๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ #Singapore in peak bustle on a Thursday!

HEX's TENTH Singapore cohort of founders took the stage and pitched their businesses yesterday evening. One of the memorable demos was EduKate, promoting STEM education for girls through dolls ๐Ÿ‘ง๐Ÿผโ™€๏ธPleasant surprise to bump into Remi and Benedict who were the judges, and hella proud of Jaclyn Benstead and Shirley Pham who led this program and made it epic!

Worlds colliding ๐ŸŒ๐Ÿ’ฅ when Jodie meets Mihaela meets HEX! The startup ecosystem welcomes everyone โ€“ innovators from all walks๐Ÿšถ๐Ÿผโ€โ™€๏ธ๐Ÿšถ๐Ÿปโ€โ™‚๏ธ๐Ÿšถ (for context: Jodie is an excellent UX researcher/designer and Mihaela is working on her phD in financial inclusion +ย 

I missed Accelerating Asia Ventures's demo day this week and the FOMO got to me ๐Ÿ˜ข but I'm truly glad that everyone passes through the Draper Startup House HQ whenever they're in town... (๐Ÿ‘‹๐Ÿฝ hi Amra ๐Ÿฅฒ)

Paying for beer in Singapore with #India rupees ๐Ÿป๐Ÿ’ฐ I'm grateful for this fellow globetrotting buddy Ibrahim who recently passed through Hyderabad, and exchanging notes and insights on the city!

It's been an epic two weeks in Singapore; I'm happy to be home! ...If you think I'm taking off soon, you guessed right ๐Ÿ˜‰

๐Ÿ”œ NEXT STOP #HYDERABAD ๐Ÿ”ฅ๐Ÿš€

I'll be around for a month(ish), excited to CONNECT with the entrepreneurs, founders, investors, operators, and the startup community and learn from everyone ๐Ÿคฉย 

ASK: Who should I meet / grab chai with? ๐Ÿ‘€
I had an amazing Saturday evening at my second visit to the eChai Ventures venture hosted by Yash Shah bhai IIMA Ventures ! The meeting was structured crisply and clearly, starting and ending on time. ๐Ÿ˜Šย 

Many startup enthusiasts were present, grappling with the dilemma of pursuing a job or starting their own venture. The fear of financial security often looms large, with thoughts of placement and fixed salary cheques tempting many students. Reflecting on my own journey, I believe that while no timing is perfect, starting early towards your goals is key.ย 

Viraj Rajani did a great job as a cohost, asking really good questions that young entrepreneurs could relate to.

For those already embarked on their entrepreneurial journey, decisions around funding, exits, target audience, and sustainability are paramount. The importance of cofounders was emphasized, along with the necessity of differentiation in the market. Simply lowering prices isn't enough; offering additional value and services can set you apart.ย 

Yash bhai eloquently articulated this point, which resonated deeply with me. It reminded me of my own experiences; newcomers needn't slash fees but should focus on delivering exceptional service. Lowering fees may attract clients initially, but loyalty isn't guaranteed. ๐Ÿ’ผย 

The session was highly interactive, with various startups pitching ideas ranging from loan-related ventures SarvDhan to e-waste collection and website analytics Heatmaphero . It was a valuable opportunity to learn from seasoned founders and exchange knowledge.ย 

My purpose in attending was to connect with people, learn about their ideas, and gain insights into navigating the business landscape. Thanks to Yash bhai for hosting such a wonderful eventโ€”I'm glad I attended! ๐ŸŽ‰ย 

I'm excited to share my first book, 'Reschool,' a personal reflection of my 20-year journey in the world of education. ๐Ÿ“˜ It's more than just a book; it's a heartfelt conversation with my younger self, exploring the highs and lows of this incredible journey. ๐ŸŒŸ

'Reschool' sketches a vision of what New Age schooling could look like, inviting readers to dream and innovate along with me. ๐Ÿš€ As we turn each page, we embark on a journey of self-discovery and educational transformation.

๐ŸŒˆ Stay tuned for more about this exciting venture!
This laughter defines the fun time we had at the Tank!

Everyone asked us about our journey at Shark Tank India Season 3. We were the fortunate few who received an opportunity to be a part of the sought-after television show which has stolen peopleโ€™s heart since 3 seasons. Wait for it. We will be sharing our journey of the Tank Time with you all.

Meanwhile, Have a happy steaming, episode 6, Shark Tank India Season 3 @sonyliv.
Loved moderating this eChai Ventures gathering on Fundraising for Startups, with Shubham Jhuria and Dishan S Raao at Draper Startup House โค๏ธ

Quoting an attendee who shared his feedback post event, "I feel my energy is revived after attending this and knowing that there are others just like me who are hustling, building and willing to help each other grow".

P.S. We used Cards Against Work by Plum at the start of the event to have a whole lotta fun!

#Throwback

Had a fab time sharing my Shark Tank India journey at this wonderful eChai Ventures evening!

It always gives me immense joy to be able to share my learnings and lessons from building Amrutam with budding entrepreneurs and start-up enthusiasts.

I also feel grateful to be given a platform to talk about crucial topics that are not spoken enough about, like mental health and female representation in business.

Learned a lot from my fellow Shark Tank founders Dhruv Soni Arun Agarwal Priyank Jain and Saif Shaikh :)
Had a blast at eChai's National Startup Day Bash in Bengaluru yesterday! ๐ŸŽ‰ Big thanks to eChai Ventures, Jatin Chaudhary, and our awesome panelists - Karan Bahadur, Himanshu Upreti, and Mrinal Rai. ๐Ÿš€

Draper was buzzing with energy! ๐ŸŒŸ Shoutout to everyone who joined in โ€“ you made the night unforgettable. Let's keep the startup vibes going! ๐Ÿš€โœจ #StartupFun #BengaluruNights #eChaiCelebration

Miracle Me, Draper Startup House, Ai Palette, Intugine - Logistics through Innovation, Sumit Dutta, Suranjika Mohapatra, Amrit Achipalya
And the most promising D2C start-up of the year award goes toโ€ฆ

BabyOrgano | India's First Dedicated Ayurvedic Baby Care Health and Wellness Brand.

I'm still excited about the amazing event put together by eChai Ventures and DevX.

It was filled with energy, and I was surrounded by a group of amazing entrepreneurs determined to create an impact.

The best part of the evening? Definitely get to talk with experienced entrepreneurs, especially Udit Goenka.

Our casual chat turned into a valuable lesson on effective marketing and the important details of running a successful business.

The event wasn't just about listening and learning โ€“ it was hands-on.

We played interesting games that were not only fun but also gave practical insights into solving problems creatively.
The pitch sessions taught us a lot about how to communicate effectively, and each entrepreneur had something special to share.

What really stood out was the lively and collaborative atmosphere.

It wasn't just about individual success stories; it was about creating a supportive community where ideas flowed freely.

It felt like a big brainstorming session, and I left with new perspectives on building a brand and being an entrepreneur.

Once again, big thanks to Jatin and the eChai Ventures team for making this happen!
Also, a shout-out to Umesh Uttamchandani and the DevX team for providing such a fantastic venue.ย 

They did a great job recognizing the efforts of startups and showed a real passion for creating a supportive environment for new businesses.

The event was a boost for growth, a mix of ideas, and a celebration of the entrepreneurial spirit.ย 

I'm grateful for the experience and can't wait to use what I've learned in my own entrepreneurial journey!
Some moments are captured through our eyes and stay forever in our hearts! A month ago, on the 13th November, I got the opportunity to meet and interact with a legendary football player and UNICEF Global Goodwill Ambassador, David Beckham, during the very first day of his visit to India.

I had never met a humble person like him before! A few minutes of interaction with him about ECOrrect Product and our journey, I felt very inspired. It was a precious opportunity for us.

Whenever I think about that meeting, I still get goosebumps. Thank you GUSEC and UNICEF India, for the opportunity! ๐Ÿ’šโœจ
From last weekโ€™s National Startup Day event at Draper Startup House Hyderabad - amazing conversation with Shireen, Manish Ranjan and Sai Chaitanya Kokku around building startups, challenges faced & best practices to navigate.

Continue to organise such wonderful events Jatin Chaudhary and eChai Ventures!
๐Ÿš€ Excited to share insights from my talk at eChai Startup Saturday where we delved into the heart of GTM strategy for early-stage bootstrapped startups! ๐Ÿ’ผ

๐ŸŽ™๏ธ The most burning question of the day for the panel being moderated by Gopi Krishna Gantala was: "How to plan a killer GTM strategy?"

Here's a quick breakdown of the key takeaways:

1๏ธโƒฃ Define Your Target Market/Audience: ๐Ÿ” Start by identifying who your product is for and where to find them. This crucial step shapes your messaging and content strategy.

2๏ธโƒฃ Clarify Your Primary Objective - Branding or Selling: ๐Ÿ’ฐ Determine if your focus is on building brand awareness or driving immediate sales. This decision will guide your ROI calculations and budget alignment.

3๏ธโƒฃ Craft a Long-Term Vision: ๐Ÿ”ฎ What's your grand plan for the future? Do you want to build a #lifestylebusiness or work up towards a high value #investment table. Knowing this helps build a Unique Selling Proposition (#USP) and validates your business strategy.

Remember, the magic happens when these three factors align seamlessly! โœจ

Big thanks to eChai Ventures & Jatin Chaudhary orchestrating such an incredible event, and The Headquarters for being a hospitable venue partner๐Ÿ™Œ

Gratitude to the engaged audience and fellow panelists Shreyes Manyam & Pradeep Reddy many for making this Saturday a power-packed session of learning and collaboration. ๐Ÿš€ Let's keep the momentum going! ๐Ÿ’ผ
Para as autoridades chinesas, os cristรฃos sรฃo considerados um perigo para a naรงรฃo. Chineses protestam contra o “Livro Branco”. (Captura de t...
Itโ€™s time for Ayurveda to take centre stage on Shark Tank India! ๐ŸŒฑ๐Ÿ’ฏ

Tune into Sony LIV tonight to catch us pitch #NabhiSutraโ€™s idea of healing India organically to the Sharks! ๐Ÿ˜๐Ÿ”ฅ

Stream new episodes of Shark Tank India Season 3, from Mon-Fri 10 PM, on Sony LIV.
Happy to have spoken at GeoSmart India event held in Hyderabad and share the stage with Prateek Sharma, Shikha Anand and Shantanu Sharma in the Environment and Climate Change forum.

It was a wonderful conversation around the topics of Sustainability, Net Zero Policies and Climate Action. It is heartening and encouraging to see such conversations happening all around; and so happy to join in and be a part of the solution to climate change.
It was a pleasure hosting the #ProductsGrowthMeetup at eChai Ventures.

- Incredible crowd, such a vibrant atmosphere!
- Met new product development founders
- Connected with innovative new product development founders.
- Valuable insights shared by experienced product managers.
- Met future founders back from the USA, gearing up to build in India.
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Big Thanks to Jatin for believing in me to host the event!โœจ
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Place: HustleHub
It's an event of miracle when you find Friends who are Visionaries and Founders who are Friends. But the rarest event is when you find all of it together.โœจ

Hosted an eChai Ventures Masterclass on Agri Startups with one such team of The Farm - P Ritesh Sarvesh Ghangale and @Dinesh Mandhare.

Talked about the power rural entrepreneurs can bring to the startup economy. And inspired many to start their Agri Startup.

Very interesting and insightful! One of the Houseful and Loved eChai Meetup in PCMC!

Thank You Pimpri Chinchwad Startup Incubation Centre Uday Deo and Aditya Masare for making this Masterclass Successful! ๐Ÿš€๐Ÿ’ฏ๐Ÿ’ฏโšก
It takes years of consistent faith in yourself to build a community for others for their growth ,in which you find your fulfillment.

Thank you for building eChai Ventures Jatin Chaudhary - It is truly the place to be for anyone willing to be themselves and learn - such supportive ecosystem for #startups is much appreciated.

Happy National Start Up Day to everyone who dreams of having their own enterprise one day or is a founder or co-founder or wants to be part of building an extra ordinary enterprise-each one of you is special

Gratitude to Kumar Manish Jaydip Parikh Syed Nadeem Jafri Pankaj Bhimani for being welcoming and gracious always.
Little Late Post but full of gratitude for the 2023..


It was a great opportunity for Crooze App to be the part of 40 Fitness, Health & Wellness startups cohort pitching at theย 

#FitPitch during TheFitExpo at Kolkata in first week of December.
Thanks to Aaquib Hussain and his wonderful team at FreeFlow Ventures for seamless execution and amazing experience for all of us.. and most importantly making us meet all the founders who are building to make India Fit & Healthy..
Which is by far the most difficult task for anyone.. to make people work towards their fitness and health.. and on the top of it make a sustainable business around it..
Hats off to all the amazing founders I met there - Shweta Thakur Dishita Choudhary Srishti Srivastava Swagatika Priyambada Vishal Nigam, Building WTF , Modernizing Gyms Sahil Pruthi Vipen Jain Manti Pathak Vivek Krishna Karishma Chavan Prapa G. Nilashis Roy Pratik Saraogi Amith Vir @amit k.
@Sriram G from The Whole Truth Foods

it was great catch up with amazing friends from the ecosystem Eashita Maheshwary Vasishta Chary and meeting a great team member of Crooze Deepjoy Ghosh ๐Ÿ˜Š

May the fitness startups tribe go bigger and bigger as we need many more solutions and the market the really big with pie for all โœŒ๏ธ

Learnt so much from a very inspiring talk last week!
ย 
Thank you Saurabh Garg of the famed unicorn NoBroker, for sharing your valuable guidance for how Biziverse can also accelerate towards becoming a unicorn! ๐Ÿ˜Š

Thank you very much eChai Ventures and VentureStudio for facilitating such valuable interactions!
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