Author: Smr123

Data: Solo Startups do Better Globally

The common perception is that a startup benefits from having at least two founders. A single geeky founder may ignore the business side, while one who’s good with business may tend to miss the importance of technology. So a combination of the two is often seen as ideal.

But that’s just a perception. CrunchBase, the online startup database, finds that single-founder companies do at least as good as, if not better than, multi-founder ones.
Of 7,348 global startups that have raised more than $10 million each in funding, 46% were ventures started by single entrepreneurs, says the San Francisco-based research firm. About 32% had two founders. The average number of founders in these successful startups is 1.8. CrunchBase also find that of the 6,191 ventures that secured some sort of an exit -through mergers and acquisitions, or sales -more than 50% were companies with a single founder. TOI could not obtain a large sample for In dia. Of the top ten funded startups in the country, startup analytics firm Tracxn found that three companies -Paytm, Hike and Ibibo -have a single founder.

Five companies, including Flipkart, Snapdeal and Ola, have two founders each, and only two have three founders or more.
Some might explain the difference between the global and Indian environments to the greater maturity of startups in places like Silicon Valley. Many who start up in mature locations may be doing their second or third venture and so have good insights into both business and technology. Perhaps the ecosystem itself ingrains the two aspects into entrepreneurs.

“The confidence that single-founder companies (in India) can scale has come only recently,” says Karthik Reddy, managing partner at Blume Ventures, a venture fund which invests in earlystage startups. He says Blume has struggled with single founders. “It’s not just us. The company faces the same question for the next funding round they raise. That’s why we look for a strong founder with a broader team,” he says. Norwest Venture Partners, which has invested in two-founder ventures like Quikr, BlueJeans and Pepperfry, says it’s difficult to generalize. “Google, Apple, Microsoft were all built by companies with two founders. In India, Infosys was built by many founders. Many may raise funding but if you want a resounding success, you need more than one founder. In a single-founder company, the whole burden falls on one person,” says Mohan Kumar, executive director at NVP India.

He notes that the chances of companies with two or more founders doing well increase when the startup goes through a rough patch. That worked well for Bengaluru-based self-rental car service Zoomcar, which was started by the American duo Greg Moran and David Back. Early last year, Back decided to leave the company for personal reasons and Moran was left holding the reins.

Source :- http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/Data-Solo-startups-do-better-globally/articleshow/53954216.cms

Startup India Consultants Help To Make Wise Investment Options for Startups

Start Up season is on the air. There were 61000 new Start Up opened in 2015. Now, if you are also looking for a Start Up in India – Startup India Consultants is the right place. We are gateway to a start-up world of India. We provide you information about the available investments and funds in India. Startup India Consultants is place where investors meet us with their business idea or start-up ideas and we provide them assistance for startup mentoring. Our professionals help you to build new teams and networks to transform investment ideas into transformational services as well as products. We help you to grow the value of your startup and to present commercially sustainable ways for investments. We also have network of different areas of expertise who help you for better investment plans:

Finance, Marketing, Legal, Banking. We assist young entrepreneurs for great investment opportunities for better ROI. Whilst Startup India Consultants have made every effort to seek complete accuracy in investment service. We have a great network of experienced founders and entrepreneurs who have the ability to think, develop and suggest the great solutions for investment. We Startup India Consultants India based network to specializing in investment opportunities.

Our professionals help to get clients start-up seen and known investment communities to get business up and running. We provide and facilitate the ideal key to connecting investment professionals with startup investment inside India. We are a dedicated team with the unique combination of skill sets and investment operation of establishing a successful business. We stand behind the entrepreneur supporting them through the early stage of the Start-Ups. Startup India Consultants have the ability to search better investment options for our clients for their long-term success.

Startup Financial Services Help You Run Business Activities in a Wonderful Way

Entrepreneurs with great potential keep coming in the market to prove a tough challenge for great brands. But, most of them take the step back very early because of lack of financial services. This constraint is not going to stop your way if having an excellent idea to execute. Just reach us and get ready to put your best foot forward in order to scale the new heights in business world. You will be delighted to know that we are a reliable and genuine seed stage startup accelerator that always welcome ambitious businessmen to make a grand mark with the innovative business plan.

Just come to us once and experience our helpfulness in a confident manner. Future leaders essentially need to know that our Startup Financial Services are made with intelligence to suit your idea better therefore be assured of living the dreams in a hassle-free way. Our sole motto is to encourage the brilliant minds so that they can make people’s lives easy and comfortable on various terms as well as contribute outstandingly in country’s economy growth. However, it is sure that we keep eagle eye watch on your every move to ensure that everything is going fine and money is not draining in wrong way.

So, it is advised to maintain a clean & clear record as we can easily assess your performance and decisions. Never doubt our Startup Financial Services on any ground. We are committed and dedicated to help blooming buds in the best possible manner. In pursuit of this goal, we have taken approval and certification from all regulating authorities. Top notch experts suggest to take the early steps because it is the most popular saying in business world that “Early You Start Better Result You Get” to leave the competitors behind. Of course, one right decision in life changes the way of living while adding new convenience and respect in life.

Therefore, you are supposed to not delay in the matter. Obviously, you will make the way to success tougher with the delay. On the other hand, timely decision with intelligence must make a true epitome for the commendable success story. For ambitious people, we also provide additional help with expertise. Just because of this positive aspect, you gain more confidence to set new benchmarks in the business world. So, leave all kinds of anxieties behind and see yourself growing in a smooth way with our financial services.

India’s Startup Success Comes Down To 25 Years Of Bold Economic Reforms

On Aug 15, 2016 India celebrated its Independence Day. It was an opportune day to ponder over the progress made by the seventh largest and second most populated nation in the world. During this introspection the author realized that the nation’s economic progress, especially the startups, would not have been possible without the momentum established by the 1991 economic reforms that brought freedom from the bonds of license raj, and gave direction to India’s economic growth story.

Until the 1991 budget, over 90% of the system was controlled by the state, free economy was non-existent and entrepreneurs found it extremely difficult to get clearances from the government in order to pursue their startup dreams. Rather than pragmatic action that was taken to stir up entrepreneurship and help founders of startups, the first set of reforms were implemented under compulsion, in order to avert a financial crisis and meltdown. The government was facing a fiscal and current account deficit. The oil shock of 1990-91 meant that India was paying more for the fuel, with exports falling. Despite borrowing from the IMF in that very year, India’s foreign exchange reserves had nearly disappeared, with just about enough dollars to meet the next three weeks of payments. There was a strong possibility of India defaulting on its international debt obligations. In order to pay its dues, reforms were kicked off with a three pronged strategy:

1. Fiscal Correction and Trade Policy Reforms – The food and petroleum subsidies were cut and fertilizer prices were raised by 40%. Import and excise duties were reduced. Rupee was devalued in two stages and controls on exports were eased.

2. Industrial Policy Reforms – Monopolies Restrictive and Trade Policies Commission (MRTPC) Act was repealed. Industrial licensing was abolished in all but 18 sensitive industries. Measures were taken to promote investments and competitiveness in domestic industries.

3. Public Sector Reforms – The banking sector was opened to participation by private sector. Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) was converted into a statutory body and the office of Controller of Capital Issues was abolished. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was given a more autonomous role in setting the interest rates and monitoring the money supply in the country.

The reforms enabled entrepreneurs to dream, to grow their nascent enterprises, to start organizations by exploring new sectors. Recalling those days, Uday Kotak, the chairman of Kotak Mahindra Bank, says:

I remember how, for days after the announcement, over long telephone calls on the landline, we analyzed every single element of the announcement: what it meant for the country, how industries would benefit, development of private sector, etc. When the significance of the announcement sunk in, that is when we realized how India as a nation was ready to take off.

Narayana Murthy, founder of India’s second largest software company Infosys, remembers that, “Once licensing was abolished, it allowed companies to make decisions in their boardrooms rather than in the corridors of North Block.”
As a result of the reforms, Sunil Mittal started the third largest mobile operator in the world – Bharti Airtel – and Subhash Chandra founded the Zee Television Network. By opening up India’s closed economy there was an increased sense of competition, and subsequently multinational corporations also entered the fray. Over a period of time homegrown startups such as BPL, VIDEOCON and Parle were competing with corporations such as Samsung, Sony and Coke/Pepsi. Although few of them survived to grow into large organizations, the first batch of homegrown Indian enterprises formed the key source of inspiration for founders in subsequent years.

After reforms brought success, and governments became bolder in maintaining the momentum of change. From 1999 to 2005, SEBI was made the single point nodal agency for guidelines and Indian firms were encouraged to acquire foreign corporations. Foreign portfolio investment for Indian companies was made more flexible with 74% foreign direct investment allowed in banking, telecom and 49% in civil aviation. As a result prominent Indian companies such as TATA acquired Jaguar, Land Rover and Tetley Tea in Britain. It also led to the emergence of new enterprises in the Indian aviation sector. According to Captain Gopinath, founder of India’s first low cost airline, Air Deccan: “Reforms take time to percolate down. The new middle class was emerging and so were people’s aspirations. I realized it’s not a country of 1 billion hungry people, but a country of 1 billion hungry consumers.”

Feeling empowered and confident of market conditions created by such policy measures, the timing from 2005 to 2016 was perfect for commencement of a startup revolution in India. Says Sachin Bansal, who started Flipkart, India’s biggest unicorn and e-commerce company,

When we started Flipkart in 2007, we began small by selling books. But we always had the goal of creating a consumer internet company that will be at par with the best in the world. This dream would not have been possible in a pre-liberalized India. Flipkart, I believe, is truly a child of liberalization.

More than twenty five years after initiation of liberalization, even though India finds itself ranked at 130th in “ease of doing business” by the World Bank, it must be remembered that Indian entrepreneurs’ endeavors have resulted in nine unicorns and the third largest startup ecosystem in the world. On 17 Aug 2016 Hike messenger has been valued at more than $1.4 billion and has joined the list of unicorns. The government has further introduced policy changes such as 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in food retail, civil aviation and 74% in private security agency and pharmaceutical businesses, a new e-commerce policy to govern online retailers, and GST (Goods and Services Tax). As a result more than 50% of Indian entrepreneurs feel that now is the best time to start and run a company in this country.

Source from: http://www.forbes.com/sites/krnkashyap/2016/08/23/indias-startup-success-comes-down-to-25-years-of-bold-economic-reform/#1ec974095c26

ONGC joins the brigade of ‘Startup India’, sets up Rs 100-cr fund for startups

State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) recently said it has set up a Rs 100-crore startup fund to nurture new ideas related to the sector in New Delhi.

The initiative, christened ‘ONGC Startup’, is in line with the Government of India’s ‘Startup India’ initiative, the company said in a statement.

As part of this initiative, ONGC will provide the entire support chain for startups including seed capital, hand-holding, mentoring market linkage, and follow-ups.

The aim of ‘ONGC Startup’ is to increase the contribution of fresh implementable ideas in the oil and gas sector. ONGC is setting up a dedicated website to take this initiative forward, it said.

ONGC Chairman and Managing Director Dinesh K Sarraf said that this initiative will promote entrepreneurship among young Indians by creating an ecosystem that is conducive for the growth of startups in the oil and gas sector, which has huge potential for technology-enabled ideas.

The oil and gas sector, he said, is contributing enormously to the growth of economy. Currently, the sector faces various critical challenges and new ideas are required to mitigate those challenges. To encourage its own employees to innovate, ONGC also awarded three of its young officers Rajendra Bhambhu, Deepak Naik, and Prajesh Chopra, for their novel ideas.

Bhambhu and Naik developed an innovative safety device for rigs that facilitates setting up of emergency brakes to augment safety mechanism on drilling rigs. Chopra innovated a unique Dual SIM Cellular Router System that provides data connectivity at work-over rigs. This system curtails the hassle of frequent dismantling and reinstallation during rig transportation, thus saving time and money.

ONGC is headquartered in Dehradun,Uttarakhand. It is a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) of the Government of India, under the administrative control of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. It produces around 77 percent of India’s crude oil (equivalent to around 30 percent of the country’s total demand) and around 62 percent of its natural gas.

Are you a startup working in the technology space and looking to engage in a comprehensive startup ecosystem? Or a mature startup that has developed< a successful product and looking to pitch it against your peers? Then this is the space for you.

Source:https://yourstory.com/2016/08/ongc-to-fund-startups/

Karnataka startup cell gets 600 applications in 1 week for India’s first multi-sector startup fund — IT minister Priyank Kharge

Karnataka’s new Information Technology Minister Priyank Kharge is a man on a mission. In the few weeks since he took charge of the portfolio, he has taken several steps to ensure that the startup landscape is buzzing, and the changes are already evident.For starters, within a week of his announcing version 2.0 of the state’s startup policy, the Karnataka Startup Cell witnessed a record 600 registrations, compared to just 40 registrations that it received in the last two-and-a-half years.

In an exclusive interview with Your Story, he said,

“The government seemed inaccessible and we want to change that perception. We will ensure that the ecosystem is abuzz with activity. With that in mind, we opened up the system from our side with the startup cell. On July 25, we introduced a booster kit in which we have clearly stated what benefits startups would get once they register with us. We have also showcased our abilities, the help that the cell can provide, the partners who are on board and what kind of mentorship one can expect.”

Within a week of introducing the ‘booster kit’, as the startup-savvy Kharge terms the initiative, the cell received the 600 registrations, and applications are still pouring in at www.startup.karnataka.gov.in. Kharge has already indicated that each workable idea would receive up to Rs 50 lakh.

“This is India’s first multi-sectoral startup fund for which Rs 400 crore has been set aside. Startups that get government funding need not necessarily sit at the state-sponsored incubation centres — they can opt to work from anywhere, including from the comfort of their homes. This is a first. We are also not asking for any equity! No state government has provided this,” says the young minister enthusiastically.

“We have opened up the whole sector. There are many firsts. What we have done in a short time of five weeks cannot even compare with what the Centre or other states have done for startups. Karnataka is way ahead on several initiatives. We are taking startups everywhere — all across Karnataka. We have startups that have applied for funds in every conceivable sector — from health to education, from tourism to agriculture, and we also have earmarked separate funds for women entrepreneurs and those from the underprivileged classes,’’ Kharge says.

The Karnataka Startup Cell is targeting to support 20,000 startups in next 3 years. Of these 6,000 are expected to be product startups. According to him, there is a lot of action happening in Karnataka, which has always been the pioneer in IT, and Bengaluru has established itself as the startup capital of the country.

My mission is to amplify the good work done so far by being hands-on. I am making a conscious effort to reinforce Bengaluru as a startup capital and help it break into the top 10 globally.

Bengaluru is the only Indian city to be ranked amongst the best 15 startup ecosystems across the world.

In a major fillip to the sector, the department is also expecting to raise Rs 2,000 crore over the next two years. In this scheme of things, the Central Government is nowhere in the picture as the State has not asked for Central funding. “If they allocate any funds for startups, it is good and will be the icing on the cake. But we have no plans to approach them as I am trying to raise money in small but creative ways,’’ Kharge said.

Kharge has written to all other Karnataka ministers to allocate Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 2 crore for startups that will help their departments with technology. To allay their fears and as an assurance, he says that as State Tourism minister he has set aside Rs 2.5 crore to fund startups in this sector. He has already received a good response from ministers,several of whom were willing to set aside funds as the sum requested is not huge. This will have an amazing social effect on startups in the State, he added.

The Karnataka government has also partnered with top companies to provide startups with storage and broadband facilities at very low costs.

We are not doling out any funds. It is all to do with eligibility and all of it is on the website. There have to be approvals, from the idea to the proof-of-concept, which we will validate before funding any startup. Apart from helping (startups) with papers, registration, legal and accounting services, we also help them with data storage which has become very expensive.

For cloud services, the government has partnered with IBM, Digital Ocean, Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Bizspark, and KEONICS. For providing virtual telephony and internet services, mGage, Knowlarity, Exotel, Ozonetel, BSNL, Vodafone, and Airtel are partnering with the cell. For debugging, testing and other software tools, CanvasFlip, FlexingIT, Headspin, and Erospike have come on board, according to Kharge.

Payment gateways such as Citrus, Razorpay, Instamojo, and ProfitBooks are also partners in the initiative. All these services will be available as a special package and at the lowest cost to the startups in Karnataka.

The government is also willing to provide access to government departments as some startups require field trials and conduct pilot studies. Already, a healthcare startup has been given access to primary, secondary and district healthcare centres and an agri startup has been allowed access to a four-acre plot to conduct field trials using drones.

If the trials and pilots are successful, Kharge says the government itself would be interested in buying what these startups have to offer. He points out,

Governments are the largest consumers, and once Karnataka buys these products or adopts these innovations, other state governments will also do the same. These startups will have a ready clientele by the time they are a full-fledged company. Nowhere else would one find such facilities in other states nor has the Centre come up with any such programmes.

source:https://yourstory.com/2016/08/karnataka-startup-cell-priyank-kharge/