With one out of every 5 startups successfully run by Indian women, India is seeing an uprising concerning women entrepreneurs. Over the years, many women leaders have emerged who are dominating their respective industries by their sheer hard work and talent. This list is to recognise such women who have built world-renowned brands.

1. Falguni Nayar, CEO & Founder of Nykaa

Nykaa, India’s biggest fashion and lifestyle portal, is a creation of Mumbai-based, India’s first self-made female billionaire entrepreneur Falguni Nayar. After serving 20 years as a venture investor and merchant with Kotak Mahindra, she suddenly announced her departure to pursue her dream. Nykaa was founded in 2012; capitalising on the scope of beauty and skincare products online, Nykaa created history. Falguni Nayar is associated with one of the top B-schools in India, IIM Ahmedabad. 

She has been honoured by ‘Businesswoman of the Year’ at the Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence 2019, for her contribution to the Indian beauty industry, and the ‘Woman Ahead’ award at the Economic Times Startup Awards in 2017. With the Nykaa IPO creating a buzz in the share market, She has marked her presence in Indian Startups history and a real-life example of “Age is just a number”.

2. Akanksha Hazari, CEO & Founder of LoveLocal

Akanksha Hazari is the CEO & Founder of LoveLocal, a hyperlocal eCommerce startup that is revolutionising how India shops by empowering local retailers and digitising the $1.1 trillion unorganised retail market. LoveLocal has grown 40x since its inception in January 2020 and currently serves over 35+ cities and 1300+ pin codes across India. Akanksha is a Princeton University and Cambridge University alumnus. A successful second-time entrepreneur, Akanksha has 10+ years business experience across India, MENA and the US.

She has won multiple awards, including the Hult Prize 2011, where she was awarded $1 million by former US President Bill Clinton and the Vital Voices Global Economic Empowerment Award 2016 from Secretaries of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Madeleine Albright and is named / recognised in US Senate Resolution 418. Akanksha is the only Indian tech entrepreneur to be featured in the book – “100 Women Using their Power to Empower”. The book celebrates 100 global women leaders who are redefining power, in which Akanksha is featured alongside Melinda Gates, Serena Williams, Greta Thunberg, and many other inspiring women. Akanksha speaks six languages and is a former competitive squash player ranked among the top 20 junior players internationally.

3. Upasana Taku – Co-Founder of Mobikwik 

India’s largest independent mobile payments network, MobiKwik, was founded by Upasana Taku and Bipin Preet Singh in April 2009. It allows you to shop at stores, pay bills, recharge, send money, accept payments with 1-tap and connect over 30 million users with 75,000 retailers.

An alumnus of Stanford University, Upasana has over 10+ experience in the fintech sector. Her entrepreneurial journey has been an inspiration for many. She has been awarded the “Best Woman Entrepreneur Award 2017” by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM). The co-founder has become the first female to run a payments company in India and strongly believes in her vision for India’s fintech market. 

4. Kamalika Bhattacharya, CEO & Co-Founder of QuoDeck

Kamalika Bhattacharya is the Co-Founder and the business brain behind QuoDeck, a B2B SaaS Digital Learning and Engagement Platform that enables organizations to use interactivity and games to engage audiences such as employees, value chain and gig workforces.
 
Her passion for entrepreneurship has been built over many years through her 22-year long career, where for the most part of it, she has worked with startups and ventures to raise private equity and venture capital for them.
 
She co-founded QuoDeck in 2017 along with Arijit Lahiri with a view to combine their love for gaming with their ambitions of building a global product. Under her leadership, QuoDeck has grown into a thriving company with marquee Fortune 500 clients.
 
In her past avatar as an investment banker, she has held senior roles in business building in companies such as ADP, ICRA, IDFC and Intellecap. At QuoDeck, she heads business development and drives the team’s hunger to be better, bigger and faster.
 
She holds an MBA from the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad, and is an Economics graduate from Osmania University.

5. Anuja Joshi, Director of Join Ventures

Anuja Joshi is the Co-Founder of the Indian chapter of Interflora, the world’s largest, most recognised, and respected flower delivery service. Supported by a network of over 58,000 florists worldwide, Interflora delivers to approximately 140 countries. For over 100 years, Interflora has enjoyed a reputation for excellence. Used throughout the ages, the Mercury Man emblem has been recognised worldwide as a symbol of swift and timely delivery and the very best quality floral gifts. 

Anuja heads Interflora India business and has led the execution of floral decor at some of India’s largest weddings and corporate events. She is a trained classical dancer, interior designer and an alumnus of The London School of Economics (LSE). She also holds an MBA from Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies, Pune and has served in leadership roles for many other companies in the past.

She is also the director at IGP.com, one of the world’s and India’s leading multi-category gifting company, providing one of the best-curated collections of festival merchandise, gifts, fresh flowers, cakes, plants, gourmet foods & personalised products for all occasions & festivals. 

6. Smiti Bhatt Deorah – Co-Founder of Advantage Club

Smiti Deorah is the Co-Founder and the Chief Operating Officer of HRTech startup Advantage Club, an AI-enabled platform for driving employee engagement. Over the years, the company has emerged as the leading employee engagement platform in India and is growing 20 percent on an MoM basis. The company has also gone global with a presence in more than 70+ countries. The company has reinvented the wheel around employee benefits and engagement by building deep engagement products that can be further personalised according to each user’s behaviour.

She is an alumnus of the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) and has done her master’s in computer science. Smiti has strong experience in B2B relationship building and account management. Smiti has worked in one of the world’s tech giants ‘Microsoft’ for over 2 years and gained expertise in what she does. As a founder at Advantage Club, She wears various hats at the company, focusing on Business Development, Marketing, Hiring, Content and Customer Relations, making her a superwoman entrepreneur.

The post 6 Women Entrepreneurs who are Trendsetters! appeared first on Startagist.

This Cook off series aims at forearming the young Startup brigade that India is churning by the hour these days, with the basic business know how. The guests on this series, come with a treasure house of experience and this informal format enables them to get candid about their struggles, mistakes during their journey, handling success etc.

“As they say in entrepreneurship it’s more important to know what not to do & we hope that through this format we’ll be able to communicate these aspects that are kept away from the usual media limelight to young & aspiring entrepreneurs and of course with some interesting recipes in the backdrop.” said Sanket S, Lead- TiE Food Network.

The first guests on this show were Arjun & Trisha Vaidya, Founders of Dr. Vaidya. “We got the amazing opportunity to interact with Chef Harpal Sokhi and share our journey while also cooking an amazing meal. The best stories are shared over food and I am excited to see the other entrepreneurs be a part of this fun format by TIE Mumbai. The best part about the whole experience was ‘namak shamak’ with the legendary chef!” said Arjun Vaidya.

“This cook off series in association with TiE Mumbai is particularly interesting for me. We invite various guests who share their experiences on what one should look at when they want to begin their entrepreneurial journey. The conversations get more engaging as I cook some delicious recipes with them.” said Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi, Celebrity Chef.

Watch it here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d95yI2IzeeY

The post TiE Mumbai kickstarts its “Cook off” series appeared first on Startagist.

The company will sell personal care and hygiene products, including beard oils, face wash, body wash, aftershave, deodorant, and hand sanitizer for a targeted age group of 25 to 40 years. The starting product will be available as low as INR 25 on their online stores.

The 58-year-old, Shastri said “With 23 Yards, I’m stepping into this ever-evolving world of entrepreneurship and startups. The reason for choosing a men’s grooming line comes from my personal interest in looking and feeling great that eventually enhances the quality of your output whatever you may be doing,”.

Shastri will have 49% with  51% Ador Group in the venture.

Ador Multiproducts’ chairperson Deep Lalvani citing a ASSOCHAM report that the men’s grooming in India is projecting a massive compound annual growth rate of about 45%. At INR 16,800 Cr in 2018 in India, it is expected to touch INR 35K Cr by 2021. He believes that this is majorly due to the drastic transformation in grooming and self-care, especially among the younger generation.

The post Ravi Shastri turns entrepreneur with new venture 23 Yards appeared first on Startagist.

He can’t be more true. Perseverance is key. Especially in these trying times amid Covid-19 and lockdown in the country and around the world. As we celebrate world entrepreneurs’ day this particularly should apply to young and upcoming entrepreneurs and most of them showed that they do have the determination to stay in the present and overcome these obstacles.

Keeping this in mind and celebrating World Entrepreneurs’ Day on August 21, Wadhwani Foundation, a not-for-profit salutes the startups and entrepreneurs hit badly by the COVID-19 related business slump and the National lockdown.

Wadhwani Foundation is working with a mission of accelerating economic development in emerging economies by driving large-scale job creation through entrepreneurship, innovation, and skills development.

The Foundation gives guidance on how startups should ensure liquidity and slow-down the burn rate while diligently planning for an 18-month runway. 

It strongly recommends that startups should not waste the crisis, as it provides an unprecedented opportunity to pivot to new businesses and diversify into growth verticals like healthcare, emerging tech, online education, grocery delivery, and e-pharmacies.

On this occasion, Dr. Ajay Kela, President, and CEO, Wadhwani Foundation, advised startups and entrepreneurs saying, “The COVID-19 disruption has created a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for entrepreneurs and startups. Behavioral changes of doctors and patients, teachers and students, retailers and consumers, companies and employees, policy evangelists and policymakers, etc., which would have taken years, have changed overnight and will become the new normal.”

He added that “New entrepreneurs should build solutions that align with these new behaviors, and existing entrepreneurs have the advantage of having started the journey to pivot quickly. Data suggests that the best time to start a company is during a crisis. This pandemic is the mother of all crises, hence, also offers the mother of all opportunities.  Please don’t waste the crisis, start something new or pivot to the new norm, and I wish you the very best.”

Wadhwani Foundation was founded in 2000 by Dr. Romesh Wadhwani, with the primary mission of accelerating job creation in India and other emerging economies through large-scale initiatives in entrepreneurship, small business growth, innovation, and skilling. The Wadhwani Foundation works in partnership with governments, foundations, corporations, and educational institutes.

In the view of this pandemic, many sectors except a few will suffer due to low demand and consumer interest. So, this should be the time for startup entrepreneurs to preserve cash, get nimble, be ready to pivot to meet new customer needs through change and innovation, and not hesitate to seek help.

The post World Entrepreneurs’ Day: Wadhwani Foundation salutes the entrepreneurial spirit appeared first on Startagist.

The increasing presence of women as entrepreneurs has led to the change in the demographic characteristics of the business and economic growth of the country. Women-owned businesses enterprises are playing a prominent role in society inspiring others and generating more employment opportunities in the country.

There is a need for sustainable growth of women entrepreneurs, to promote balanced growth in the country. By 2022 more than 1 billion women are set to join the economy as leaders, producers, employers, employees, and entrepreneurs. 

The contribution of women to the economy is at the highest point and keeps growing as we speak. Various researches have shown that women-led businesses are outperforming their peers. Businesses, in the past few decades, have been realizing the importance of women in the top leadership to drive sustainable financial returns.

Women entrepreneurs are becoming the face of almost all sectors of the economy and the traditionally male-dominated B2B space is one such sector where women’s participation has been increasing.

Four of such women entrepreneurs who are changing the B2B landscape in the country. 

 1. Smiti Bhatt Deorah, Co-Founder and COO, Advantage Club.

Smiti Bhatt Deorah is a young and enthusiastic entrepreneur who co-founded the Advantage club with Sourabh Deorah. She has worked with Microsoft in the past and has done her master’s in Computer Science from the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA).

With substantial experience in B2B relationship building and account management, Smiti launched Advantage Club with Sourabh in 2016. The company is an employee-centric organization and offers companies curated deals, rewards, and offers from more than 200 brands.

For Smiti, it all began while working at Microsoft when she felt valued and rewarded by the employee perks and benefits she received. Smiti and Sourabh together recognized the potential employee rewards platforms had and came back to start India’s first employee reward and recognition platform. 

Today the company is profitable and has over 6000 companies as clients, including Café Coffee Day, Samsung, Lifestyle, PNB Home Loans, Max Healthcare, and several others. Personalized rewards offered under Advantage Club are a measure that helps companies to improve employee satisfaction and engagement.

2. Upasana Taku, Co-Founder, and COO, Mobikwik.

Upasana, a Standford University alumni, co-founded digital payments and financial services startup Mobikwik with Bipin Preet Singh back in 2009 to simplify payments in India. The company started as an e-wallet service and today has expanded in three business lines – consumer payments, payment gateway, and financial services. 

Before starting a venture of her own Upasana headed many high impact projects for companies like HSBC and PayPal and gained immense experience in payment systems. She is one of the most recognized faces in the fintech space in the country.

3. Rashi Aggarwal, Co-Founder, and COO, Zypp.

Rashi Aggarwal co-founded Zypp India’s 1st electric bike and e- Scooter sharing app and platform in 2017 with Akash Gupta. This dockless eco-friendly bike-sharing platform started as a B2C business, and recently it has shifted focus towards the B2B sector with clients ranging from food delivery business to e-commerce establishments. Previously a fashion entrepreneur, this is the second entrepreneurial venture undertaken by Rashi who dreams of a cleaner and carbon-neutral world.

4. Ankiti Bose, Co-Founder, Zilingo.

Mumbai based, Ankiti Bose, is the first Indian female co-founder and CEO of a unicorn status startup. She has been featured in Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 list in 2018 and Fortune’s 40 Under 40 along with Bloomberg 50 in 2019. Her achievements come at the back of Zilingo, a technology and commerce platform in the fashion industry that offers services for players across the fashion supply chain.

The post Women Entrepreneurs Who Are Changing The B2B Landscape appeared first on Startagist.

An entrepreneur is someone who organises and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk. Ever wondered how the likes of Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, J.K Rowling and many others became successful entrepreneurs?

Believe it or not they know what it’s like to launch a new business and to start from the beginning. These successful entrepreneurs have worked their way up to the top and created a powerful name for themselves and for their business. Despite becoming successful entrepreneurs, the journey might not have always been an effortless one either but it’s what you learn on the way that counts within business.

So whether you’re already in the process of launching your own business or you’ve been thinking about it and in need of some motivational advice, we’ve put together this feature which outlines 15 legendary quotes from some of the most successful entrepreneurs in history and around the globe! You might not be able to relate to each of the 15 quotes but hopefully you’ll get to the bottom of this feature having gained some advice along the way and feeling a bit more empowered.

This successful entrepreneurs feature has been interspersed with individual quote images where the full version of the infographic, created by Total processing, can be viewed here. These legendary quotes will not only get stuck in your head (in a good way) but will help to inspire you for your very own business venture.

The post (Infographic) 15 legendary quotes from successful entrepreneurs appeared first on Startagist.