the merchant ecosystem at Shopclues.
However, they were looking to make a difference in the consumer experience space. “If you look at it, MomoE too was in the customer experience space. Many times we would see long queues in the supermarket, and drop the cart or simply wait for a long time. We wanted to change that with MomoE,” Utkarsh says.
With Flatheads, the duo decided to solve a modern, consumer-centric problem. Ganesh explains there have been lifestyle changes, and currently athleisure shoes are often worn as lifestyle shoes. Apart from that, there are fashion brands that have shoes as a part of their ensemble, iconic brands, and sporty brands like VANS or Converse.
“Currently, there is a gap in the market in the price ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 4,000. Mass market shoes are available below Rs 2,000 and premium brands above Rs 4,000. In the Indian context, we are starved of a brand that has a personality, is aspirational, and won’t cost you an arm and leg,” Ganesh says.
With Flatheads, the duo believe they are offering people better options and a brand that helps them wear their personality.
Starting small
The team is initially starting with men’s sneakers, as “close to 70 percent of the sneakers market is men”. They plan to start with 25 stock keeping units (SKUs), five styles, and five colours. Utkarsh adds that they want to start with lesser moving parts, but will have the entire range of products in 18 months.
“We want to choose a tribe of people who can be early adopters. Eventually we believe that everyone has a personality and aspiration comes from that personality. One of our observations is that people belong to a tribe - music, food, performing arts, pop culture, or entrepreneur tribe,” he says.
“Most brands don’t look at it from an expression standpoint - but that is how a person consciously or unconsciously thinks about it, and that is what Flatheads wants to focus on,” Utkarsh adds.
The duo is keen to focus on design and bring in “personalities to that design”. Currently, the manufacturing is outsourced to vendors in China, but they hope to bring that to India soon. However, the polyester mix that the team is building now is hard to manufacture in India in small volumes.
Flatheads will be an online-only brand for the next two and half years. This is primarily to help with inventory. “We want to create low volumes and keep moving with the trends. The shoes won’t be available more than six months,” Ganesh says.
Currently, the starting price of a Flatheads pair of shoes begins at Rs 2,500, and goes up to Rs 3,500.
Being their second entrepreneurial stint, the duo say they bring in different learnings from the fintech and the ecommerce world. But one thing has been constant, they say: focus on customer experience.
“One of the big mistakes we did at MomoE was begin with the discounting game everyone was following. Cliched as it sounds, throwing money doesn’t guarantee loyalty. There was a time we were offering free beer to those who signed up and that was a big mistake. There has to be a prime value and we have corrected that,” Utkarsh says.
The founding duo has also learnt the importance of partnerships. At MomoE, they focused on building everything from scratch, but they could have gone to market quicker if they had found partners. “We are working with multiple partners for Flatheads,” Ganesh says.
At Shopclues, they also learnt about growing in scale, volumes, and working with data to create virality with lower customer acquisition costs.
Men’s footwear as a category is believed to be worth Rs 8,000 crore, and growing at 20 percent. Former Co-founder of Satya Paul, Jyoti Mohan Narula, has also started a footwear brand for men, Joe Shu. Apart from that, men’s-only brands like Socksbakery, XXYY, and Marico-acquired Beardo are fast growing.
The Flatheads team has raised angel funding of $500,000 from prominent angels like Pankaj Chaddah, Co-founder, Zomato; and Sahil Barua, Co-founder, Delhivery. The team intends to launch more SKUs once they launch.
“The beauty of ecommerce - all the working pieces are in place, everything is in plug-and-play,” Utkarsh says.
In the startup community, it’s all about USPs (unique selling points). For NoBroker.com, the one factor which makes them stand out in the already over-crowded real estate market is the complete absence of any kind of brokerage. Meaning, an absolute broker ban – a feature that is plugged in with the help of algorithms and other tech tools.
“A broker cannot post his property. A broker cannot fetch an owner’s contact,” says Amit Kumar Agarwal, Co-Founder and CEO, NoBroker.com.
Watch Amit Kumar Agarwal talk about the many hurdles which shaped their success in this episode of UpClose.
“What this results in is a website where you can buy, sell, and rent property without ever contacting a broker,” he adds.
A graduate from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, and Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, Amit launched the tech-based real estate platform along with fellow IITians Akhil Gupta and Saurabh Garg in 2014. It’s been almost five years since then, and today NoBroker.com boasts of nearly 70 lakh cumulative customers.
Every month, the platform adds around 1.5 lakh new properties to its website, closing around 15,000 properties on a monthly basis. This makes for around thousand crores worth of saving on brokerage per year. The only way to achieve this, says Amit, was by creating a business model where the costs were low.
“If our costs are low, then we can pass that benefit to the customer and they can save money,” he says.
The Bengaluru-based real estate search portal currently operates an end-to-end transaction model in six cities - Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai, Gurugram, and Hyderabad. While the startup has a suite of several value-added services, starting from Rs 999, the platform by default is free.
Amit Kumar Agarwal, Co-Founder and CEO of NoBroker.com
This means, a better half of its revenue comes from a host of services. Starting with subscription-based services (which contributes to two-thirds of its revenue) to NoBroker Pay (which is the financial offering), and Home Store Services (its one-stop shop for all real estate transactions like loans, packers and movers, legal documentation, etc).
In a bid to provide a broker-free real estate experience, the startup, earlier this year, even forayed into the resale of residential and commercial properties. This was followed by a Series C fundraise to the tune of $51 million, led by General Atlantic, SAIF Partners, and BEENEXT.
And more recently, Nobroker raised another $50 million in Series D round from Tiger Global.
Clearly, the company is now on an expansion mode. Even as it expands and accelerates customer and deal-closure growth, team NoBroker has a markedly unique approach as compared to many other startups in the sector. It is one characterised by a slow and steady growth as opposed to aggressive moves and relentless hustling.
“We have been very frugal from the start,” says Amit. “Even when we raised money and had a good bank balance, we ensured we spent it very carefully. Our focus has not been to grow on vanity metrics, which is mostly about GMVs or getting empty customer registrations,” he adds.
NoBroker’s most aggressive stance, in fact, has been about solving customer problems. Instead of “indiscriminately” opening in newer cities, it has been about narrowing down on one city, one locality, and solving its problems thoroughly.
Entrepreneurship is all about doing things differently. And who understands this better than Amit and team, who have taken the road less travelled with NoBroker.com.
Instead of targeting metros like Delhi and Kolkata, the real estate platform first set its shop in IT hubs like Bengaluru and Pune. The brains behind NoBroker are also not big on spending on advertising. In fact, a majority of its customers come to the site through word-of-the-mouth promotion.
As Amit says, “Our paid traffic is very less, and this is the traffic we want.” Since theirs is a “repeat business”, Amit explains he would rather have a customer who has experienced the services, is happy with it, and would recommend it to friends and family.
With this approach in mind, the team has also designed an app that is both rewarding and intuitive. For instance, if a customer is looking for a house which is close to their office, and convenient for the family, NoBroker would strive to furnish these details, rather than provide glamorous features, which just look good on the app.
No Broker has also come up with a way to reward people on their platform through their ‘click and earn’ feature. It is basically an option that allows people to click and upload pictures of properties looking for broker-free tenants. In lieu of the property information, the site rewards the one who submits details with Rs 100 through Paytm.
“This is a very popular feature,” reasserts Amit. “We get almost one fourth of our properties through this medium.”
A proof to NoBroker’s success in a rather traditional market with disruptive technology, came in 2015. Sadly, it was in the form of an unprecedented attack from the broker mafia. Around 50-60 local brokers and hooligans were alleged to have stormed the online real estate’s office premises in Bengaluru around the time and threatened its employees.
“We had to vacate the office almost overnight and we were not sure where we would go or find an alternate office space,” recalls Amit, adding that in the face of such an incident, their #1 priority was to make sure the website was up and running.
Between then and now, NoBroker has come a long way, upping its security and building a model that enables micro matching of properties, and in the process, increasing property closures. The startup is now eyeing bigger goals as it plans to scale pan India in the next few years.
The founding team of NoBroker.com
The real estate market in India is a trillion-dollar opportunity as per an IBEF report, and NoBroker is eyeing a bigger slice of this pie. Of course, there are a bunch of hurdles too that they have to cross along the way, starting with the challenges associated with a C2C model and the after-effects of demonetisation on the buying and selling cycle of properties. But if Amit’s words are any indication, they are all set to take on this market.
After all, people are always going to rent in and rent out. So, in terms of rentals, things remain pretty much unaltered.
As Amit quips, “Property rentals is almost recession proof – and it is the bedrock of our business.”
Technology-based real estate startup NoBroker.com on Wednesday announced that it has raised $50 million as part of its Series D funding led by Tiger Global Management, along with its existing investor General Atlantic.
With this funding, NoBroker.com has raised a total of $121 million in equity funding. The latest round of fund raise comes within four months of the startup raising $51 million in Series C round, which was led by its existing investor.
Speaking to YourStory on the fresh round of funding, Saurabh Garg, CBO and Co-founder of NoBroker said, the startup is looking to go deeper into existing geographies, launch its services in newer cities across India and accelerate the growth of its existing services portfolio.
Currently, the platform operates in six cities, including Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Gurugram. The company is looking to launch its operations in Delhi-NCR, Kolkata, and Ahmedabad in the next six to eight months.
NoBroker is also looking to expand its presence across the top 20 cities in India in the next two to three years.
Founded in 2014 by Akhil Gupta, Amit Kumar Agarwal, and Saurabh Garg, NoBroker is an integrated platform where customers can find solutions for real estate transaction. Transactions ranging from rental or outright sale to value added services like loan, packers and movers, legal documentation, online rent payment, among others, are provided by the NoBroker Home Store.
“We are focused on building India’s largest real estate technology platform that makes a real estate transaction affordable and seamless. This current funding will help us provide the NoBroker service to more customers across the country and also accelerate our deal closure growth. We will continue to add value across the user journey with continuous refinement of our home store and financial services products,” Amit Kumar, CEO and Co-founder, NoBroker.com said.
According to the company, more than 30 lakh (or 3 million) properties have already registered on NoBroker and more than 70 lakh (or 7 million) individuals have used its services, since the inception.
Speaking on the investment, Scott Shleifer, Partner, Tiger Global Management said,
“NoBroker team has built a tech-driven C2C business to make residential and commercial real estate transactions convenient and affordable. We have been extremely impressed by the strength of the NoBroker team and their relentless focus on using technology to solve end-to-end transactions in the large real estate market in India.”
In terms of growth, NoBroker is adding close to 1.5 lakh new properties to its platform every month. While 85 percent of these properties listed are for rentals, the remaining 15 percent are up for purchase.
The platform is also seeing about 2.8 lakh new registrations every month. Further, it witnesses close to 15,000 to 18,000 transactions every month, which includes either renting a new property or buying one, the founders said.
Sharad Bhojnagarwala, Vice President, General Atlantic, commented, “We continue to believe in the strategy and vision of the NoBroker management team, are excited by the quality of their execution, and look forward to supporting them in their journey.”
The startup is now gunning to close 20,000 to 25,000 transactions every month by the end of FY20.
For many like Urvi Jangam, who turned blind as a premature baby while in the incubator, aesthetic perception is cultivated very early on in childhood. The first blind person in the world to have completed her Doctoral Degree in German Studies, Urvi is also the brain behind the new independent concept of aesthetic perception called ‘Adrishya Rasa’, the ability to perceive aesthetics without the visual sense, by using the other five senses.
Her paper, titled ‘Aesthetics of the Non-Visual,’ is a rare, first-of-its-kind research on the blind, of the blind, for the blind (and the sighted), by a blind.
This week on Techie Tuesday, we feature the SVP of Engineering at Freshworks, STS Prasad, who has pushed the boundaries to make software democratic. He’s leading development from the front at the Chennai-based SaaS startup, which may be the first product company from India to go for an IPO.
Despite facing several road bumps on her entrepreneurial journey, Shineel Tilwani established The House of Artisans (THOA) in 2016. Starting with just Rs 12,000, she managed to break-even in six months. With a global clientele, the company today clocks Rs 2 crore in revenues.
This festive season, RedSeer predicts ecommerce platforms such as Amazon and Flipkart will likely see a GMV spike of seven times as compared to the six times in 2018, driven by keen interest from regular urban shoppers and those from Tier II and III India.
While the elegant saree is yet to establish itself firmly as workwear for women, there are attempts to make the garment functional and easy-to-wear. Started as a self-help group, Aseem Shakti is not only empowering women but also creating fashion for working women that is both affordable and innovative.
Zomato diversified itself from restaurant search company to food delivery company, and currently, has expanded to 24 countries and serves 10,000 cities globally. It clocked a revenue of $205 million in the first half of FY20, which exceeded a total of $206 million in revenue for FY19.
Founded by late actor and philanthropist, Paul Newman, in 2006 in the US, along with other civic and business leaders, the Safe Water Network (SWN) was launched in 2010. It has impacted more than 300 communities in India and Ghana.
Quitting a stable job can be a scary step during India's ongoing unemployment crisis. Data from the CMIE shows the unemployment rate in India went up from 6.47 percent in September 2018 to 8.19 percent in August 2019. SMBStory has curated a list of some small business entrepreneurs whose decided to quit their jobs and set up successful businesses.
Indian retail payments organisation, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), on Tuesday revealed data which said the total Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions in the country stood at 955.02 million (95.50 crore) in the month of September.
This is a 9 percent rise from last month when total UPI transactions in the country stood at 918.35 million (91.83 crore).
Similarly, the total value of transactions also climbed on the UPI network by almost 4.5 percent. The total value transacted across the UPI network in the month of September stood at Rs 1.61 lakh crore. While the total value transacted in the month of August on the UPI network stood at Rs 1.54 lakh crore.
With this, the average transaction value of UPI payments stands at Rs 1690.6 (per transaction) for the month of September. This is not much of a change from August, when the average transaction value on UPI payments stood at Rs 1,682 (per transaction).
Last month, NPCI, which operates the UPI infrastructure, rationalised merchant discount rates for BHIM UPI transactions to promote digital payments.
Merchant discount rates (MDR) for large ticket transactions was capped at a maximum of Rs 100 and made zero at offline merchants for transactions up to Rs 100. According to the latest notification, the MDR was also revised to 0.30 percent with a maximum cap of Rs 100 per transaction.
When it comes to other payment infrastructure operated by NPC, total number of IMPS transactions in the country marginally increased to 204.16 million (20.41 crore) in September from 200 million (20 crore) in August.
Additionally, total value transacted on IMPS also marginally fell from Rs 1.89 lakh crore in August to Rs 1.83 lakh crore in September.
While AePS transactions in the country stood at 201.34 million (20.13 crore) in September, according to NPCI data. In August, total AePS transactions, in the country stood at 218.75 million (21.87 crore).
The total value of transactions transacted on the AePS also declined to Rs 8935 crores in September from Rs 10,034 crore in August.
The smart phone is an appendage today. Without it, most humans feel useless. And mobile apps are a human’s way of staying in touch with digital leaps across disciplines. Today, each app is on par with the increasing digital stack. Yet, many mobile apps have security breaches, and developers need to be on the money when it comes to secure features. Not just looking at providing customers with new features but also working on the secure access of the app, a critical aspect for any app user today.
A recent research from Arxan revealed that out of the top 100 popular apps on Google android platform, 56 percent of the apps are hacked or prone to be hacked easily, according to a report on customerthink.com. Shockingly, the most important reason for this is the use of the same smartphone for professional and personal use!
Safety of mobile apps is a major criteria since the information stored in the app can be endangered if adequate security controls do not apply during the desired operation. A mobile app development company’s vulnerabilities have also risen significantly owing to the mass use of applications in today’s world.
Nowadays, hackers target portable apps to access and malfunction through a customer’s private data. Throughout the construction of the iOS and Android applications, designers must be extra careful.
Such as Jessica Ortega, a web analyst at Scottsdale, a cloud based company based in Arizona, said that there is a distinction between "privacy' and" safety. Data protection is how information is treated and stored, and Apple is superior in that sphere, she said.
"Android is still the second option when it comes to privacy," she said. "As Android calls for information on mobile devices to be transferred to Google servers and used to targeted publicity and the creation of a user profile, Android becomes the more personalizable but less private mobile operating system." Alternately, Apple vocally committed to data confidentiality, stored more information on the device locally and shared less information to its ad targeting servers.
I have to take all your data for my service to be better' is the narrative some companies will try to get you to believe. Well, don't think that.
Android includes industry-leading safety characteristics to maintain Android platform and ecosystem safe, working together with developers and device implementers. A robust safety model is crucial to enabling an energetic ecosystem of Android-and cloud-supported apps and devices. As a consequence, Android has undergone a strict safety program throughout its entire development cycle.
It is meant to be accessible to Android. Android apps use state-of - the-art hardware and software as well as local, served information exposed to innovation and value for customers through their platform. The PLAP offers an application environment for the protection of users, data, applications, the device and the network's confidentiality, integrity and disponibility.
Strong security architecture and strict safety programs are required to secure an open platform. Android has been developed with multi-stage safety that is sufficiently flexible to support an open platform and yet protects all platform users. See Security Updates and Resources for data on reporting safety problems and the update process.
How to create a fully secure mobile app
The code is the most susceptible characteristic of a mobile app, which hackers can readily use. Therefore, an extremely safe code needs to be written. Research has shown that approximately 11.6 million phones have malicious code effects.
Malicious code relates to a wide range of programs that can cause PCs or networks harm or undesirable impacts. Potential harm might include modifying, destructing or robbing information, acquiring or enabling unauthorized system access, creating unwanted monitoring and executing user-never-desired tasks.
For example, computer virus, worms, trojan horses, logic bombs, spyware and adware as well as backdoor programs include malicious code. As the software and information processing equipment are seriously threatened, consumers and managers must take precautions for the identification and prevention of code malicious outbreaks.
The most common form of malicious code still lies in computer viruses. A virus is a program which is infested by a computer and spreads when it is running. It is a virus. A malicious code, which is frequently found, is a computer program which can copy itself, distribute funds on the impacted pcs or cause other harm through linked devices.
External storage data encryption
Encryption is a way of converting information transfer to a type that nobody else can read without decryption. This is an effective way to prevent malicious use of information. Thus the Hackers cannot and will not be able to decrypt information even if it is taken. Try developing an app to encrypt all the information contained in the app swiftly.
An Android device often has little internal storage ability. So sometimes it is impossible for you to save sensitive information, for example, a removable SD card, on external storage media.
Due to the possibility of direct access to information on external storage media by users and other applications, it is essential to store it in an encrypted format. AES, short for Advanced Encryption Standard, with an essential size of 256 bits, is one of the most common encryption algorithms used by developers today.
It may be difficult to write software to encrypt and decrypt the information of your app via the java. Crypto package can be included in an Android SDK. Therefore, most designers prefer to use libraries that are far easier to work with, such as Facebook’s Conqueal library.
Utilise HTTPS
Android applications typically interact with the network to collect certain information from the internet. If you do, you will use HTTPS to guarantee maximum security, and you will no longer compromise the information you receive from your network or mail to your servers. By default, Android P crashes any HTTP application, ensuring that all communications are secure. Many Android users connect every day to various open wireless internet hotspots in government spaces. Some hotspots may be malevolent.
A malicious hotspot could easily alter HTTP traffic content to unpredictably or even worse, inject ads or exploit it into your application. If you have a domain you want to use clear text, you can learn more here about this domain only to create HTTP requests.
Use libraries carefully
The mobile application code often requires third-party code construction libraries. Do not trust a library for building your app, as most of it isn’t safe. Always attempt testing the software if you have used different libraries.
The library’s defects may allow the attackers to use lousy software and crash the system.
Use certified Application Programming Interfaces
Keep in mind to always use your App code with authorised APIs. It always allows hackers to use your data. For instance, hackers can use permission caches to get system authentication. Experts suggest that the full API be centrally permitted in portable apps to achieve maximum security.
Use high standard authentication
The most crucial aspect of mobile app safety is authentication mechanisms. Low authentication in mobile apps is one of the most vulnerable aspects. Authentication as a developer and a user from a safety point of view should be regarded as crucial.
Passwords are one of the most popular authentication methods, so a password policy should be powerful enough not to be readily breached.
Build secure techniques for your app
This technique is used to receive alerts if you modify or change your code. Often you need to have a record of code modifications for your mobile app to ensure that a malicious programmer does not badly inject your request. Try to maintain track of operations by having triggers intended for your implementation.
Optimise passwords and application permissions
For your app code security, the least privilege principle is often necessary. Only those who are intended to receive the code should be allowed to access the code, and other rights should not be granted, and kept to a minimum. Try to maintain the network to the minimum.
Google’s great work is to synchronise your Android updates. Some companies, however, must update a little bit longer. Recall checking the features you can access and do not forget to use strong and unique passwords. Note that passwords can be broken, and hackers can quickly devise their passwords on your other accounts if you re-use your passwords.
Proper management of the session
Session processing is an essential characteristic of the in-app building, which requires additional caution since portable meetings usually are longer than the desktop session.
Session control in the event of a robbed and damaged device should be performed to preserve the safety and not identifiers with the aid of tokens.
Keep testing frequently
An easy solution for the app is to test new changes repeatedly as day-by-day security changes change. To safeguard your request, you must be updated with developments in safety.
To get an understanding of the vulnerabilities of your portable implementation, you should opt for penetration testing and emulators. Try to use the safety patches for every fresh update and version in your mobile application.
User Guide of how to maintain app security
1.Use a password management device
Random strings of characters are the strongest passwords. A number of letters, numbers, and symbols is less probable and harder for a computer to break in brute strength in any given order in the dictionary. The downside is that it is much difficult to remember these complicated passwords.
This is a practical place for a password manager app. Password managers keep all passwords in an application which is encrypted and protected by a password. You generate strong passwords and remember them. As applications like Google Chrome and the proprietary Samsung phone app provide you with passwords, safety specialists always use the password administrator.
2.Public Wi-Fi with VPN
Instead of using your mobile data, experts propose to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) if you are on a public wireless network while on your phone. A VPN can prevent other individuals lurking on the same government network from being snooped on your information. You can also mask information transfers, prevent Internet filtering and censorship and access a wider range of content worldwide.
It may prevent you from being able to access your mobile on a free government network that can be used by others. It is essential to look for a supplier to find out if the business is famous and trusted. There are dozens of free VPN applications available in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, however some have questioned methods.
Regardless of the frequency with which you plan to use a VPN, it is important to see what data can be gathered and where the Service Agreement is. See the best VPN CNET guide.
3.Maintain up to date software
It is important that time is given to update your smartphone's OS, according to Walsh, to safeguard your information. The updates allow you to remain ahead and take the recent advantages throughout the internet. Hart proposed that it should automatically update the settings of your phone.
Think updates such as smartphone vaccines,' said Hart. "Criminals are constantly developing techniques for hacking into the phone and stealing your information so that our smartphones can be protected as well."
4.Back up your data
Bad things happen, but don't make the issue even worse by not being ready. Save your information at all times. It's a nice practice, and in case of loss it protects your significant records and pictures.
Make sure "My information backup" and "Automatic restoration" in the configures are activated for an Android phone and that your information is synchronized with Google. For an iPhone, select your phone and back up to iCloud in your environments.
5.Use an antivirus application
Hackers usually rob the passwords and account data using malware. There are many smartphone antivirus applications— some of them are related to complementary desktop applications. This provides improved safety by ensuring the malware is not infected with applications, pdf files, pictures and other files you download before you open them to others. Such threats may be stopped by antivirus applications like Avast, McAfee and Panda.
Conclusion
These are some of the best practices a mobile app developer needs to follow so that the application is completely safe and challenging to crack. Cybersecurity has demonstrated its significance in latest years, and customers are keen on safe apps that they can count on.
(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.)
Blockchain startup InstaDApp on Tuesday raised $2.4 million led by Pantera Capital. Investors including Naval Ravikant, Balaji Srinivasan, Coinbase Ventures, IDEO Colab, Robot Ventures and Kyber Network’s Loi Luu also participated in the round.
The Hyderabad-based startup, founded by brothers Sowmay Jain (21) and Samyak Jain (19), wants to build out its smart wallet to help users execute advanced transactions through the company’s decentralised finance (DeFi) platform.
InstaDApp founders Samak Jain and Sowmay Jain
The startup is a DeFi portal that aggregates major protocols using a smart wallet layer and bridge contracts, making it easy for users to make the best decision about assets and execute previously complex transactions seamlessly.
In an era of decentralised web, InstaDApp wants to be a window to multiple DeFi services to move assets between them. According to System Innovation, the decentralised web, also called web 3.0, is a peer-to-peer network built around blockchain technology. It helps users own their data, data is portable, computing and storage resources are provided by end-users within distributed networks, apps run locally on end-user devices, and platforms are decentralised and autonomous.
Sowmay Jain told YourStory that Dapp or decentralised app is an interface to multiple protocols.
“Our Dapp acts as the mediator between the user interface and underlying protocols,” said Sowmay. “It has a smart wallet, creates contracts, and ensures a smooth way of functioning.”
According to DeFi Pulse, InstaDapp is the fourth-largest Dapp in DeFi, with $30.8 million worth of assets locked in its smart contracts (up from only $4.2 million in early July).
“India is the second-biggest source of traffic after America,” said Sowmay. “Although cryptos have slowed down in India, thanks to RBI’s regulation, it will be back soon as there are several high-level discussions about the use of crypto,” he added.
“While other Dapps are just interfaces for DeFi protocols, we have created a mediator smart wallet layer between the user interface and protocols, which greatly simplifies the effort and cost of performing complex financial transactions, including lend/borrow, leverage and switch debt positions,” said Sowmay.
Paul Veradittakit, Partner, Pantera Capital, said:
“We are impressed by InstaDapp’s laser focus on aggregating and simplifying DeFi and their growth has been a testament to their ability to execute successfully. InstaDapp stands out from everything else we have seen in the space so far. We believe they’re the right team to push the future of DeFi forward and help the next wave of users to onboard to the open financial ecosystem.”
In the startup community, it’s all about the USPs (unique selling point). For NoBroker.com, the one factor which makes them stand out in the already over-crowded real estate market is the complete absence of any kind of brokerage.
Known for its scenic beauty, Kerala is fast growing its startup reputation. In an interview with YourStory, Saji Gopinath, CEO of Kerala Startup Mission, talks about the focus on schools and colleges, what they look for in a founder, and the support startups can expect.
The sportswear and activewear market is poised to hit $350 billion by 2020, according to CNBC. With the rise in the number of people preferring comfort over couture, there has been a rise in sportswear startups. Here is a look at homegrown sportswear brands that are run by women entrepreneurs who are producing comfort couture.
With the funding, NoBroker.com has raised a total of $121 million in equity funding. The latest round of fund raise comes within four months of the startup raising $51 million in Series C round, which was led by its existing investor.
Ayush along with the waste pickers associated with Swachh Meerut.
Ayush Mittal is sparing no effort to collect, manage, and discard waste scientifically in his hometown, Meerut, in Uttar Pradesh. Having quit his job to start the Swachh Meerut initiative, he is now on a mission to make India a waste-free nation.
This Gandhi Jayanti, read about how the government in 2018 started implementing the Solar Charkha Mission through 50 clusters, where every cluster has the capacity to employ up to 2,000 spinners and artisans.
Started by Samyak Jain and Sowmay Jain, InstaDApp, which claims to be one of the fast-growing DeFi platforms in the world, plans to scale up decentralised web protocol.
Indian retail payments organisation, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), on Tuesday, revealed that the total Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions in the country stood at 955.02 million (95.50 crore) in the month of September.
Udaan, the Bengaluru-based B2B ecommerce platform has raised funding of $585 million led by Tencent, Altimeter, Footpath Ventures, Hillhouse, GGV Capital, and Citi Ventures. The round also saw participation from existing investors Lightspeed Venture Partners and DST Global.
With this fund raise, Udaan’s valuation is now believe to be $2.5 billion to $3 billion. Since 2016, Udaan has so far raised $870 million in funding.
Speaking of the fund raise, Vaibhav Gupta, Co-founder, Udaan said,
“With this fund raise we will focus on growing the marketplace, going deeper into existing categories, invest in our core capabilities like our tech marketplace platform, fulfilment and delivery, lending and payments. The idea is to build on our core capabilities both in terms of value and strategic advantage. We have a long term to building the business and the capital raised helps us focus on that long term strategic approach.”
Founded in June 2016, Udaan began its operations a year later and achieved the coveted unicorn status in September last year. So far, it has been one of the few startups to achieve a private valuation of $1 billion in the shortest possible time.
Martin Lau, President of Tencent, said: “Udaan’s unique approach can enhance the capabilities of millions of retail stores across India. It represents a powerful example of how technology can empower the business of small merchants, improve the efficiency of industries and bring benefits to consumers.”
Udaan was started by Sujeet Kumar, Amod Malviya, and Vaibhav Gupta, formerly with Flipkart, who realised that technology could be the game changer and believe Udaan’s journey has just begun.
Focussed on horizontal B2B ecommerce, Udaan currently has operations across lifestyle, home and kitchen, staples, fruits and vegetables, FMCG, toys and general merchandise. The platform currently helps SMEs like small manufacturers, brands, mills, and farmers to sell their products across the country at a low cost.
Brad Gerstner, Founder and CEO of Altimeter Capital, and Ram Parameswaran, Partner at Altimeter Capital, said:
“Udaan's experienced team has efficiently built the leading B2B platform in India. Empowering tens of millions of small businesses to more effectively procure and sell goods is not only a massive business opportunity but will help transform the economy by providing internet-scale productivity gains to merchants, wholesalers, and manufacturers. Altimeter is excited to partner with them on this important mission.”
The platform is enabling this business to business (B2B) transaction, bringing together all participants onto a single platform - be it the wholesaler, distributor, producer, and the small retail shop owner. All this comes on a single app on the smartphone.
Udaan also enables these businesses like the kirana store owners, street vendors, pharmacists, small factories and contractors to source from a large selection of high-quality products at low prices.
Explaining the depth and scale of the market, Sujeet said,
“B2B ecommerce is very India specific. There are unique ways of consumption, distributions. There are more than 50 million SMEs in India. It is both an opportunity and a challenge. There is more effort in building capabilities and learning. But the problem is real and there are lot of inefficiencies in different aspects - logistics, supply chain, capital, sales and marketing. Since 2017, internet has truly opened in India and it has given opportunity to several small businesses to grow. We are using that opportunity to empower them so that they can source better and manage their working capital better.”
The Indian economy is believed to be driven by the consumption in the retail industry, which is believed to touch $3.6 trillion by 2020. Yet the organised sector is only 10 to 12 percent.
However, the Udaan team believes this will soon change. “There is whole new generation that is taking charge of the SMEs in India and this is a young population which is technologically savvier and is using technology and digitisation to grow their business,” adds Vaibhav.
“We are excited to continue partnering with Udaan’s team as they build the leading B2B trade platform across categories in India. Udaan platform enables small businesses in India to finally benefit from the power of internet and technology. At the same time, by reducing supply chain complexity, Udaan is making products more accessible and affordable for consumers across the country,” said Saurabh Gupta, Managing Partner at DST Global.
Sujeet believes that today the entire supply chain is highly inefficient whether from a logistics perspective or price discovery or other aspects. “Both the producers and the consumers are paid really low or too high. Building a reliable trustworthy supply chain is what gives us the needed advantage,” he says.
“The market opportunity is turning out to be much deeper than we envisioned when Lightspeed led the company’s Series A financing in 2016 and we’re excited to continue supporting the company while welcoming a strong syndicate of new investors,” said Bejul Somaia, Partner, Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Every Bengaluru resident has a legendary traffic story to narrate. But this has been made easy, thanks to bike-sharing app Bounce. The startup, which operates in 11 cities apart than Bengaluru, gives users the convenience of picking up a bike from anywhere through its app and dropping it off at any location once they reach their destination.
(L-R) Varun G, HR Vivekananda and Anil G, founders of Bounce
Ever since it started, the love for Bounce has been perpetuating steadily across the country.
In this ever-growing landscape, and with over 7,000 scooters on the city’s roads, the startup has several job openings. This is the opportunity for all strategic professionals to get into Bounce with different specialisations.
YourStory has curated a list of openings for the position of Project Manager at the bike-sharing startup.
Senior PM – Pricing & Promotions
Experience needed: 2-4 years
The candidate for this position should have a strong vision to develop, implement, and support the company’s pricing programme. They must have innovative ideas to promote the company as well as drive value for the customer. If you are a passionate pricing manager with new ideas to increase the company reputation, you are a perfect fit for this role.
Senior PM – CX & Self-serve
Experience needed: 2-4 years
Bounce is looking for an enthusiastic project manager who can drive people, process, and technology initiatives to optimise the customer support experience. They must be able to work collaboratively to develop price elasticity values and enhance the overall experience of the customer. The candidate should also identify opportunities to develop and drive solutions to enable automated tools and applications for self-service.
Senior PM – Mobile Apps Platform
Experience needed: 2-4 years
The selected candidate will be responsible for designing and implementing new features or making changes to the existing mobile app platforms. They should analyse and define product specifications and also review design specifications. The important aspect of their duty is to ensure the proper functioning of the app, and make it as user-friendly as possible.
Senior PM – Inventory/Supply Chain
Experience needed: 2-4 years
The company is on the lookout for a project manager who can efficiently develop and manage initiatives to improve the functioning of the company. They must lead project teams and manage work plans including timelines, risk management, and budget management. Devising ways to optimise inventory control procedures will be their primary responsibility.
Senior PM – Data Products
Experience needed: 2-4 years
As a Senior PM for Data Products, the candidate will be responsible for developing the data platform. They will have to define products from existing needs and develop new ideas based on contact with customers and prospects. They should then turn these ideas into reality by creating reliable solutions.
Senior PM – Loyalty
Experience needed: 2-4 years
Bounce is searching for a determined project manager who will be able to focus on maximising business value. They will have to work closely with customers to understand the user problems and provide them with a functional solution. The candidate will be expected to synthesise customer feedback and data to identify product opportunities.
Senior PM – Growth
Experience needed: 2-4 years
The candidate should possess the ability to solve internal issues to achieve objectives and deliver results. Their role is to define the scope and develop requirements for upgrades and progressive releases for existing products. They will have to make the best data-driven decisions with the growth of the company in mind.
The Startup Guide series of books, launched in 2014 by Copenhagen-based publisher Sissel Hansen, covers over 20 cities such as London, Paris, Stockholm, Lisbon, and Miami. See our reviews of the guidebooks for Berlin,Munich,Zurich, Johannesburg, and Singapore.
Startup Guide New York is spread across 265 pages and makes for an informative and entertaining read, with profiles of founders, co-working spaces, investors, educational programmes, and other ecosystem players.
“New York has long been known as one of the most diverse and creative cities in the world,” begins Sissel. It has strengths not just in technology but fashion, media, real estate, art and finance.
“This means there’s more cross-pollination of ideas from different realms, which creates startups of all stripe,” Sissel explains. Notable New York startups include Etsy, Kickstarter, Jet, Moat, MongoDB, Plated, Trello, Zola, Yext, Flatiron Health, General Assembly, and AppNexus.
“No city has a greater diversity of talent, of industries, and of collisions that fuel great ideas and companies,” writes Bill de Blasio, Mayor of New York City, pointing to the NYC Tech Talent Pipeline partnership and Computer Science for All initiatives as notable tech programmes. “New York City is where innovation meets the real world,” he adds.
New York has also been ranked as the No.1 city for women entrepreneurs. “No other city has more female-founded firms; a quarter of our city’s tech founders are women,” according to Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen.
The NYC startup ecosystem attracted more than $11.5 billion in funding in 2017, up from $2.6 billion in 2012, according to Julie Samuels, Executive Director, Tech:NYC. The city is regarded as the second-biggest locus of new venture creation in the US.
Successes in funding and acquisition have been reported by Flatiron Health, AppNexus, Moat, Trello, Meetup and General Assembly. Companies like MongoDB and Yext have also gone public.
Overview
The book begins with an overview of New York facts and necessities such as rents (expensive), groceries and beer (affordable), people (extroverted, unconventional), cuisine (‘passionate foodies’), subway system (extensive, but with a ‘love-hate relationship’), and language (‘everyone is okay with your accent’).
New York is referred to as The City That Never Sleeps, Gotham, and the Big Apple. While Manhattan with its iconic skyline and artist lofts might boast the city’s tallest skyscrapers, fanciest restaurants, and most halal carts per capita, Brooklyn is regarded as the “Borough of Homes and Churches”.
The city’s startup ecosystem is estimated to have more than 7,000 startups, 100 incubators and accelerators, 200 co-working spaces and 120 universities. New York’s unicorn startups include WeWork, Infor, Oscar, Compass, Zocdoc, Sprinklr, SquareSpace, Warby Parker, Dataminr and Peloton.
In the 2018 Global Startup Ecosystem Report, New York was dubbed the world’s second highest performing startup ecosystem, with its 7,000 startups worth over $71 billion in value.
There are more than 200,000 businesses with 20 or fewer workers each, and 410,000 women-owned businesses, more than double any other US city. The urban population is 8.6 million, with over 20 million in the greater metropolitan area. Immigrants make up almost half of the city’s workforce.
I. Startup profiles
One section of the book profiles nine startups based in New York. They include ConsenSys (driving Ethereum blockchain adoption), Ellevest (financial services company that focuses on women), Farmshelf (automated, hydroponic growing systems), Justworks (HR and payroll tools), and X.ai (meeting scheduling via an AI agent).
Lemonade provides insurance services based on behavioral economics and artificial intelligence. It has a mission of social good by targeting those who are neglected by the “huge, unchanged and unloved” incumbent players.
Propel has built a financial app for people on food stamps. It helps them check their balance, download coupons, and apply for work.
Handy is platform that provides access to service professionals whose backgrounds are carefully screened. It has partnership deals with brands like Walmart and Wayfair. Managed by Q offers facilities management services such as cleaning, maintenance, security, and administrative staffing. It regards itself as “Amazon Web Services for the office space”.
II. Startup ecosystem
Two sections of the book profile the support system for startups, ranging from co-working spaces to programmes at incubators and accelerators. For example, Per Scholas, founded in the South Bronx in 1995, helps bridge the digital skills divide through technology training and professional development.
Blue Ridge Labs, an initiative of the Robin Hood Foundation, runs a six-month incubator called Catalyst for entrepreneurs working on social change. “Be adaptable and receptive to feedback. Starting a company is an exercise in constantly being told that you’re wrong. View that as opportunity for learning and growth,” advises Hannah Calhoon, Managing Director.
Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator (ERA) boasts of more than 150 alumni, 400 mentors, 50 corporate partners, $300 million raised, and $2 billion in market cap. Its initial investment in a startup is $100,000.
Founder Institute, launched in 2009 in Silicon Valley, has a New York programme as well, with 175 portfolio companies such as SimpleReach (cloud platform for content marketing optimisation) and Easy Aerial (smart security system run by drones). It hosts a monthly public meetup, and also has a personality test for entrepreneurial abilities.
Fullstack Academy, founded by David Yang and Nimit Maru, is a three-month coding bootcamp. It encourages coders to learn by teaching as well. General Assembly, started as a co-working space in 2011, and now offers training in web development, data science, and digital marketing.
Grand Central Tech, adjacent to Grand Central Station, is a startup accelerator that looks for capable as well as “decent” people committed to diversity. NY Tech Alliance runs the NY Tech Meetup (NYTM), and is a go-to resource for people interested in the tech world in New York.
NYC Media Lab is supported by a consortium of universities and companies. Its startups span AI and ML (Vidrovr), a media platform for meditation (Aduri), and a brain–computer interface for self-driving cars (Braiq). In addition to its Combine accelerator programme, it runs events and demo days such as Machine + Media, and Exploring Future Reality.
NYC Open Data was formed in 2011 through a collaboration between the Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics (MODA) and the Department of IT and Telecoms (DoITT). More than 60 city agencies make their data available, and run the annual Open Data Week.
NYU Tandon Future Labs, founded in 2009, has been responsible for a range of startups such as CB Insights, Clarifai, Honest Buildings and Bounce X. It also offers tax-based incentives through the START-UP NY programme.
She Innovates Global Programme offers grant funding and mentoring for women-led solutions that address the specific needs of women and girls; and a mentoring programme. It was developed by the Global Innovation Coalition for Change (GICC), a partnership with UN Women.
New York city has a wide range of co-working spaces as well, such as WeWork, The Assemblage, The Yard, Urban Tech Hub, and Bond Collective.
Civic Hall has a focus on tech for the public good. It was home to VoteRunLead (a platform that trains women to run for political office) and Heat Seek (ensuring that landlords provide enough heat in the winter time for impoverished tenants).
New Lab offers prototyping equipment, including 3D printing, CNC shops, and electronics benches, and positions itself as a “a signifier of optimism in technology”. PencilWorks, in Brooklyn, is located inside the former factory of the Eberhard Faber Pencil Company.
SAP Next-Gen connects startups to SAP’s enterprise technology and customer networks, especially if they are aligned with UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development. It advocates a combination of science-fiction thinking, purposeful orientation, and exponential technologies.
III. Expert insights
One section of the book provides expert tips from accelerators and startup consultancies in the city. The advice covers product-market fit, customer engagement, marketing, sustainability, and talent.
Startups must create a good first impression when dealing with the media, advises Dan Levitan, SVP of PR firm BerlinRosen. “Relationships are key in the media business,” he adds.
“Take the time to craft a story around the product, highlight its benefits and build the overall brand,” advises Adrien Colombié, Founder and Creative Director of Flying Saucer Studio. A brand is defined by a company’s story, voice, personality, visual elements, and content.
“Try things, test them, improve them, and then scale,” he adds. “Failure is going to happen – it’s simply part of the process,” Adrien cautions. In an environment of constant change, founders should never get too comfortable.
“Tell a compelling narrative about you and your project to spark interest and connect with your audience on a deeper level,” advises Heather Corcoran, Design and Technology Outreach Lead at Kickstarter. The crowdfunding programme has helped artists, musicians, filmmakers, designers, and creators of products like Pebble smartwatch and Oculus Rift headset.
Crowdfunding invites customers to get involved and have a front-row seat in the creation process. It gives people a sense of confidence about the creator while also addressing challenges faced and ways to overcome them.
“Now more than ever, startups and entrepreneurs need to think about how their business will benefit society at large,” urges Ann Rosenberg, Senior Vice President and Global Head of SAP Next-Gen. Vision should be linked with the United Nations’ seventeen Global Goals. “New York is not only a city but an international stage that inspires the world,” she adds.
IV. Founder advice
One section of the book interviews founders of eight startups and support firms, tracing their entrepreneurial journeys, advice received, lessons learnt, and tips for the next wave of aspiring entrepreneurs.
“You have to have supreme self-confidence as you come up with an idea that most people will not understand or get behind until it has proven out,” advises Harry Kargman, Founder of mobile ad firm Kargo. “The best creative minds in the world are in New York: art, fashion, media, finance and design,” he says.
Entrepreneurs must maintain personal and business relationships across their journeys, advises Kevin Ryan, Co-founder of AlleyCorp. He was earlier CEO of DoubleClick, and Founder of Business Insider and GILT. He hosts reunion parties to maintain these relationships.
The startup journey can be full of bad ideas, mistakes and poor decisions, but the key is to learn and move on. “People will strike out two out of three times,” he observes.
“The tech industry here isn’t so full of itself, because unlike San Francisco we’re just one of many industries here. In a one-industry town, it ends up being too much, and a level of arrogance creeps in,” Kevin explains. “Also, we’re number two to San Francisco, which makes us more humble and more collaborative,” he adds.
Liz Wessel worked at Google in Mountain View and in India, which gave her the idea for her startup WayUp. It improves job search for college grads and employers via ML, and helps find quality in the midst of quantity.
Liz says the most valuable piece of advice she has been given is: Make sure you find a career that you love, because you’ll probably spend more time with your career than with your spouse.
Mina Salib is Founder of media startup Usspire and Programme Manager of the Future Labs incubators at NYU Tandon. “Self-awareness is the most important quality a founder can possess,” he advises. This gives insights into strengths, weaknesses, team skills, and impacts.
“Plan but don’t plan. Have goals and a vision for your life, career and business, but realise it’s okay if things change,” he adds. Even in the face of prior competition, execution can win out. One of his other initiatives is the city’s first AI accelerator, AI NexusLab.
“Recruit for culture. The culture of the company is what you have to protect through thick and thin,” advises Ragy Thomas, Founder and CEO, Sprinklr. On the technical front, founders should ensure they have a well-architected codebase.
“New York is a special place where you have a lot of different industries. It’s very balanced. It’s not all technology,” Ragy adds. He says the most valuable piece of advice he has been given is: Effort doesn’t matter, results do.
VentureOut helps post-seed companies via short-term accelerator programmes, and also offers a foothold into the US for international companies. CEO Brian Frumberg says the most valuable piece of advice he received is: Be unbelievably passionate about whatever it is you’re trying to do.
Silicon Harlem is a social enterprise intent on building a tech ecosystem in Harlem. It runs STEM camps, hackathons for seniors, and the annual Next Gen Tech Conference. “When you look at technology and innovation centres, a large part has been centred on the West Coast where there’s not as much diversity as in New York City,” observes Co-founder Clayton Banks.
Shan-Lyn Ma is Co-founder and CEO of Zola, an online wedding registry and planning company. She was born in Singapore and grew up in Australia before moving to the US. “Be very fiscally responsible. We want to make sure that we’re not burning capital unnecessarily,” she advises.
“Before you commit your most valuable resource, which is your own time, be really sure that the idea and the business model is absolutely the thing that you want to commit to 24/7 for at least a decade of your life,” Shan-Lyn emphasises.
V. Schools
One section of the book describes educational and skilling support for entrepreneurs in New York. For example, all 17 schools of Columbia University have a focus on innovation and entrepreneurship, such as the Brown Institute for Media Innovation and Tamer Center for Social Enterprise. It also runs co-working space Columbia Startup Lab, and looks out for students with demonstrated leadership.
Cooper Union was founded by Peter Cooper, who designed the first American-built steam locomotive. It is known for its culture of creativity and making, and offers classes like Engineering and Entrepreneurship and Principles of Design, as well as programmes like the Invention Factory. It looks out for students who are “curious, competent, and eager to collaborate with others to better the world”.
Cornell Tech, launched in 2010, houses the Tata Innovation Center. It looks for students with an entrepreneurial or independent spirit, who want to apply their learnings and make an impact.
Fordham University has a range of initiatives, including $20,000 in prize money, at the Fordham Foundry Pitch Challenge. It looks for students who show commitment to a specific problem rather than having 10 different activities. It has eye on those who “demonstrate curiosity” and ask questions about the world’s greatest problems.
The New School and Parsons School of Design are known for a range of hybrid and creative programmes. This includes the Impact Entrepreneurship Venture Lab and Elab design incubator.
New York is a city where “design seeps into every industry, from journalism to fashion”, observes dean Joel Towers. The school looks for students who are self-directed, engaged with the world, and willing to collaborate.
VI. Investors
The final section of the book profiles active investors and their startup portfolios, along with tips for entrepreneurs.
“Combine conviction and adaptability. Be able to think three steps ahead, but also be willing to accept feedback," advises Susan Lyne, Founding Partner of BBG Ventures and former CEO of Gilt.com, a fashion and lifestyle website startup. Its portfolio includes GlamSquad (on-demand beauty services), goTenna (communication devices that can work offline), and The Wing (a co-working space and social club for women).
“New York City is a great place for female founders,” Susan says. “It’s a much more heterogeneous business environment than Silicon Valley, the VC ecosystem is younger and more fluid, and there’s a growing community of women who want to see you succeed,” she adds.
“Do your research. Make sure you do a thorough job talking to everyone in your field. I’m looking for founders who are not going to be taken by surprise,” advises Charlie O’Donnell, Founder of Brooklyn Bridge Ventures. His earlier investments include The Wing, Canary (home-security company) and Industrial Organic (waste processing).
Expa is “company builder” startup studio with features of an accelerator and investor. Launched in 2014, its founders have impressive pedigrees: Naveen Selvadurai (Foursquare), Garrett Camp (Uber, StumbleUpon), Hooman Radfar (AddThis), and Milun Tesovic (Metrolyrics).
It invests from $250,000 to $2 million in early-stage companies. Its portfolio includes Sleeperbot (messaging app for sports fans) and Haus (platform for buying and selling homes). It has offices in New York, San Francisco, and Vancouver.
Human Ventures, founded in 2015, has invested in 17 companies, with the average investment ranging between $500,000 and $1 million. The portfolio spans Current.com (smart debit card for teens) and GirlBoss Media (women’s media company).
It also hosts networking events such as Happy Human Hours. “The next generation of investment really happens around an ecosystem,” explains Heather Hartnett, CEO and Founding Partner. “Fortune favours the connected,” she adds.
The company looks out for serial entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs from corporates or earlier startups. They should demonstrate values such as growth, guts, resilience, openness, collaboration, and gratitude.
Early-stage venture fund Lerer Hippeau has invested in over 250 startups such as Warby Parker, Everlane, Group Nine Media, Buzzfeed, Namely, Casper, Glossier, Doctor on Demand, Refinery29, and Giphy. Typical investment ranges from $1 million to $1.5 million. The core team includes Ken Lerer (who co-founded The Huffington Post) and Eric Hippeau (former managing partner at Softbank Capital).
“Angel investing is a contact sport,” says Brian Cohen, Chairman at New York Angels, which has 130 members who individually invest anywhere from $25,000 to $1.5 million in early-stage startups.
They have invested more than $150 million in over 200 companies, including Pinterest and JUMP Bikes. The angels look for entrepreneurs who are capable of scaling their business and are willing to be coached.
RRE Ventures invests at seed stage ($300,000) and Series A and B ($1 million to $7 million), with success stories such as Business Insider, Venmo, and The Huffington Post. It looks for startups with offerings 10 times better than what currently exist.
Union Square Ventures has an active portfolio of over 75 companies, with earlier successes such as Twitter, Etsy and Twilio as well as Duolingo, Stash and Clue. Founded in 2003 by Brad Burnham and Fred Wilson, it invests from $1 million in early stage companies to $15 million in growth companies.
URBAN-X invests in tech firms and provides accelerator programmes in urban-tech solutions. It has invested in 30 companies, with solutions such as AI to monitor and manage roadways (Roadbotics) and responsive, intelligent bike helmets (Brooklyness). Targeted startups are those with global markets.
The book ends with a directory of useful resources for startups, such as conferences and meetup sites for entrepreneurs. These include AlleyWatch, Built In NYC, Civic Hall, Cornell Tech at Bloomberg, Digital.NYC, Startup Grind New York, and Tech Day New York.
Other incubators and accelerators to check out include AngelPad, Betaworks, Blueprint Health, Capital One Labs, CUNY Startup Accelerator, Dreamit Ventures, Fashion Tech Consortium, MetaBronx, New York Fashion Tech Lab, Prehype, Quake Capital, Starters, Techstars NYC, Work-Bench, and Zahn Innovation Centre.
“The future of New York City is to really be the fairest big city in America,” wraps up Jeremy Goldberg, Deputy at the Mayor’s Office of the CTO.
In sum, the book provides informative and entertaining insights into New York’s startup ecosystem, as well as a useful framework for other cities to reflect on and improve their own startup ecosystems.
Ahmedabad-based Matrubharti, a vernacular content startup, has announced that it has raised Rs 3.24 crore in an angel round of funding from US-based Gujarati NRI angel investors.
The funding comes on the back of Matrubharti launching its OTT video streaming platform Matrubharti Vishesh in July this year, after being selected for Gray Matters Capital’s Digital Accelerator Programme, GMC Calibrator, in March 2019.
Speaking about the funding, Mahendra Sharma, Founder and CEO, Matrubharti said,
“It is their love for India and its languages that has magnetised the interest of our investors, and validated by the growth potential seen from the macros of the next 500 million internet users in India will be from semi urban and rural ‘Bharat’ who’d prefer to consume their informational and entertainment content in vernacular. We, at Matrubharti, aspire to be the Netflix of Bharat and a platform of choice for such internet consumers.”
Mahendra Sharma (L), Founder and CEO, and Nilesh N Shah, Co-founder, Matrubharti Technologies.
One of the angel investors in this funding round is Darshan Jani, a serial entrepreneur turned investor, and ex-VP of Engineering, Products and Operations at Automation Anywhere, a global leader in Robotic Process Automation.
The other two investors are NRIs from USA, and have invested through their companies called Surya Holdings LLC and Ferrana LLC.
Founded in 2013, Matrubharti claims that it now has over one million registered users and over 250,000 monthly active users (MAUs).
With this funding, it aims to add content in three South Indian languages soon on its platform and build stronger technology and data intelligence to engage users better, the company said in a statement. The money would also help it boost its sales efforts besides expanding into geographies with a strong presence of Indian diaspora, it added.
“We are aiming to grow three-fold with this funding round,” Mahendra added.
Matrubharti is partnering with content production houses, theatre schools, and event organisers to help them monetise their visual content on its community platform. It is also testing monetisation with advertisements from hyperlocal businesses.
“While monetisation is a challenge faced by competing OTT platforms, we are overcoming this through better user engagement. Users of Matrubharti spend as much as 25 minutes per session per day on the vernacular books and videos, which is above the industry standard. We believe that the longer the screen time, the higher the possibility to monetise via advertisements,” Mahendra said.
“Given the uniqueness of offline event content, content licensing is another revenue stream that we’ve been exploring,” he added.
Matrubharti said its content from over 100 offline events conducted across 30 cities over the last three years under its banner differentiates it from competition. Its app is available for Android and iOS users.
With the launch of its OTT Video streaming platform, Matrubharti Vishesh, its content library also boasts of 150+ high quality videos including video stories, web series, short films, stand-up comedies, and theatrical plays in Gujarati and Hindi languages, with a run time of 30-90 minutes.
MetroMedi, a Hyderabad-based online pharmacy and e-health store, said it has raised $1.5 million in seed round from TK GP Rao, a high networth individual, who is also the founder of the TMT Group of industries.
The startup told YourStory that it is also in talks with various funds to raise Series A funding to move closer towards fulfilling its vision.
MetroMedi was founded by Dilip C Byra, a serial entrepreneur, who resigned from civil services at the Ministry of Defence to pursue his passion of creating employment and creating an impact in the society.
A serial entrepreneur, he founded Vensoft India Pvt Ltd in 1998, which is into development, consulting, and content writing. During his entrepreneurial journey, he realised the need for quality healthcare, and established Value Pharma Retail in 2010.
In 2018, with the increasing penetration ofRelianceJio, smartphones, and WhatsApp, Dilip started MetroMedi with a mission to deliver 100 percent genuine medicines to the consumers' doorstep. The way MetroMedi works is simple - patients share their prescriptions through WhatsApp, and MetroMedi staff then delivers the medication to them on a recurring cycle.
Dilip C Byra (L), Founder and CEO and Manikanta Byra, COO
“We bundle all health related solutions and assist to improve healthcare segment by our health assistants programme, where personalised assistance is given for every 1,000 customers and to create employment as well, along with health insurance and health credit.”
“This is very unique and the only platform where health, technology, and fintech bundles together as a unified health platform using ancient wisdom and modern science together in the fast-growing Indian ecommerce market,” he added.
With Dilip's experience in the pharma retail and strong partnerships with distributors, MetroMedi initially started delivering medicines in Hyderabad. It then expanded to six more cities including Bengaluru, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Kakinada, Guntur, and Rajahmundry - that are a mix of Tier-I, Tier-II, and Tier-III cities. So far, MetroMedi claims to have fulfilled more than 100,000 orders with a 99 percent prescription fill rate.
The company said, apart from delivering medicines, the platform helps patients set a reminder to automatically refill medicines, recommends health foods, and also educates users with health tips.
Dilip said, "Currently, brick and mortar pharmacies are fulfilling only 60 percent of the orders, and most importantly there are 20 percent counterfeit medicines in the Indian market. MetroMedi is delivering genuine medicines and solving the unavailability problem."
On its mission to become a unified health platform, MetroMedi has also started offering diagnostics by partnering with DoctorC.
Manikanta Byra, COO of MetroMedi said,
"As of today, MetroMedi fulfills nearly 1000 orders a day, acquires customers at 75 percent less cost than its competitors, has 60 percent monthly repeat customers and is growing at 25 percent month-on-month."
It has also developed a personal health assistant programme, where a trained health professional is assigned for every 1,000 customers to support their healthcare needs. The startup is now piloting this programme with a select group of customers.
MetroMedi is currently working on a set of complex problems and committed to make quality healthcare accessible and affordable. First, the company wants to offer a wide range of quality nutritional products and expand these offerings to 10 cities in the next ten months. Second, the firm is working on new initiatives to improve the accessibility of healthcare in Tier-III and Tier-IV cities by working with pharmacists and doctors. Third, the team is working with banks and financial institutions to offer health credits and affordable insurance.
According to Google trends 2018, India is searching for ‘online medicine apps’ more than any other country. The Indian healthcare sector is expected to reach $280 billion by 2020, reports IBEF. It is estimated that by 2025, ePharmacy in India may grow up to 30-35 percent of the total size. The company said these factors are in its favour, which has ambitious plans in the healthcare sector.
Other players operating in the space are Practo, 1MG, NetMeds, and Pharmeasy among others.
Ola Electric’s Ola Mobility Institute, along with the World Economic Forum, has come up with a report with an analysis of the EV policies across different states in India. Following the government’s push towards making electric vehicles mainstream in India, different states have come up with their own policies for EVs.
The report calls for a common framework to bring in consistency and accelerate EV adoption in India.
In the report, Christopher Wolff, Head of Mobility Industries and Systems Initiatives, World Economic Forum, says:
“Using a value-chain framework to review all 10 states’ draft or final EV policies, this report allows for policymakers, businesses, and practitioners alike to highlight focal point policies and identify new opportunities for public-private collaboration. The analysis should continue to be developed further to provide recommendations to states on the sustainability and longevity of different EV policies.”
Anand Shah, Co-founder, Ola Electric, and Senior VP, Ola, explains the report had varied findings, including Bihar’s efforts to convert all pedal rickshaws to e-rickshaws by 2022, Karnataka’s focus on a venture capital fund for e-mobility startups, and Delhi’s efforts towards 50 percent e-buses in public transportation by 2023.
Help create a value chain
The report reveals the need to build a strong value chain to ensure adoption of e-mobility:
Components of EVS such as batteries
The charging infrastructure
The network value chain
The report adds that this value-chain approach is needed while looking at policies.
It also focuses on the challenges the sector faces:
The uptake of electric vehicles is slow because the vehicles are expensive, not only upfront but also on a life-cycle cost basis, or in other words, total cost of ownership (TCO).
Electric vehicle ownership is disproportionately concentrated among high-income households and communities.
The lack of robust fast-charging infrastructure, causing range anxiety among users, credit constraints, the limited choice set of vehicle models, and well-established behavioural failures that inhibit adoption of efficient technologies with lower life-cycle cost impede EV adoption.
To overcome these challenges the report suggests the strategy should include prioritisation of electric miles (or clean kilometres) over electric vehicles. The report states that the payback over the lifetime of the EV is inversely correlated with the vehicle kilometres travelled (VKT), thereby, suggesting pivoting public policies to target high-usage vehicles and applications.
“However, the stock of private vehicles with high VKT is small, thus weakening the economic case for public investment in fast-charging infrastructure. It is to be noted that high-VKT users who could benefit from lower life-cycle cost of EVs – even in the absence of subsidies – would still face barriers in the form of range anxiety and credit constraints, among others,” the report states.
Looking at EV policies from other regions like Europe, China, the US, and Taiwan, the Ola Mobility Report has made the following recommendations:
Different states could accommodate funds for research in battery chemistry and cell technologies, and for recycling centres to reclaim and recycle critical materials (such as cobalt and lithium). “States could invest in R&D to encourage pilot programmes to measure the impact of EVs on the existing grid.”
Implementation of a zero-emission vehicle mandate, which would require OEMs to register and sell a minimum share of EVs, which should increase over time.
New registrations of ICE vehicles non-compliant with Bharat Stage VI emission norms may be curtailed in a phased manner.
The capital city or large metropolises could have lanes to promote EV adoption. This would also help in creating public awareness.
States could create a “low-carbon city promotion task force” to promote selected cities as “carbon-free, trouble- free” world-class cities by implementing EV policies. States could mandate the creation of a dedicated EV cell by 2020 uniformly across the nation.
Tax credits to deploy charging infrastructure. “To ensure fast implementation, they could make it applicable for the first 1,000 charging stations in the state. States could also have city-level targets to implement such incentives smoothly,” according to the report.
A “time of use pricing programme”, which can subsidise the cost of the cost of purchasing power based on the time slot in which the consumer uses it.
In its truest form, Internet of Things (IoT) is a digital mesh of internet-connected devices. From devices to automobiles, it connects a plethora of physical objects for seamless data exchange.
Garther, the global think tank predicts that by 2021, the world will have 25 Billion connected things. Now that is a huge digital mesh by any scale. One that could connect the entire perimeter of the earth and all the digital things inside it.
Smart houses, wearable devices, smart retail stores, connected cars, are all classic examples of IoT. Since 2014, Internet of Things is gaining momentum as a change factor in customer experience. New-gen entrepreneurs whose businesses are reliant on virtual connections must take IoT seriously to improve customer experience.
From pills to planes: The growth story of Internet of Things
From smart medical pills to sensor-loaded planes, IoT has weaved itself into the fabric of everyday consumer life. It is creating a new wave of man-machine communication that was considered science fiction in past.
How did IoT gain so much traction in recent years? What are the catalyst agents that are weaving the growth story of IoT?
Turns out, there are four main catalysts that are staging the Internet of Things growth story:
High mobile adoption
Expanded internet connectivity
Availability of low-cost sensors
Keen interest from private and public sectors
Perhaps the biggest attribute to IoT adoption is the availability of low-cost sensors. BLE-powered sensors, which are of the size of a coin impart computing power to everyday devices. From home appliances to jet planes, these BLE-powered sensors can attach themselves to any surface to capture and transmit data. In fact, latest IoT sensors can also become a part of human skin fabric to monitor health stats. This never-before like technological possibility has kicked off a gold rush in Internet of Things investments.
PwC estimates that by 2020, 11.2 billion Internet of Things devices would be installed globally. A staggering $3 billion is estimated to be expended for the cause.
In India alone, the Internet of Things market size is pegged at $130 million. Telecom, consumer, oil and gas, finance and healthcare are the major stakeholders in the IoT market pie.
Now, why should entrepreneurs take IoT seriously? What value can it deliver to warrant big-ticket investments?
What value can entrepreneurs unearth with IoT?
IoT can help entrepreneurial pursuits reach the market faster and interact with their customers in a whole new way. It also gives entrepreneurs an uncanny ability to remotely manage and monitor Internet-connected things, and the services that they offer to customers.
Here are some value-additions that such portability would result in:
Business process transformation
IoT will enable businesses to plug a critical gap in real-time data collection from remote devices. It will reduce or even totally eliminate the manual error and economic toil required for accurate data collection. As an added bonus, it also helps data to be broken down for meaningful interpretation.
Data-driven revenue models
Analytics has replaced manual logs and spreadsheets. This is the age of business intelligence that depicts live business data in the form of dashboards. Imagine the business efficiency that can be achieved if real-time data from connected devices can be collected and disseminated? IoT analytics can unearth new revenue avenues, better customer service, cost reduction and also improved competitive advantage.
Connected for a reason: Benefits of IoT in driving customer engagement
Now, let’s get a level deeper and see how Internet of Things can help drive better customer engagement. What follows is not a hypothetical possibility, but real-life use cases and applications of IoT in customer engagement.
IoT gives hyper-connectivity (wearables)
Worldwide wearable device sales revenue leapfrogged from $16 billion in 2016 to $26 billion in 2018, according to Statista. Wearables provide hyper-connectivity that connects anything to anyone, anywhere, anytime and in any context. Fitness trackers and smart watches are just a fragment of what IoT wearables can do.
Honeywell introduced wearable devices that help supply chain workers to perform several processes with a single wearable device. It not only helps workers conduct activities hands-free but also enables ergonomic data-capture.
IoT enables proactive service (connected cars, predictive maintenance, etc.)
A decade ago, the ideal traits of a passenger car were space, fuel efficiency, engine longevity and maintenance costs. Today, cloud connectivity and dedicated mobile apps have also climbed into that list.
IoT sensors that are stuck to major automotive components help monitor vital stats like engine performance, brake health, driving pattern, tire pressure among many other things. This data can be collected and analysed over the cloud to provide predictive maintenance.
For instance, one can estimate in advance the need for tyre alignment, engine oil change or brake pad replacement well before any incident happens. This proactive service will prevent mishaps and help improve customer perception about a brand or product.
Ericsson’s connected car is a perfect example of IoT-enabled proactive customer.
IoT delivers new experiences (cashless shopping - Amazon Go)
IoT has the potential to revamp how customers have been shopping and ordering for their wares. The recent launch of Amazon Go cashierless store and Amazon Dash button are all perfect examples of this new IoT-driven customer experience. It brings customers closer to the shopping experience by cutting down processes that slow down order fulfillment.
Similarly, Disney’s Magic Kingdom also leverages IoT to its advantage. Disney’s Magic Kingdom receives millions of visitors all year. Reducing the wait time at each attraction and ensuring smooth flow of visitors from one attraction to another is not any mean task. Disney is perhaps one of the early adopters of IoT to their advantage.
The MagicBand issued to every visitor acts as a beacon that transmits signals to Disney’s “queue management” task force. The band is pre-loaded with the list of attractions that the visitor has paid for. The task force plans for the visitor flow based on signals. To make visitors visit more attractions, Disney also shoots ads relating to visitor enhancement, etc.
IoT as a driver of connected customer experience
IoT is enabling the intelligent enterprise of tomorrow. As IoT devices increase in number and improve in performance, it is time for entrepreneurs to think of novel ways to use them better. Using Internet of Things as a means to collect data is not a viable long-term business proposition. It should be treated as a medium through which intelligent customer experiences can be delivered. Inspiration can be drawn from brands like Amazon, Disney, Honeywell and several others who are making sensors perform magic.
Caution: Internet of Threats ahead
All the benefit that IoT will bring to our lives does not come free of cost. There are perceived threats, which if not handled appropriately could lead to massive security incidents. One of the biggest threats that IoT devices face is that they are susceptible to botnet attacks, data eavesdropping, industrial espionage, or even physical theft. Even the simplest IoT device can be used to execute big ticket security attacks.
Here is an example to demonstrate the point. Two white hat hackers were able to hack a Jeep Cherokee remotely, with a simple internet connection, by harnessing the loophole in its dashboard system called the Uconnect. By hacking into the vehicle’s IoT-connected dashboard they were able to turn ON/OFF ignition, switch on/off a/c, and even steer the vehicle when it was in motion. Now, that points out why it is vital to plan for security measures while taking up IoT development.
(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.)
Religare Enterprises is selling its entire stake in NBFC arm Religare Finvest Ltd (RFL) to TCG Advisory Services for around Rs 330 crore, according to a regulatory filing on Wednesday.
Religare Enterprises (REL) in the filing said that a share purchase agreement had been signed with TCG for selling stake in RFL, which is an SME-focused NBFC and also owns a majority shareholding in housing finance provider Religare Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd (RHDFCL).
REL in July 2019 had signed a binding term sheet with TCG Advisory Services to sell its NBFC and housing finance businesses.
According to the filing, REL is divesting its entire stake in RFL for Rs 330 crore. The transaction is subject to receipt of statutory and regulatory approvals, and fulfillment of other conditions. It is expected to complete before December 31, 2019.
"The consideration will be utilised to repay the outstanding loans to group companies, third parties, and for other general corporate purposes," the filing said.
REL, in a release, also announced settlement of a dispute with Axis Bank, which was "restraining" the capital raise plans in its various group companies.
The company was mired in controversies in the past due to alleged financial mismanagement by promoters Malvinder and Shivinder Singh.
"Currently the promoter stake has reduced to around 1 per cent and REL has applied for declassifying them as promoters. The company is now majority owned by a set of institutional investors and family offices, governed by an independent board, and a new management is trying to turn around the fortunes of the group," REL said.
The non-banking financial company (NBFC) arm Religare Finvest is now being headed by a new management team under Sanjay Palve, the MD and CEO of the company. Palve also heads the housing finance subsidiary RHDFCL, of the Religare group.
Religare said that in last one year the new team has done a cleanup of books, improved corporate governance, and strengthened the internal processes/risk management.
"The company which was put under RBI's Corrective Action Plan (CAP), restraining it from further lending activity, is in advanced stages of restructuring its debt and improve capital ratios to come out of CAP restriction from RBI," it added.
Unlike many of its peers, it is able to keep its account standard with banks despite having asset liability mismatch and RBI cap restrains.
"...the revival of Religare Finvest will set an example in the NBFC sector. With TCG coming in as a promoter shareholder, we have strong backing of capital and long-term commitment towards business. Our lenders are also positive to complete the restructuring of debt to ensure sustainable growth of company and their interest," Palve said.
Religare Finvest, which is attempting a business revival along with restructuring of its debt, requires sustained capital commitments, Religare said.
"The divestment of our NBFC business will help conserve capital for the company and allow us to focus on other businesses of the group. It's a win-win deal for REL and TCG, who can help grow the NBFC business with a long term capital commitment," said Nitin Agarwal, Group CFO, Religare Enterprises Limited (REL), and CEO, Religare Broking Limited.
Orb Energy, a Bengaluru-based provider of solar energy solutions in India, on Thursday announced that Shell’s New Energies business has acquired an almost 20 percent stake in the firm in its latest funding round.
Founded in 2006 by Damian Miller and NP Ramesh, Orb Energy offers credit to SMEs to invest in their own rooftop solar systems. In a statement, the company said the fresh investment would help more Indian SMEs – a largely underserved part of the market – benefit from lower-cost solar power.
“Shell’s investment will power the next phase of our growth and ensure that more underserved SMEs in India can benefit from clean, lower-cost electricity from solar.”
Since inception, the startup has sold more than 160,000 solar systems in India, with a total capacity of approximately 75 megawatts. Orb Energy, which employs 250 people in India, also has operations in Kenya, where it is seeking to replicate its India model.
Brian Davis, Vice President, Shell Energy Solutions, said,
“We were attracted by Orb Energy’s focus on providing cleaner and affordable energy solutions to SMEs in India. This is a vital and growing sector, with great potential to contribute to the country’s renewable energy ambitions.”
“We look forward to supporting this company in reaching its potential, as we move closer to Shell’s energy access ambition. That is, to provide a reliable electricity supply to 100 million people in the developing world by 2030,” he added.
Existing investors in Orb Energy include FMO (The Netherlands), Bamboo Capital Partners (Luxembourg), Rianta Capital (Switzerland), Acumen Capital Market Funds I (US), and Pamiga SA (Luxembourg).
According to a media report, the company has so far received $13 million in equity and $10 million debt in Series A and Series B rounds. It is now planning to raise Rs 220 crore (a mix of equity and debt) funding from both new and existing investors, the report added.
Unitus Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Orb Energy for this transaction.
Shell’s New Energies business was created in 2016 and affected this investment through Shell Ventures B.V., the corporate venture capital arm of Royal Dutch Shell PLC (“Shell”).
Bengaluru-based fintech startup, FinBox on Thursday said, it has raised an undisclosed amount as part of its pre-Series A funding led by Arali Ventures. The round also saw participation from marquee angel investor Anup Pai, Founder of financial services company, Fintellix.
The startup plans to use the funds for R&D and expanding its product suite. The company is also looking to hire across its engineering, data science and product management segments.
FinBox was part of the 2017 FinTech cohort of PayPal’s Indian incubator programme. It currently has a team of 25 individuals.
Founded by Rajat Deshpande, Anant Deshpande, Nikhil Bhawsinka and Srijan Nagar, FinBox is a B2B credit risk management platform with proprietary data connectors, that assists in lending to self-employed merchants, non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) and new-to-credit customers.
Commenting on their vision, the founders said,
“Digital lending requires reimagination of tools from scratch, FinBox’s vision is to accelerate financial inclusion through big data and machine learning tools. The impact would be far reaching. Financial services firms will be able to leverage their dark data and consume new data sources to significantly improve credit risk performance while enhancing user adoption.”
Its data connector API’s - DeviceConnect and BankConnect, bring an alternative source of data to the client’s platform, enabling automated credit decisions. This further enables NBFC’s to lower credit risk, improve approval rates and digitally onboard customers.
FinBox’s product suite is used by a mix of traditional consumer NBFCs, as well as, new age startup NBFCs.
Speaking about the investment, Arun Raghavan, Co-founder and Partner, Arali Ventures, said,
“We believe that Indian banking and financial services will be driven to balance credit risk while increasing penetration. FinBox’s tech+data approach is ideally suited to ride that wave.”
Although the company was incorporated in 2015, the platform was only launched in 2017.
At present, the platform processes about one million loan applications a month. Most of these applications are from new-to-credit customers, the company said.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (Trai) will take additional time to finalise its views on Over-The-Top (OTT) norms and issues around lawful interception and security are expected to be the key focus, an official said.
The telecom regulator's deliberations on the issue may take at least one more month to conclude, as it is looking at international practices and regulations around OTTs, particularly on security-related aspects.
OTT services refer to applications and services that are accessible over the internet and ride on an operator's network. Skype, Viber, WhatsApp and Hike are some of the popular and widely-used OTT services.
A senior Trai official said that the regulator wants to take a "practical approach" to the OTT issue.
Moreover, OTT usage is also benefiting telcos given the spike in data consumption and traffic, and hence any argument about such services merely riding free on telecom networks is no longer as compelling.
Economic aspects, therefore, are not the prime focus any more, said the official.
"Now largely it has boiled down to security issue...questions like how the security concerns can be addressed, how other countries have dealt with security concerns. The problem has become a little limited - it is not as big as it was, when we started," the Trai official said.
Last year, Trai had issued its consultation paper - Regulatory Framework for Over-The-Top Communications Services' - to debate whether OTT players should be brought under the regulatory regime. Of late, many of these platforms have come under intense scrutiny, and the Indian government is also proposing changes in IT rules to seek greater accountability from these firms, in the backdrop of the apps being used for circulation of fake news and misinformation.
While issuing its discussion paper last year, Trai had made it clear that the scope of its consultation would be regulatory issues and economic concerns pertaining to those OTT services that are same or similar to the services provided by telecom service providers (TSPs).
In the consultation paper, Trai had also sought the industry's views on which OTT services should be regarded as the same or similar to those offered by telecom operators, and if "substitutability" should be the main criteria for comparison of regulatory or licensing rules applicable to TSPs and OTT service providers.
Trai has also sought industry's opinion on whether there are issues surrounding lawful interception of OTT communication that need to be resolved in the interest of national security and whether responsibilities of OTT service providers and telecom service providers should be distinct.
"Now the question is of regulatory imbalance, on the issue of lawful enforcement...This is not only regulatory imbalance, it has implications on security of the country. So the argument is now limited to security-related issues," the TRAI official said.
Trai is looking at how other nations have dealt with such issues.
"Security is not just India's concern, it is a concern for every country," the source said adding that Trai has scheduled internal presentations and is likely to finalise its view in another month or so.
There was a time when Indian women who wanted to pamper themselves with stylish intimate wear had limited options. Either they had to stock up on colourful and fancy lingerie on the chance foreign vacation, or depend on the generosity of close friends or family members who were NRIs to shop for them.
Now neither of these presented the ideal scenario, due to mismatch in tastes, preferences and, of course, the main issue of size and fit. The Indian women’s body type was different and so opting for lingerie that was not designed keeping these differences in mind meant that she had to suffer discomfort. Or she had to settle for wearing local brands that did not offer much by way of quality or style.
But today, the young Indian woman has ample choices when it comes to choosing lingerie that’s stylish, comfortable and lets her be confident about herself. And, with brands such as Wacoal, which extensively studied the Indian market and consumers in order to come up with products that are just right for them, she no longer needs to compromise.
The Indian intimate wear market is expected to be worth $6.5 billion by 2023. Today, the market has matured and evolved, thanks to a number of factors, not limited to a change in the mindset of the young Indian women and the e-commerce revolution. According to Mr. Nobuhiro Katsumata, CEO of Wacoal India, “The upper middle class is growing rapidly with annual GDP growth of over seven percent, followed by an increase in disposable income. In fact, the latter is growing faster than GDP growth. While actual consumption is price-conscious, purchase tendency for premium and international new added-value items is also increasing. In addition, women’s purchasing power is on an upward trajectory as women continue to advance in society. We believe this change in the market will accelerate in the next 10 years, and we see it as a great opportunity for Wacoal's market expansion.”
Looking beyond just glamour to focus on fit and comfort
The global brand, with a presence in over 70 countries across the world, entered the Indian market in 2015 and since then has established itself as a brand known to marry both comfort and style.
According to Mr. Katsumata, Wacoal’s success stems from the fact that the company took the time to understand the Indian consumer’s specific requirements. “Fits, quality and sizes are extremely varied, and launching products in Asian sizes will not address their concerns. Based on our research and development, we understood the Indian market needs and introduced products to enhance the comfort factor.” The result of this approach? They have a high rate of repeat customers. Since their product is one that every woman uses on a daily basis, they decided to focus on getting the fit and comfort factor right. “Instead of pursuing a glamorous appearance and sexiness, we pursue excellent supportability with unique materials and designs based on our research about the Indian consumer. We are also beginning to develop exclusive merchandise for the Indian market and plan to expand this in the coming years,” says Mr. Katsumata.
Quality consciousness backed by extensive research
Today the Indian lingerie market is seeing intense competition with both global as well as home-grown brands. Commenting on this, Mr. Katsumata says, “Many known international brands carry out their planning and design in-house, but outsource production to external manufacturers and mainstream contractors. Wacoal, on the other hand, has its own manufacturing units all over the world where we produce over 80 percent of our designs. We achieve high quality and high performance with this balanced mix of our own production units and research undertaken by Wacoal’s Human Science Research Centre. This is our biggest strength and differentiates us from other brands.”
Currently, they have 18 exclusive stores across five metros -- Mumbai, Pune, Ghaziabad, Ahmedabad, Nagpur, Kolkata, Chennai and Bangalore. In the pipeline are plans to set up 25 exclusive stores in more cities by the end of FY 2019 and 50 exclusive stores by the end of FY 2020. In addition, they also plan to add 30 outlets within departmental stores, bringing the total to 80 stores across India. By the year 2021, they plan to take the total number of stores up to 150, with 70 exclusive stores and 80 outlets in departmental stores.
Enabling women to be their own authentic selves
Apart from this, the company also plans to focus on expanding their range of offerings while continuing their focus on enabling women to be as comfortable and confident in their own skin and experiment with their style. The company’s philosophy is that every woman around the world shares the same thought: “I want to be beautiful”. Beauty has a particular personality as defined by each country or region, and differs from woman to woman, and Wacoal aims to address each woman’s needs with sincerity, says Mr. Katsumata.
Talking about the concept and inspiration behind the company’s autumn-winter collection, he explains, “For the longest time the Indian woman has been seen in a certain stereotyped light as being flawless and perfect at everything. However, now Indian women are slowly displaying their diverse, true colours in front of the world. Everything, from their relationships, desires, expressions, clothes, shoes and career choices, are bolder and more aspirational. As the women evolve, so do the definitions they use as identities. And this is our definition of the Wacoal woman -- being yourself is what brings out the real you.”
And what better way to be #TrulyYou than to feel comfortable, beautiful and embrace yourself, with Wacoal that is #TrulyYours.
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