Vyapaar

In this episode, I invited Jatan Bawa - Founder of Perfora, a company which is infusing tech into oral care.

Perfora has a range of products starting from an electric toothbrush, a smart water flosser, an extremely effective toothpaste and lots more! Perfora wants to change the way people brush & look after their oral hygiene. Oral care is a segment which is ripe for disruption & Perfora has positioned itself very well to reap the benefits of a transformation in the industry.

I really loved the session, the honesty with which Jatan answered each & every question I threw at him. Jatan has a rich experience working with startups & his story is REALLY inspiring. Jatan's vision with Perfora is solid & if I had to place a bet, I would put my money on the team that's working at Perfora.

Here's a snapshot of the things we covered in this episode:

(01:55): Who is Jatan Bawa? Talking about his journey from a small town, to studying in Delhi University which helped him to develop street smartness > joining the audit division of a BIG 4 > the urge to build a business > working for an early stage startup > becoming a founding team member of a startup in the consumer packaged good space > thinking about starting his own side project.

(16:27): What was the thought process behind starting Perfora? How did Jatan narrow down on the Oral care market? Talking about what it takes to build a good consumer brand.

(25:15): The phase of fishing out for opportunities before Jatan struck onto Perfora.

(29:04): Talking about the activities & timelines leading upto the launch of the Company.

(31:30): THE ELEVATOR PITCH

(33:32): Electric Toothbrush Vs Normal Toothbrush – why you should go the electric way and talking about other oral care products that Perfora is building. [Jatan also teaches us how to brush our teeth in this segment!]

(43:19): In the pursuit of disrupting a traditional business, what are some challenges that Jatan faced while scaling the Company.

(45:14): Talking about the traction, the best-selling product & the target audience.

(48:22): B2B vs B2C: what works best for Perfora?

(52:07): How does Perfora deal with competition & ensures that it stays ahead of the curve?

(55:57): What’s next for Perfora?

(59:46): What's in a name? Talking about the story & the meaning behind 'Perfora'

Want to take control of your oral hygiene? Check out what Perfora has to offer here 

In this episode, I invited Ayushi Chamaria - CEO & Founder of Sippin', a company which makes cocktail (and mocktail) mixes.

It's an extremely new concept in India, but if you're looking to experiment with your drink and want to add some classy flavors to it - Sippin' has you covered. The industry for cocktail mixes, although niche - is growing rapidly presenting opportunities to existing players.

One of the things that stood out to me while talking to Ayushi, was the sheer passion in her voice (it's contagious!), her knowledge of the industry and how she has REALLY focused on creating an amazing product for her consumers. Here's a snapshot of the things we covered in this episode:

(00:00) Introduction & a mini plugin for cocktail mixes

(03:24) Who is Ayushi Chamaria? What was she doing before she ventured into the world of cocktail mixes?

(05:17) How Ayushi stumbled upon the idea to create cocktail mixes and gave the power to everyone to be their own bartenders

(08:15) The initial days at Sippin’ and the challenges Ayushi faced in creating a Company in an extremely new & niche industry

(12:52) THE ELEVATOR PITCH OF SIPPIN’

(15:08) Cocktail mixes have calories?

(16:49) The Sippin’ experimentation lab & how Ayushi tested and created new [extremely unique] flavors which forms the core of Sippin's business

(22:08) The anatomy of a cocktail mix – how to use them?

(25:11) Talking about the traction that Sippin’ has generated since it’s official launch and which distribution channel (B2B/B2C) is turning up the heat

(32:07) Apart from being used in an alcoholic beverage, what are some other ways in which the mixers can be used?

(34:09) Are there a lot of new entrants in this space? How is competition shaping up for Sippin’?

(36:48) Liquid mixers Vs Powdered mixers

(37:59) Ayushi’s key takeaways running her own biz

(43:08) What’s next for Sippin’?

You can buy your first cocktail mix at Sippin' here

In this episode, I invited Deep Harlalka - CEO & Founder of VeClan, a company which makes vegan spreads & dips. 

Veganism isn't a new concept. It's been followed in the western countries for a while & is slowly making its way to the heart of India. But there is a long way to go before it gets mainstream, because it has to compete with a behemoth that is the DAIRY INDUSTRY. 

Deep Harlalka, is a passionate individual to say the least. And he wants to dip his feet into all things vegan. We spoke about a range of topics on this episode like: 

(00:00): Introduction 

(03:33): Who is Deep Harlalka? How did he get pulled into the world of veganism? 

(08:11): What were the events that led to the birth of VeClan? 

(11:25): The product launch phase – after getting the initial validation from family & friends 

(17:48): How was the product received by the Indian consumers and talking about the distribution strategies to make the product available across India [however, we took a completely different tangent here] 

(19:50): The experimentation process and how Deep came up with recipes to add an Indian tadka in his vegan dips 

(21:34): VeClan’s distribution strategy 

(24:39): THE BIG Q – how is VeClan competing on the pricing front and why are vegan products so expensive? 

(28:44): THE CLICHÉ Q – Vegan vs Vegetarian, what’s the difference? 

(31:33): Why Deep *strongly* believes that the entire DAIRY INDUSTRY is a scam 

(37:41): Talking about the blockers for growth at this point in time 

(40:19): Deep’s key takeaways running his own biz 

(42:32): VeClan’s 5Y Business plan 

You can check out VeClan's various product offerings here

In this episode, I invited Vivek Bajaj - Founder & CEO of StockEdge and Elearnmarkets, two platforms that are empowering retail investors in India.

If you look at the statistics, a lot of retail investors LOSE money in the stock markets. They get their fingers burnt, and they never look back at the stock markets as a medium to generate wealth. Vivek Bajaj & his team are changing the game for these investors.

We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like:

(00:00) Introduction

(04:57) Talking about Vivek’s journey, how a seed of experimenting with life was implanted in his mind at a very early age, how he continues to challenge his limits & what he thinks is the greatest skill a person can have [and why professional courses might be a scam!]

(12:15) The impact that IIM Indore had on Vivek’s personality & mindset and what makes the IITs/IIMs of the world, breeding grounds of great minds

(17:10) Talking about how Vivek executed the business plans he had created while he was at IIM & why he joined the commodity segment in JM Financial after completing his MBA

(19:08) Why Vivek started his own commodity trading business & talking about some of the unique experiences he had

(20:40) What pulled Vivek towards the stock markets? [Marwadi genetics?]

(22:45) What happened after Vivek made his first BIG trade in the commodity markets & how things started to scale from that moment

(24:20) Why Vivek started to pivot from the commodity/currency trading business & how Michael Bloomberg inspired him to create a platform for retail investors

(27:52) The idea behind StockEdge & Elearnmarkets? How Vivek & his team plan to capture the entire investing & trading ecosystem

(34:40) Talking about the pricing plans and the value addition – how retail investors can benefit from access to these platforms

(39:00) The vision behind the ecosystem – to develop people to become independent, not to retain them endlessly

(40:00) Talking about some of the common mistakes that retail investors make in the stock market

(43:36) Who inspires Vivek? [I really like the answer to this one!]

(46:16) What is the next challenge that he is taking on?

(47:15) Metaverse: good or bad for humanity? [Vivek suggested the war between Ukraine <> Russia could’ve been done on the Metaverse :P]

(51:00) Vivek’s key learnings from his journey so far

Want to become a smarter investor? Check out some of the content at Elearnmarkets & discover exciting investment opportunities at StockEdge!

In this episode, I invited Karan Mehra - Founder & CEO of Tyke Invest, a company that has created a platform which enables people to invest in startups with as little as INR 5000. 

Up until now, retail investors had to watch VCs corner the BIG gains from increase in startup valuations, but now the game is open for everyone. 

Through Tyke, everyone can get in on the act & own a piece of the pie. I had a really fun session & learned a lot conversing with Karan. 

We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like: 

(00:00): Introduction 

(4:37): Exploring Karan's background & understanding how he dipped his feet into the world of entrepreneurship 

(6:00): What's the Elevator Pitch for Tyke Invest & what are the pain points that the company seeks to address 

(09:51): What were some of the biggest BLOCKERS that Karan faced while building Tyke 

(11:19): Tyke's competitive advantage & why this space hasn't been explored by other players yet 

(12:21): The process of investing in a startup through Tyke from A to Z 

(16:00): Possibility to execute this model on a global level? Can Tyke tap into international investors? 

(17:00): How was Tyke able to reduce the investment amount to as low as INR 5000? 

(18:05): Talking about User growth and traction since Tyke's beta launch & what are the different segments that they’re targeting in B2B segment  

(23:28): What's the market size & how BIG of an opportunity is Tyke tapping into? 

(25:12): Is competition heating up in this space & how is Karan planning to stay ahead of the curve? 

(27:12): Talking about Tyke's revenue model (I really liked it!) and what potential revenue streams can they leverage in the future 

(30:24): Karan's key takeaways of running his own business & what are some of his learnings  

(33:10): The story behind the name ‘Tyke’?  

Do you want to be the owner of a startup? Make your first investment through Tyke!  

In this episode, I invited Kuonal & Aayushi - founders of 23BMI & Upnourish, two brands which are perfectly positioned to tap into the growing meal replacement market in India.

We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like:

Ready to try out meal replacements? Check out 23BMI & Upnourish!

In this episode, I invited Karan Kalra who is a visual engineer & has a decade long experience in creating illustrations, motion graphics & animations.

We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like:

 1.  Karan's journey exploring various creative crafts

 2.  How he got into NFTs

 3.  What exactly is an NFT & how it's different from other Cryptos

 4.  How NFTs work - what are some technical aspects to keep in mind while minting/selling NFTs

 5.  Platforms where you can trade NFTs

 6.  How NFTs could liberate artists

 7.  Other potential use cases & Karan's take on the future on this tech

 8.  What's next for Karan Kalra

You can find more about Karan on his Instagram page here. Also, do check out his NFT collection here

In this episode, I invited Vaibhav & Sayantani - cofounders of What’s up Wellness, a company in the health & wellness space. Their first product is a [delicious] gummy which is packed with nutrients which targets the skincare/haircare/nailcare segment.

We spoke about a range of topics in this episode like:

If you’re spending tons of money on skincare/haircare products & are looking for alternative solutions that work - why not give these incredible gummies a shot?

Check out their website here - whatsupwellness.in

In this episode, I invited Jayanti & Shalini - two sisters who have created India Hemp & Co, a company which sells various products made from Hemp - like protein powder, hemp oils etc.

We talked about a range of topics in this episode like:

1. The central idea behind building a company in the Hemp space

2. Challenges faced during the initial days (insert - the pandemic) & how they turned crisis into opportunity. Also spoke about the GTM strategy and the target market of the company.

3. How being incubated with IIM-Bangalore have helped in the brand building process 

4. The product offerings, the manufacturing & sourcing process and the regulatory landscape around Hemp in India & abroad

5. IH&C's NEW PRODUCT LAUNCH - GOOD DOGGO TREATS. We discussed the R&D process, how they came up with the idea to create something in the pet space. IH&C is the only company to launch a hemp treat for pets!

6. Talked about the potential of Hemp, how it could disrupt various sectors & why it is the next BIG thing.

7. Jayanti & Shalini's words of wisdom for anyone entering the Hemp or the F&B space

8. IH&C's long term vision and how they plan to capture opportunities in this space

And, understanding the experience of working with a sister who is also the co-founder. [Well, their secret is that they never fight! :p]

If you're someone interesting in the hemp space or want to learn how to build a sustainable/creative brand - this episode is just for you.  

Find more about IH&C here - https://www.indiahempandco.com/ 

In this episode, I hosted Shailesh Ganeriwala & Animesh Thakur - cofounders of OGHemp, a company which is making paper & packaging materials from Hemp. 

We dived into their respective journeys, how they got in the Hemp space & why they specifically targeted the paper industry. Shailesh explained the benefits of making paper from Hemp & why it is a no brainer to do so! 

Animesh covered the process they follow to make paper from Hemp & also spoke about the challenges in the initial days in manufacturing Hemp paper. We discussed OGHemp's target market, distribution channels & what sets them apart from other players in the market. 

I was also curious about why Hemp has not exploded [yet] in India & Animesh had a very interesting answer to it. We spoke about the company's long term vision & what exactly does 'OG' stand for in OGHemp! 

Check out their website here - https://www.oghemp.in/