Happy #StaffAppreciationDay to our incredible team. Your dedication, hard work, and passion are the heartbeat of our organization. Thank you for all that you do for the community! 💚
While I was running my startup, I once sat next to a VC who told me that he is looking for just one wrong thing I say to reject me but when it comes to folks with pedigree or qualifications from Ivy Leagues he is looking for just one right thing they say to fund them.
It struck me like lightning because no matter how great your product idea is or how profitable your company is or how good your growth is, none of it matters if you happen to not belong to one of these elite clubs. Of course nobody will confess in open and accept it but funding in India still happens because of trivial things and not because your product has some merit.
Imagine the money LPs lose over such investments. It's elitist at best and folks from the general diaspora barely have a shot. I'd have met so many small and profitable businesses run by entrepreneurs from small cities without a tinge of elitism in them be it fake accents or expensive clothes or jazzy language but running some really successful businesses. It's easy to judge them and dismiss them on the basis of their attire but these guys are the actual mavericks who understand the pulse of the market. They understand their customers as well as their spouses and would do anything to ensure their customers are happy.
Compare them to our English Spoken Entrepreneurs in Tier-1 cities who can throw any amount of gyaan on business but actually have zero clue how to run a profitable business or build a legacy company. That's the bias our investment community suffers from which makes them so myopic that they fail to see great product ideas or entrepreneurs. Imagine running a program called Shark Tank with just one entrepreneur running a profitable enterprise and the rest running loss making businesses. The mainstream media has made heroes out of folks who have no clue how to build profitable businesses. That's tad unfair to a lot of capable entrepreneurs who barely get their 15 minutes. Not that they need it but they could be perfect role models for our aspirants.
#business#startups#technology#productmanagement#innovation#entrepreneurship
Here is the update:
We are not shutting down. In fact our purpose just got stronger!
https://lnkd.in/g-gWKbe5
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Never thought that we'd come to these crossroads in exactly a year of launch of VIRGIO
We are overwhelmed with gratitude as we reflect on the incredible journey we've shared with you over the past year. With over 100,000 passionate individuals like you, we've forged a vibrant community that has supported us at every step. Your enthusiasm, feedback, and loyalty have been instrumental in our journey, and we cannot thank you enough.
However, today marks a significant turning point. Thank you for being a part of our community, we loved being a part of your wardrobe.
While the transparency and candidness are welcome, an important question to ask is how some $37 million was spent in 1 year and with a senior leader at the helm, who ran Myntra as CEO and is an Ex-Flipkart Veteran, two fairly large companies.
Shutting down its operations less than a year after raising funds at a valuation of over $160 million is kind of dicey. The company was backed by Prosus Ventures, Alpha Wave Partner, and Accel Partners during its Series A round - all 'marquee investors' again.
Besides the named VCs, Bhavish Aggarwal, Sri Harsha Majety, Kunal Shah, Vidit Atrey, and Mekin Maheshwari also invested in the company. Surprising more so again because this isn't someone new to the game having run a fashion-focussed only platform like Myntra. Or is it a case of someone not adjusting to a small working environment?
Virgio’s thesis was that as consumer fashion tastes evolve, many are finding current market options inadequate. The startup sought to refine its design, manufacturing, and procurement procedures to cater more promptly to Gen Z and older millennials: Don't all say and do that!
Was the funding and valuation only on the basis of past pedigree and profile since there was no discernible moat built? The same happened with another Myntra CEO who quit and built a Thrasio-style company, Mensa Brands which turned a unicorn in 6 months of launch 🤯 and hasn't been in the news off late (they did raise a debt round recently)
Goes to prove the unspoken hush hush rule: relationships and pedigree play heavily when it comes to VCs investing, no matter what the startup is about or whether it has a sustainable business model 🤷♂️. Sad.
#india#venturecapital#startups
Here is the update:
We are not shutting down. In fact our purpose just got stronger!
https://lnkd.in/g-gWKbe5
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Never thought that we'd come to these crossroads in exactly a year of launch of VIRGIO
We are overwhelmed with gratitude as we reflect on the incredible journey we've shared with you over the past year. With over 100,000 passionate individuals like you, we've forged a vibrant community that has supported us at every step. Your enthusiasm, feedback, and loyalty have been instrumental in our journey, and we cannot thank you enough.
However, today marks a significant turning point. Thank you for being a part of our community, we loved being a part of your wardrobe.
Holistic Wellness Advocate | Helping middle aged career women tap into their feminine energy & achieve wholesome living through holistic approach| Healing |Joy ambassador
In your quest for better and more, don't forget to appreciate and be grateful for what you have at the moment.No matter how your current circumstances are,we all have something to be grateful for,to give or to appreciate.
🪷A kind word or compliment can go a long way in brightening up a soul.
🪷Encourage someone who has lost hope.
🪷Give a hug or high five.
🪷 write a note of appreciation
🪷 give someone a lift
🪷share a book that changed your life
🪷help an elderly cross the road
🪷offer someone in a queue to go first
🪷 bring a homemade snack for colleagues
🪷pray for someone,be present.
There are infinite ways to make the world a better place for one another.
A candle looses nothing by lighting another.
spread love,joy and kindness.
it's the little things that make a huge difference in our world.
Remember, what you put out there will always come back to you.
The Greatness Mindset, Lewis Howes.
How you think about things will transform your entire life. A mind is a terrible thing to waste.
SCARCITY Mindset:
- fear, judgement, anger, anxious, threatened, worthless, helpless, critical, aggressive, annoyed, betrayed, resentful, hostile, skeptical, heavy...
ABUNDANCE Mindset:
- grateful, optimistic, accepting, curious, creative, courageous, confident, loving, valued, free, inspired, hopeful, trusting, playful, light...
#mindsetiseverything#growthmindset#leadershipmindset