Stories Startup get a billion-dollar assessment has triggered a dream of a number of entrepreneurs to throw ‘the next big idea’.
While in India the startup center is mostly centered in Metros such as Bengaluru, Mumbai etc., Tier-2 City slowly appears as an incubation center for some unique business ideas.
In an interview to Toi, Deepak Menengaran, the founder of the Lemon School of Entrepreneurship, said Startup grew in Nagpur at a fast speed but investor base to support the initial funding needs to develop.
Quotes …
Q.
How fast the startup culture grows in Nagpur? A.
About seven or eight years ago, there might be a strange startup in the Nagpur area or say Vidarbha.
Now we have around 450-500.
So, the story of startup grew rapidly in our Nagpur region.
I have seen this trip very closely in the last eight years where more innovations come from small cities.
They do good because they have had these problems and the best to find a solution associated with it.
In 2013, we had our first startup contest and only six entries from Vidarbha, while almost 70 entries came from here.
This 10th growth tells us that we live in some very pleasant times.
Q.
Does these ideas come from youth most of you? A.
Although there is no age group for entrepreneurship, Semahese people 17 for those who are sixties will come up with ideas.
That might be the best thing about entrepreneurship because it doesn’t have a barrier age, there is no academic barrier.
But to answer your question, yes, we see that the majority of people come to us with ideas in the 22-28 age group.
P.
What is the biggest challenge for people with smart ideas, throw it correctly to investors or get actual funds? A.
There are many media hype about Unicorn (startup which reaches billions of dollars assessment values) and that’s good too.
But the problem he created is that every young man now wants a million dollars in funding.
I tell everyone that getting funds is just one of the milestones of history, but not the only one for you.
The main purpose for you must have a plan to become sustainable, profitable and impact on the world.
There are many things that need to happen between getting ideas and seeking funds from investors.
You need to test the idea, spend time solve the problem and validate the idea.
The approach to validation is very important because it involves spending time with potential customers who will agree that yes, we need a solution to certain problems.
If you can do this, then getting funds will not be a problem.
Q.
It seems to get funds not a problem.
A.
Really.
There are quite a lot of investors in the world who want to put their money into the right business.
The problem is more than finding good ideas to put their money.
Q.
Does business ideas now only focus on product / technology services? A.
Most of them, but we get many people who want to expand and innate with traditional business too.
I always tell people that they must always leave a chair on the board for TN.
Technology.
This will help you improve and make a wider impact.
P.
While the startup culture grows in Nagpur, what an investor scenario is like? A.
This is one area where we can increase more.
What we need is the local basis of investors who have a vision and risk appetite for the initial round of funds.
The risk is inversely proportional to the business stage.
In the initial phase, investment in business is very risky but potential returns are very high.
And if you invest in the next stage, the risk is low, but it will also be a return.
I believe that having a group of angel investors from the local community is very important because it creates the right type of ecosystem where startup can develop.
P.
What advice will you give to those who want to overcome their ideas? A.
The most important thing is not in a hurry into it.
There is a great time for pitching and it happens after you do a lot of research, both on the ground and beyond it.
Investors are looking for not only for ideas, but the right plans about how the idea will turn into a successful business.
Entrepreneurs must remember that if someone invests money, he doesn’t do it for charity but for a return.
So investors are thinking in terms of outgoing strategies and returns.
All of these things need to be clearly identified by the pitching ideas.