Tag: Indian Startups

Categories
Startup Technology

Humsafar, an App-Based Doorstep Diesel Delivery Service Provider, To Help Startups Become ‘Fuel Enterprises’

Fuel (Photo Credits: Pexels)

New Delhi, September 15: Humsafar, an app-based doorstep diesel delivery service provider has introduced its support services to help aspiring fuel entrepreneurs. This unique opportunity will help the startups to be a part of one of the biggest disruptions in terms of fuel marketing in the Oil industry – Diesel Door Delivery (DDD). According to a report by IANS, Humsafar plans project support from scratch to complete fruition to new start-ups of doorstep diesel delivery. The plan includes setting up a company, fabricating bowsers, (oil dispensing vehicles) and setting up a tech platform for delivery of diesel at doorsteps in various parts of the country.

Sanya Goel, Co-Founder and Director, Humsafar was quoted in the report saying that Humsafar also helps start-ups market the service in the industry by partnering with other dealers and acquiring new customers.The opportunity the Doorstep Diesel industry provides is enormous, offering safe and legal alternatives to fuel procurement.

About Humsafar App:

  1. In less than four months, the Humsafar app, ‘Fuel Humsafar’, has crossed over 10,000 downloads on Google Play Store and has processed 20,000 transactions.
  2. The app has been customised to help clients and vendors manage their orders, drivers, tracking of the bowser, checking fuel capacity, stock management, advanced MIS.
  3. The report informs that Humsafar also offers a dedicated app, just for the Drivers, which allows them to track the user’s location, check orders, review order history, and manage stock, which in turn allows the vendor to view the driver’s performance and delivery status from time-to-time.
  4. Humsafar is currently servicing 24 states across India. The startup has also roped in 50 plus retail partners across 24 states.
  5. Humsafar is also looking to raise its first external investment and plans to launch B2C ordering by the end of 2020.

The mobile bowsers, popularly known as dispensing vehicles, are expected to supplement petrol pumps, changing the landscape of fuel procurement. Goel added saying that it’s great to see that most of their applications have been from the younger generation which speaks volumes of the entrepreneurial spirt among the youth.

The gross revenues of the startup stood at Rs 22 million in the year 2019-20, and by the end of 2021, Humsafar plans on targeting diesel delivery of 500 million litres. This will translate into a revenue of Rs 100 million.

Categories
Startup Technology

‘Grow With Google’, a New Online Programme Launched by Google to Help SMBs Build Digital Safety Net Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

Google (Photo Credits: Unsplash)

Tech giant Google has introduced a new online programme to help business owners learn how to build an online presence, find more customers, sell online or work remotely. This is being done amid the coronavirus pandemic to help business that digital tools can provide a safety net for small businesses. The new ‘Grow with Google’ lessons that have been included in the programme can vary from two-minute tutorial videos to live workshops. It can range from beginner level to advanced, so every business can find what they need to become more prepared.

According to a report by IANS, the programme was announced after a report this week showed how a ‘digital safety net’ can serve as a support system for small businesses and helps to mitigate the negative business effects of COVID-19. A report by non-profit Connected Commerce Council in partnership with Google stated that practically all small businesses in the US were disrupted by the pandemic, facing reduced customer demand and hours of operations as well as employee layoffs. 85% of small businesses said COVID-19 made them rethink their approach to digital tools, allowing them to adapt.

The study further revealed that businesses that had a digital safety net in place and used a variety of digital tools — like digital ads, digital payments, data analytics and customer insights tools — felt better prepared. However, not all small- and medium-sized businesses have a digital safety net. The new ‘Grow with Google’ lessons are designed to serve the interest of these businesses.

Here’s How ‘Grow With Google’ Will help SMBs:

  1. Google has introduced a new programme called ‘Grow With Google’ on the ‘Google for Small Business website’. Click here for direct link.
  2. Grow with Google is partnering with SCORE, a network of volunteer, expert business mentors, and non-profit International Downtown Association (iDA) to complete a series of affordable and easily accessible Grow with Google workshops for 50,000 small businesses across the US.
  3. Business owners can find personalised Google product recommendations for their business, as well as helpful tips and practical guides to help small businesses get the most of these tools
Categories
Startup

Startup Ranking 2019: Gujarat, Andaman & Nicobar Islands Emerge As Best Performers in Implementing Policies to Uplift Startup Ecosystem

Startups (Photo Credits: Unsplash)

Gujarat has been named as the best performing state by the government in terms of implementing policies for uplifting the startup ecosystem.  While Gujarat was the best performing state, Andaman & Nicobar Islands was adjudged as the best performer amongst Union Territory and North Eastern states. On Friday, the ‘Startup Ranking’ framework 2019 judged states and Union Territories on seven broad reform area, consisting of 30 action points.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said that to establish uniformity and ensure standardisation in the ranking process, ‘States and UTs’ have been divided into two groups. “While UTs except Delhi and all States in North East India except Assam are placed in Category ‘Y’. All other States and UT of Delhi are in Category ‘X’”, the statement read.

While releasing the result of the second edition of ‘Ranking of States on Support to Startup Ecosystems’ through a virtual felicitation ceremony, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal called upon the high networth individuals, venture capitalists to finance ‘Startups’. During his address, Goyal said that the COVID-19 pandemic should not be seen as a problem or challenge but as an opportunity to reimagine and reinvigorate India. The Minister recommended that ‘Startups’ should come up with imaginative, relevant and innovative products, undertake reengineering and reform of processes, and orient their ideas to be people-centric.

 

Categories
Startup

Starting Up a Business: 5 Things Young Entrepreneurs Should Know to Make Their Business a Success

Entrepreneur (Photo Credits: Unsplash)

It might seem hard to start to a business, but when the entrepreneurial project gets going, the brain behind it rejoices. However, in order to make your business a success, there are several things that you need to consider before you start your business. Young entrepreneur venturing into a new business, keep looking for ways and means to help them achieve their goals. Young entrepreneurs are at an age where they need a platform to prove their caliber. They want to run something of their own, create more job opportunities and be a part of the growing India.

Here Are 5 Things That Young Entrepreneurs Ought to Keep in Mind:

  1. Know your product: The first important thing before starting any business is that the entrepreneur should know in and out about his product. He should first, himself, know what is product is all about, how well he can pitch about it in the market, what is the demand of the product, and so many other related questions. A young individual will always know what is in trend and things that work in a market.
  2. Know your market: Understand who your target audience is! Before starting up a business, a young entrepreneur should very well understand what the need of the hour. Of course, there are other competitors in the market, so a beginner should consider all the risk factors before venturing into something new.
  3. Do what you love: Take your time and understand what you love. Let your passion be the driver for your product or service, which will always keep you motivated and get you going through the tough times. Before starting up a business, one should think with a calm mind as to what one loves because when you work on something that you actually care and love, you’ll probably be happy and make the idea a reality.
  4. Find a mentor: No matter how intelligent you are, you may falter! Hence, it becomes really important to find a mentor who can guide you and let you know when you go wrong. Find someone who can open your mind and share your ideas with. Surely, your ideas will be shaped in a better manner which will be easier for execution.
  5. Perseverance and Patience: The most important trait of any businessman is perseverance and patience. These 2 Ps go hand-in-hand and help people to get better and win laurels in their work. Once you have thought about an idea, don’t give up and work on it until you make it a success. For young entrepreneur, it is an added advantage that they have time, even if Plan A doesn’t work, then be ready with Plan B. There might be rough moments in your entrepreneurial journey but you have to keep working towards your goal.
Categories
Startup

What is a Unicorn? Here Are 4 Ideas to Help Startups Become a $1 Billion Company

Startup
Startup (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

A unicorn is a term used in the venture capital industry to describe a privately held startup company with a value of over $1 billion. The term was coined in 2013 by venture capitalist Aileen Lee, choosing the mythical animal to represent the statistical rarity of such successful ventures.

According to Investopedia, companies with valuations of over $10 billion are sometimes referred to as decacorns.

According to the Hurun Research Institute’s Global Unicorn List 2020, India is home to 21 unicorns, valued at $73.2 billion. Paytm is India’s highest-valued unicorn, at $16 billion. Top 10 Indian unicorns make up 78 percent of the total value of unicorns, while Paytm alone claims nearly 22 percent of the total valuation share of these unicorns.

Find the right idea

The most essential work of your startup if you are aiming to become a unicorn is to find the right idea for your business. The idea has to be innovative and should have the potential to work. The idea should create a change in customer behaviour and also improve their lifestyle.

Understand the potential of your product

It is very important to understand whether your product will fit the crowded and the cluttered market and has the potential to stand out. Your product should also be attractive enough to encourage customers to pay a premium price on a regular basis.

Keep your customers in the centre 

The job of a startup is to find a solution to a problem that customers want to solve.

Recognise your weakness & Keep an eye on the competition.

Never lose sight of how the industry and competitors are evolving, especially start-ups with new and potentially disruptive ideas. If you have to succeed, along with your strength, it is also very important to identify your weakness. If you understand your gaps and imperfections, you can always make away with them. This ability defines the success of a startup.

 

Categories
Startup

MSME Schemes by Modi Government for Entrepreneur Loans

You have brainstormed on the business idea, have your plan, have done your research work, and now want to start executing it. The hurdle you face at first is the lack of financial backing. One of the most necessary components of any successful start-up is the capital. We encounter entrepreneurs struggling with one obvious question, how to fund their start-up.

We are here with a solution to this problem. We realize it is tough to get a loan for a start-up, but it’s not impossible after all. With many government policies accessible to MSMEs and start-ups, you can climb this hurdle and reach your destination.

Here is a list of various Government Schemes which are surely advantageous for your start-up and can assist you to take the idea off the ground.

Stand-up India
The Stand – Up India strategy was launched in 2016 for financial assistance to SC/ST and Women entrepreneurs. It aids bank loans starting from Rs 10 Lakh to Rs 1 Crore. This option is available for domains of manufacturing, services, or trading.

One of the benefits of this scheme is that the loan amount will cover 75 percent of the total venture cost. The entrepreneur is supposed to bear a minimum of 10 percent of the total project cost as Stand – Up India Loan Scheme. Stand Up Scheme will be administered via the banks and to get the loan you will require collateral or a CGFSIL (Credit Guarantee Fund Scheme for Stand-Up India Loans)

Bank Credit Facilitation Scheme
For satisfying the credit requirements of small and medium-size industries, the NSIC has approved a memorandum of harmony with various national and private banks in India. This scheme proposes to provide various MSMEs with credit support.

This scheme offers unsecured loan facilities to the MSME business. They can avail terms of loans or working capital loans under this scheme, and it will be collateral-free or need of the third-party guarantee for availing credit.

Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana
Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) is contributing support to the MSME sector, which includes manufacturing units, food service, and small industries, including allied agricultural activities. PMMY scheme was launched in the year 2015, under various categories such as Shishu, Kishor, and Tarun. The maximum amount of loan that could be taken ranges from Rs 50,000 and Rs 10 lakhs.

To benefit from this scheme, one must be 18-year-old or above and have no defaulted loan repayment under their name. Any individual business owner could apply to this scheme, be it a private limited organization or a public sector company. Talking of the interest rate, it is nominal and varies from bank to bank.

Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGS)
The CSG scheme for MSMEs was established by the Government of India to provide them with collateral-free credit. One of the most exciting and essential features of this scheme is that it could be availed both by the existing startups and the ones that are still in the process.

The goal of the strategy is to decrease the stagnation of MSME growth, which has been adversely affected due to financial limitations. The lending is given to public, private, and foreign banks, with the regional rural banks.

You are required to analyze a few factors before applying for a business loan that works best for your start-up. Getting a business loan is not that difficult, but you need to do comparative research and figure out which financing option will work for you.
For the micro-enterprises, the government making all efforts to offer business loans to start-ups and MSMEs. We have mentioned a few schemes in the article, but there are more schemes launched by the Government for the benefit of the growth of the start-ups.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Categories
Startup

Modi Govt Launches ‘Chunauti’- Next Generation Startup Challenge Contest, to Identify Around 300 Startups in India

Startups in India (Photo Credits: Pexels)

In a bid to give a major fillip to startups in India, the government on Friday Launched ‘Chunauti’- Next Generation Startup Challenge Contest. Under this programme, the government aims to identify around 300 startups working in identified areas and provide them seed fund of up to Rs 25 lakh among other facilities.

Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad launched the contest to further boost startups and software products with special focus on Tier-II towns of India. The Startups can apply by visiting the website of STPI or by clicking at the link https://innovate.stpinext.in/

The government has earmarked a budget of Rs 95.03 Crore over a period of three years for this programme. It aims to identify around 300 startups working in identified areas and provide them seed fund of up to Rs 25 Lakh and other facilities.

Under this challenge, the Ministry of Electronics and IT will invite startups in the following areas of work:

  1. Edu-Tech, Agri-Tech & Fin-Tech Solutions for masses
  2. Supply Chain, Logistics & Transportation Management
  3. Infrastructure & Remote monitoring
  4. Medical Healthcare, Diagnostic, Preventive & Psychological Care
  5. Jobs & Skilling, Linguistic tools & technologies

How Will Chunauti Help?

  1. The startups selected through Chunauti will be provided various support from the Government through Software Technology Parks of India centers across India.
  2. They will get incubation facilities, mentorship, security testing facilities, access to venture capitalist funding, industry connect as well as advisories in legal, Human Resource (HR), IPR and Patent matters.
  3. Besides seed fund of up to Rs. 25 Lakh, the startups will also be provided cloud credits from leading cloud service providers.
  4. Start-ups who are in the ideation stage may be selected under the pre-incubation programme & mentored for up-to six months to evolve their business plan & solution around the proposed idea.
  5. Each intern (start-up under pre-incubation) will be paid Rs. 10,000/- per month up to a period of 6 months.

Speaking at a virtual event, Prasad said that the launch is a bold initiative under the clarion call for Atmanirbhar Bharat given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He urged the young, talented innovators of India to come forward and avail benefits of Chunauti challenge of Government and create new software products and app.

 

Categories
Finance Startup

Why Do Investors Invest in Startups? Here’s How Investors Add Value to Startups and Help Entrepreneurs

Startups and Investors (Photo Credits: Pexels)

For any business to flourish, there needs to be good investment and planning that will help the firm reach its target audience and go beyond! Here’s where the role of an investor comes into picture. An investor puts capital to use for long-term gains, while an entrepreneur seeks to generate profits by using those funds. Thus an investor is a crucial aspect for any startup, who typically generates returns by deploying capital. Investing in startups is a risky proposition. However, the low requirement for overhead capital along with high upside potential, makes it lucrative for the investors to put their bets on startups.

Basically, an investor is a person that allocates capital with the expectation of a future financial return or to gain an advantage. An investor can choose to invest in-equity, debt securities, real estate, currency, commodity, token, derivatives such as put and call options, futures, etc.

According to the official website of Startup India- startupindia.gov.in, investors particularly venture capitalists (VCs) add value to startups in a lot of ways. Some of them are listed below:

  1. Stakeholder Management: The investors are the ones who manage the company board and leadership to facilitate smooth operations of the startup. Moreover, their functional experience and domain knowledge of working and investing with startups imparts vision and direction to the company.
  2. Raise Funds: Investors are best guides for the startup as they help to raise subsequent rounds of funding on the basis of stage, maturity, sector focus etc. The investors aid in networking and connection for the founders to pitch their business to other investors.
  3. Recruiting The Best to Achieve Business Goals: Finding great talent and best-fit human capital is critical for startups, especially when it comes to recruiting senior executives to manage and drive business goals. The venture capitalists, with their extensive network can help bridge the talent gap by recruiting the right set of people at the right time.
  4. Proper Marketing of the product: The venture capitalists (VCs) assist with marketing strategy for your product/service.
  5. Merger and Acquisition (M&A) Activity: VCs have their eyes and ears open to merger and acquisition opportunities in the local entrepreneurial ecosystem to enable greater value addition to the business through inorganic growth.
  6. Organizational Restructuring:As a young startup grows to an established company, they help with the right organizational structuring and introduce processes to increase capital efficiency, lower costs and scale efficiently.
Categories
Business motivation Startup

PM Narendra Modi Urges Indian Startups to Focus on Innovation in Toy Sector, Suggests Them to Find Ways to Boost Manufacturing And Global Footprints of Indian Toys

Toys
Toys (Representational Image) (Photo Credits: Piqsels)

New Delhi, August 24: Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged Indian startups to produce indigenous toys that not only have cultural connect but also helps in building life-skills and psychomotor skills among children at an early age. In PM Modi’s latest Aatma Nirbhar push, he urged the startups to not only innovate in this sector but also find ways to boost manufacturing and global imprint of Indian toys.

In a Twitter thread, PM Modi said, “I urge start-ups and youngsters to focus on innovations in the toys sector.” He further suggested educational institutions to organise hackathons for students to “innovate in toy technology and design, including online games, to reflect Indian ethos and values.”

PM Modi highlighted that the Indian toy market has huge potential and can bring a transformative change in the industry by promoting ‘Vocal for Local’ under the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat campaign.

He further suggested using tourism as a tool to promote India’s culture especially in regions that are known for handcrafted toys. PM Modi further stressed on the fast-growing digital gaming arena, Prime Minister said India should tap the huge potential in this area and lead the international digital gaming sector by developing games that are inspired by Indian culture and folk tales.

Categories
Startup

What is a Startup? How Do Investors Add Value To Startups? All You Need To Know

Startups | Representational Image (Photo Credits: Pexels)

India is now becoming the world’s fastest growing startup ecosystem. In order to understand a startup ecosystem, one needs to know what a startup means! A startup is a young company that is usually founded by one or more entrepreneurs to develop a new and unique product. These entrepreneurs launch a service and bring it to market for people to use and benefit out of it. Startup, as the name suggests, begins with initial funding from the founders, their friends, families, relatives, among others.

Startups are becoming very popular in India. A start-up is basically a company or project begun by an entrepreneur to seek, develop, and validate a scalable business model. Startups face high uncertainty but some of them do go on to be successful and influential and become unicorns. The startup process can take a really long period of time and can go up to years to be successful. Hence, sustaining effort is required.

Over the long term, sustaining effort is especially challenging because of the high failure rates and uncertain outcomes. One needs to understand the basic concept that an entrepreneur is an individual while startup is an entrepreneurial team, and needs to work accordingly to achieve the desired goals.

How do Investors add value to Startups?

According to Startup India Portal, which is India’s largest online entrepreneurship, the investors, particularly venture capitalists (VCs) add value to startups in a number of ways. The Startup India Portal platform allows startups to network, access free tools & resources and participate in programs & challenges.

  1. Stakeholder Management: Investors play a key role in building up the startup. They help by managing the company board and leadership to facilitate smooth operations of the newly started firm. In addition, their functional experience and domain knowledge of working and investing with startups imparts vision and direction to the company.
  2. Raising Funds: Investors are best guides for the startup to raise subsequent rounds of funding on the basis of stage, maturity, sector focus etc. and aid in networking and connection for the founders to pitch their business to other investors.
  3. Recruiting Right set of people: Sourcing high-quality and best-fit human capital is critical for startups, especially when it comes to recruiting senior executives to manage and drive business goals. The venture capitalists, with their extensive network can help bridge the talent gap by recruiting the right set of people at the right time.
  4. Proper Marketing of the Product: VCs assist with marketing strategy for your product/service.
  5. Merger and acquisition opportunities: The venture capitalists should be alert about the merger and acquisition opportunities in the local entrepreneurial ecosystem to enable greater value addition to the business through inorganic growth.
  6. Organizational Restructuring: As a young startup matures into an full-fledged established company, the venture capitalists help with the right organizational structuring and introduce processes to increase capital efficiency, lower costs and scale efficiently.

In India, the Government, under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi, has started and promoted Startup India initiative to recognize and promote startups. This initiate is aimed to develop Indian economy and attract talented entrepreneurs.