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Startup

Here Are 4 Reasons Why Starting a Business From Home is Not a Bad Idea

Startup (Representational Image Only, Photo Credits: NeedPix.com)

Mumbai, November 27: Starting a business from home considered as a great time in today’s time. Although there was a time when a home-based business wasn’t taken seriously, compared with the usual 9-to-5. However, we can safely say that times have changed and COVID-19 pandemic has also contributed to changing the landscape of operating a business.

The pandemic forced offices to allow employees to work from home. It was then people valued and understood the concept of work from home. Here’s why starting a business from home is actually a good idea.

  1. Increasing Commuting Cost & Traffic Issues: We are all familiar with the traffic jams which we face every day on our way to commute. The situation in metro cities is worst, where employees are spending their majority time in travelling. So, here’s why this hassle can be overcome if you plan to start a business from home.
  2. Giving time to the family: If you are saving time on the commute, you can use that to spend time with your family and loved ones.
  3. No need to pay high rent for office space: The best part of working from home and starting your own business is that you don’t require to rent or buy an office space. Property is a very volatile market and companies spend a huge chunk of their income in paying office rent.
  4. Advancement in technology: Thanks to the ever-changing technology, your work will not be impacted even if you work from home. From good internet bandwidth to online meetings with colleagues, everything can be facilitated from the comfort of your home.

    These days, there are plenty of legitimate businesses that are being operated from homes across countries. These businesses have grown to create one of the largest, fastest-growing commercial segments in the world today. Modern technology makes it possible, easy, and convenient to do business wherever and whenever.

    Today, there are several options which are open for someone if one wants to explore the idea of starting a business from home. If you have an idea, what are you waiting for? Go ahead, and start it today.

Categories
Finance

Gold And Jewellery Industry Hopes to See Demand Recovery in H2FY21: ICRA Report

Gold
Gold (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

Mumbai, November 27: The gold and the jewellery industry expects a demand recovery in H2FY21. According to a report published by ICRA, the industry believes that demand will improve on the back of occasions like festivals and weddings. The gold jewellery retail industry had witnessed a sharp 64 per cent contraction in H1FY21.

A positive trend highlighted in the survey was that the opening of the stores post the coronavirus pandemic induced lockdown has seen a steady improvement in footfall although these were still much lower than last year.

The report further mentioned, “Further, factors like rising preference towards gold as an asset class, favourable rural output amidst good monsoons, expectations regarding the further rise in gold prices etc are likely to support demand in the next few months.”

The industry is grappling with a decade-low level of demand during FY2020, battling multiple headwinds like weakened consumer sentiments amid a sharp rise in gold prices, subdued rural output, and fall in consumer surplus.

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Startup

Makeup Artist Business: Here Are 4 Things Which You Need to Remember If You Want to Establish Your Makeup Artist Career

cosmetic Business
cosmetic Business

Mumbai, November 26: The beauty industry is constantly growing and evolving. Every day new trends are emerging, and therefore, this is an extremely exciting space for those who want to establish a career in becoming a makeup artist.

There are certain things which need to be remembered if you want to establish yourself as a makeup artist.

Make a business plan: Chalk out a business plan, where you will have to ask yourself who will be your customers and the what kind of makeup services you will provide. At this stage, also assess the budget and the expenses that you will have to make in order to establish the business.

Learn good make up: Remember, it is a very competitive field and thanks to several tutorials available online, consumers today are well-informed of the latest trend. It is very important to hone your skills.

Marketing: In today’s age and day, the majority of your customers will find you on social media. So it is very important to be present on all the platforms where your competition is there. Highlight your skills and market it well.

Create a relationship with your customers: Makeup business is about creating a bond with your customers. It is very important to make them satisfied with your service. Post which, they will share it on social media and share their experience with their followers on the online forum. Make them feel special, add something extra and customise as per their requirement.

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Startup

Festive Season 2020 Sees Around 40% Rise in E-commerce Volumes Amid COVID-19 Pandemic, Growth Similar to Last Year

Online shopping
Online shopping (Photo Credits: pxfuel)

New Delhi, November 26: We have seen how COVID-19 has been a major roadblock to every category this year. The world saw the adoption of online technology and sales amid the coronavirus outbreak. A report by financial services major, Bernstein said that the festive season has seen a 30 to 40 percent growth in e-commerce volumes with overall growth similar to that witnessed last year.

The report further mentioned how in the festive season some categories seeing the strength and some others still down year on year. Another interesting read was that there were no major supply constraints this season suggesting adequate channel re-stocking.

Another interesting trend in the report was that tier 1 and 2 mainly comprised of existing shoppers who are buying more, while Tier 3 and 4 reflected new online shoppers. Apparel (including footwear and sportswear) continued to be the largest category in e-commerce. The number 2 category was filled by consumer electronics like mobiles, laptops and others.

Another positive factor highlighted in the report was that people have been increasingly comfortable buying things online. The sharp reduction in return orders which declined by over 25 per cent, and is a good indicator of increased consumer engagement with the online platform and also reflects the quality of growth.

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Startup

5 Biggest Challenges Faced by the Cold Storage Industry

Cold Storage (Photo Credits: Pixabay)
Cold Storage (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

Cold storage business is important in ensuring the smooth operations f other industries. Proper storage is crucial requirement for firms that deals in perishables goods, without a proper inventory storing place their entire produce will go waste, and so will all the financial and human resources invested in the production process. According to a report by Crisil, the cold storage industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 13–15 per cent till 2023, mainly driven by rising demand for processed food, fresh fruits & vegetables, seafood and bio-pharmaceuticals in exports markets. Though the initial investment in a cold storage plant is huge, and involves a lot of paperwork but the business surely ensure continues long term returns, once established.

Despite the necessary nature of the industry, the progress of cold storage in the country has also been extremely skewed.  As per the NCCD data for 2019, Uttar Pradesh contributes the maximum cold storage space in the country, around 33 per cent followed by Gujarat at 15 per cent. A cold-storage owner has to face several problems – legal, administrative, operational, and environmental – to keep the plant functional. Here are some of the problems the cold storage plants face-

  1. Infrastructure –

One of the biggest initial challenges is to build a suitable infrastructure for the cold storage plant, itself. It requires careful identification of location of the plant, which is not too far from the production outlet and is connected through a proper transportation system. Once the location is chosen, well trained and specialised workers are required for its construction. They should have knowledge and experience in fitting and installing the freezers, condensers, and other devices. It requires huge financial commitment as well.

  1. Workers Protection-

Another challenge is to keep the workers well protected all the time. People working in refrigeration facilities need to stay warm, so proper protective gear should be made available to them. The workers are highly prone to get ill because of extreme working condition and environment. They deal with electric equipment on daily basis; cases of electrocution have to be accounted for.

  1. To maintain the product temperature-

Each product has its own temperature for it to stay fresh and consumable for long term. However, every time a product is placed in the warmer area from the freezer zone- for example, when it needs to be picked and palletized- it loses its required temperature and gets warm. So when the product is brought back to the fridge after being out for some time, it needs to be carefully put inside by to maintain the temperature so that it does not get spoiled or unfit for consumption.

  • To Maintain Different Temperature Zones-

But maintaining a cold storage plant is actually a lot more difficult than that. For example, depending on the type of product being stored, different areas of the same warehouse need to be stored at different temperatures- fresh products should be kept at 12.778 degrees Celsius, dairy products should be kept at 1.11 degrees Celsius, meat should be stored below freezing at -2.22 degrees Celsius, Ice cream should be at – 23.33 degrees Celsius.

  1. To Change Temperature Zone Sizes-

All at once, the size of various temperature zones often needs to be scaled up or down depending on the number of products. In traditional warehouses, layout relocation is relatively straightforward- one can move or stack material pallets until they are in the right place. But with the cold storage plant facilities, the temperature has to be taken into consideration. The modular curtain wall system is the method by which the problem can be solved.

Continuous and coordinated efforts and investment go into the maintenance and proper functioning of a cold storage plant. There are several challenges a cold storage owner faces from day to day, be it employee health, maintaining proper temperature zones, government clearances, ensuring product quality among others.

 

 

 

Categories
Startup

Cold Storage Business in India: Here Are 5 Major Investments Required Before You Plan to Start a Cold Storage Business

Cold Storage
Cold Storage (Photo Credits: Wikimedia Commons)

New Delhi, November 25: Cold storage is a one-time business investment, where the initial investment required is on the higher side. However, the returns are higher and are on a long-term basis, as compared to other small businesses.

Also, it will become more popular and the demand will increase over the next few months as cold storages will be used to store vaccines.

There are certain big investments that need to be made if you want to start a cold storage business. Some of the food items that require cold storage are fruits and vegetables, poultry and fish products, meat.

  • Buying cooling machinery
  • Acquire the land and construct the storage facility
  • Get required licenses from the Government
  • Managing essential things like water, electricity, and other related materials
  • Hire equipped staff who will be able to handle the machine.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held a meeting with chief ministers of all the states and Union Territories to review Covid-19 situation where he asked them to start working on cold storage facilities for coronavirus vaccine.Three billion people may be denied a COVID-19 vaccine when it’s here because a number of countries don’t have sufficient cold storage facilities, the Associated Press reported.

Categories
Startup

5 Ideas to Start-Up Business in Healthcare Sector

Start-Up Ideas for Healthcare Sector| Representational Image (Photo Credits: Pixabay)
Start-Up Ideas for Healthcare Sector| Representational Image (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

The business environment is quite uncertain. There are constant changes in the way it operates. It is affected by several factors, including political, social, legal, and cultural among others. A business therefore experiences many direct and indirect interventions making its path highly unpredictable. However some businesses are hardly affected by such market fluctuations. One such is the healthcare sector. The medical and healthcare businesses are not prone much to disturbances in the external environment.

As more and more businesses are away from the traditional brick and mortar shops to advanced website and other online platforms, varied opportunities for starting non-conventional business in the healthcare sector has also emerged. Here are some of the start-up ideas for healthcare sector-

Health Information Website

One of the most straightforward business ideas for healthcare or medical sector is to start a website to provide information on routine healthcare. People are increasingly becoming more and more health conscious and are seeking for quick tips to stay healthy or the uses of medicine. The website can have multi-format content such as blogs, podcasts, infographics, videos, tutorials, articles, multimedia stories etc. It can be divided into different categories based on the food habits, working life, other health problems of the people.

Daily Nutrition App

More and more are becoming aware about the need of proper nutrition in their diet. An app with provides information for the nutrition requirements of the user depending upon his/her physical activity, BMI etc., can be highly useful for the health conscious people who are busy in the life enough to not have any time for separately looking for such information. Users can also provided by the opportunity to get in touch with a trained nutritionist or dietician who can help them to regulate their intake, helping them realise the effects that various foods have on their health.

Medical Records Management App

One of the best healthcare start-up ideas could be to start a digital service for hospitals, clinics, and doctors’ offices to help them manage their medical records It could assist the users to maintain and identify medical records of their patients in an organised and chronological manner. Moreover, even individual with heath conditions can also keep regular records of their condition.

Maternity/Child Care Guidance App

Many new parents face difficulty in accessing doctor as and when required and look for continuous guidance on how to take care of their new born.  You can build an app that has all the necessary information related to various stages of child birth and care. A child-specialist can be roped in for advice in emergency situations. A similar guide on pregnancy will also add to the demand and usage of the app.

Mental Health Tracker App

In today’s faced passed-anxiety inducing world, more and more people are facing several mental and emotional disturbances. Many of them are too afraid to seek help owing to the stigma associated with it. An app devoted to keep a track of the mental health of individuals is a highly viable business idea. Counselors and therapist can be roped for users to discuss their problems anonymously. Daily mental de-stressing activities and exercises can be an added attraction of the app.

Heath is the biggest wealth a person can ever earn, with growing awareness of importance of leading a health life, people are progressively looking for sources to guide and regulate their lifestyle. A start-up in the health-care sector will be highly profitable and useful for both the service provider and user.

 

 

Categories
Startup Strategy

‘Innovation Culture’ Important for Performance and Resilience of Indian Businesses, Shows Study

Innovation important for business resilience, shows study (Photo Credits: Pixabay)
Innovation important for business resilience, shows study (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

Any firm that aims for a long-term survival and growth, innovation is of utmost importance. Owing to rapid changes in the macro and micro environment of business operation, a firm needs to be flexible and accommodating to new opportunities and threats. A dynamic and innovative attitude becomes important for an overall development and existence of the organisation. The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, for instance, is one such situation where innovation was highly desired for to keep the firm afloat.  According to a recent study by Microsoft and IDC, 77 per cent of Indian organisations have found innovation to be critical or important to their performance and resilience, amid the worldwide pandemic. Around 439 business decision makers and 438 workers were surveyed in India within a 6-month period, before and since COVID-19 outbreak.

The study concluded that the businesses in India have increased their ability to innovate by 4 per cent in mere six month time period, as it became essential to cope up with the threats of the external environment. It also revealed that around 78 per cent of the Indian organisations are speeding up digitalisation in a variety of ways to adapt to the new reality. Thereby launching digital products and introducing digital payments, and increasing moving towards e-commerce and automation by adapting the innovative culture in businesses. As a result, Indian companies are aiming at increasing their revenue from digital products and services to 50 per cent in the next three years from 36 per cent at present.

“Innovation is no longer an option, but a necessity. We have seen how the recent crisis has spurred the need for transformation; for organizations to adapt and innovate in order to emerge stronger,” Rajiv Sodhi, Chief Operating Officer, Microsoft India, told reporters in a virtual round-table. “We commissioned this research to gain better understanding of the relationship between having a culture of innovation and an organization’s growth. But now, more than achieving growth, we see that having a mature culture of innovation translates to resilience, and strength to withstand economic crises to recover,” he added.

Since the external environment, amid the COVID-19 outbreak, has necessitated the innovation and diversification of business operations and its products, more and more firms are looking for opportunities and areas to innovate. According to the survey, 64 per cent of respondents acknowledged that innovation has become easier in the post-COVID-19 era. Prior to the pandemic, only 32.5 per cent of Indian business found innovation in their products and services easy. The study introduced the culture of innovation framework, which spans the dimensions of people, process, data, and technology, to assess organizations’ approach to innovation.

According to the survey, as much as 45 per cent of the Indian organisations feel that their priorities for the next 12 months will be to focus on technology as most essential for business resilience and recovery. Some best practices will include developing a culture that promotes investing in disruptive technologies and leveraging data to differentiate and enhance products and services, the study said.

 

 

 

Categories
Startup

Online Gift Business: Follow These 4 Steps If You Want to Boost Sales Ahead of Christmas & New Year 2020

Gift
Gift (Photo credits: Wikimedia Commons)

Mumbai, November 24: Online gifting business is one of the most profitable business options which you can open just ahead of Christmas and New Year 2020. This is such a category, where there will be demand 365 days and the sales will also peak as the festive season approaches. This is such a business, which doesn’t require a big investment.

However, thinking of the huge competition in this space, it is very important to take care of few factors in order to stay ahead in the race.  We have listed a few steps for you to follow if you wish to boost sales ahead of Christmas and New Year.

Stock Up with good products: Create a good website and stock up with essential products. The festive occasions should be properly highlighted and gifts around those specific days should be arranged for.

Marketing strategy: Once you have a good stock, it is important to market it so that customers will come to know about it. Be regular with social media marketing, update at least thrice a week. Whenever you add a new product, inform your customers about it. The website should also be updated with the latest products.

Product Delivery: Pay attention to product delivery. In today’s age and day, hire a good delivery partner who will ensure that your product will reach in the safe hands of the customers.

Customer Relation: Remember, you are in the servicing industry. The topmost priority should be to make the customers happy and leave a good impression on their mind. If customers have complaints, then address it and don’t sit over it. You should make them feel special and be humanely in your approach.

Customers are not only spending their money but also their time in buying your product. So it is your responsibility to see that they have a fruitful shopping experience. In today’s digital age, customers share their experience in a jiffy on social media, be it good or bad.

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MSME

Here Are 3 Major Roadblocks on the Path of Indian MSMEs’ Road to Digital Transformation

Digital Transformation
Digital Transformation (Photo Credits: Pxfuel)

New Delhi, November 24: Indian MSMEs realised the importance of digitisation amid the coronavirus crisis. Infact, digitisation opened the gates for many local businesses and helped them strengthen their operations and cope better with stressful times.

However, there are some roadblocks on the path of Indian MSMEs which needs to be cleared to achieve success.

Limited growth capital: MSMEs have limited growth capital that makes technology adoption and digital transformation demanding.

Expensive: Digitisation is an expensive affair, from buying the latest smart devices, strong internet services, to getting skilled employees to manage the system.

Unaware of digital impact: Indian MSMEs are still unaware of digitisation and they fail to create customer loyalty and retention.

India’s micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprise sector is a vital contributor to the country’s growth story. According to a 2019 study conducted by YES Bank, it revealed that over 50 percent of digitally-empowered MSMEs improved their profits, operational efficiencies, as well as customer engagement. In addition to this, the Narendra Modi government has pushed out several initiatives to boost the sector.

MSMEs are not alone in their journey to digitisation, e-commerce companies like Amazon and Flipkart to corporates like Mastercard all have been doling out initiatives to help the MSME sector. Also, several startups like Khatabook, FarEye, Udaan, and others are dolling out several initiatives to help MSMEs in the digitisation journey.