One swipe of your finger on your ‘Smart phones’, one can really find, that their lives have been made so much easier. Thanks to these Apps (Applications) rolled out by few of the amazing start up companies. Everything comes at your doorstep, just with a CLICK (OLA, Uber, Zomato, Flipkart, Snapdeal, Quikr) our lives have been revolutionised by the onset of these start-ups. This startup thing looks so glamourized right? It all began in “The Silicon Valley” (California) where startup companies like Google, Facebook, Apple and many others found immense success.
What is a Startup? : A Startup is a stellar business idea, where innovation, scalability and growth form the crux of its formation. It is an entrepreneurial venture (it may be a Company/Partnership/anything else) designed to solve critical issues using latent technology/ideas/Resources etc. Ambition, scalability and rapid growth are the focus of start up companies. An entrepreneur is committed to solve a more difficult problem than what ordinary businesses do. Startups are designed for a faster growth. To be able to build up something that is unique, life changing and to be able to sell it to the target market is what start-ups are all about.
Startup Culture: Each startup has its own unique way of functioning. Startup culture could be defined with its Identity, Growth Strategy and Relationships. Startup founders set up a unique way of conduct at the workplaces depending on the kind of persona they carry. The founders need to know what they value, why they value, they need to reflect those values by acting upon it. Many companies have values, visions and mission statements but they don’t really commit to them. Building corporate and social values from the very beginning will help keep culture consistent and ensure success down the road. Founders/CEO’s who initiate to build a resilient culture will reap the benefits in the long run. So basically, startup culture is the set of values instilled within the organization by the founders the benefits/downside of which could be reaped /faced in the long term.
Startups Then and Now: Around a Decade ago, India had a very pitiable condition with the startup ecosystem due to bad infrastructure facilities, lack of resources, no Government backing, excessive Red Tapism. But today, the scenario has changed. Investors, Government and Corporate Giants are showing interest towards the growth of startup ecosystem via Funding, Investing, Mentoring, Acceleration programmes and setting up of Incubation Centres. Having said that, In August 2015, Our Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi rolled out “Startup India” and “Standup India” Campaigns. According to the PM, these Campaigns accompanied with strategic action plan, will lead to employment generation and wealth creation. A Corpus fund of Rs.10, 000 crores has been earmarked by the Government of India, in order to provide funding support for start-ups.
Recently NASSCOM has revealed that, India is the third largest and the fastest growing startup ecosystem globally. NASSCOM partnered with TiE Silicon valley and IIM Ahmedabad and hosted ‘Startup Konnect’ in September 2015 at Silicon Valley which showcased the strengths of India’s startup ecosystem. NASSCOM also launched its “10,000 Startups” program which aims to scale up the startup ecosystem in India, set up Incubators, foster funding, mentoring etc. Statistical report of NASSCOM says ‘India has emerged as the youngest startup nation in the world with over 70% of founders being less than 35 yrs old. India has more than 4000 plus startups, making it the third largest startup base worldwide’.
To quote Mr. Chandrasekhar, president, Nasscom, said that “The Indian startup ecosystem is only going to get bigger and better with the Startup India, Stand up India mission. We are happy to partner with the Government of India to nurture this ecosystem and thereby support their endeavour to make India the largest startup ecosystem in the world. This is something for which every entrepreneur was waiting and finally when the mission is all set to start, we hope that it’s definitely going to make way for better opportunities and prospects”.
Startups are all about connecting to your customers by solving their problems in a unique way. They can be technology, services, and product oriented start-ups. They come in all forms and sizes. Startups often adapt technology to solve problems and the prevalence of that technology allows critical growth. The Indian startups scene is relatively new as compared to the ones established in the Silicon Valley. It has finally found its ground in past few years. Many new, young and talented entrepreneurs are coming up with novel ideas and innovations and they are also backed by Venture Capitalists, Angel Investors, Government aid etc. So things are quite different now, unlike before. International Venture Capitalists (VCs) like Tiger Capital, Nexus Ventures, Accel partners, Sequoia Capital have been hugely investing in Indian start-ups. We can expect a lot more of astronomical investments made by such VCs in India.
The Unicorn Club: When a startup finds its market fit and scales up, with the change in financial metrics- increase in employees and revenues, it slowly starts ceasing to be a startup and becomes more of a company. That is when they say that a startup is into the ‘Unicorn Club’ i.e. the startup is valued over 1$ billion. Facebook, Google, Twitter, Airbnb, Uber were initially a startup ,but once they grew rapidly and captured the market/consumers they no longer remained a startup ,they are billion dollar companies backed by bull market and the new age disruptive technology.
Startups need to have an Exit Strategy: It is very essential for entrepreneurs/Investors to map out their future by having exit strategies ready, at the very point of time when they initially thought of getting into the business. Exit strategy is nothing but the way to recoup money that you have invested into the venture, once you decide to sell your business to a third party. A startup should have one in place for investors as they support the business, they also expect return on investment. For Venture Capitalists and Angel Investors, who must have invested in dozens of companies over the years, exit strategies are very important to them. Some of the popular ones are,
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Initial Public offer (IPO)
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Merger and Acquisition
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Management Buyout
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Liquidation
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Family succession
Successful Indian start-ups and their CEO’s/Founders: India has a line up of successful start-ups till date. Powered with innovative minds and latent technology, these young Founders have changed our lives by bringing up these amazing start-ups.
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FLIPKART: A leading E-commerce company in India founded in 2007 by Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal. Registered in Singapore but has its HQ in Bengaluru, India. Valued at $15 Billion.
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SNAPDEAL: An E-commerce shopping website, offering around 10 Million diverse products. Founded in 2010 by Kunal Bahl. Valued at $5 Billion.
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OLA CABS: Owned by ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd. A Car rental company which provides a range of services from economic to luxury cars. They recently acquired TaxiForSure to further expand its business. Valued at $2.5 Billion.
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PAYTM: The largest platform for mobile payment (Prepaid) and DTH recharging. It is owned by one97 communications a leading mobile network company, founded by Vijay Shekhar Sharma. Launched in 2010.Valued at $1.84 Billion.
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Com: Founded in 2008 by Pranay Chulet and Jiby Thomas .It provides services that helps people find and sell products among various categories. Valued at $1 Billion.
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ZOMATO: Founded by Deepender Goyal and Pankaj Chaddha. One can search restaurants online, search for cafes, home deliveries and nightlife through Zomato. It was founded in the year 2008.Valued at $660 million.
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BOOK MY SHOW: It is India’s biggest online movie ticketing portal. Founded in 2007 by Ashish Hemrajani, Rajesh Balpande and Parikshit Dar. Half of its business comes through mobile application platform. Valued at $166.67 Million.
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OYO ROOMS: It’s newly founded and is India’s largest chain of budget hotels. Founded by the very young, 18 year old Ritesh Agarwal .OYO Rooms has found its niche and in competing fiercely.2016 is the year to watch out for OYO Rooms market growth.
