Digital Business Entrepreneurship: Learning the Ropes

Gaurav Kachru The author is CEO, Deals and You

Its a strange feeling writing this story as my destination is not near, but this is my truth about what put me on this path, headed in the direction I am. Unlike most entrepreneurs, I didnt start out with entrepreneurship as my goal. I completed my MBA, and started working at GE India as part of the finance leadership program. I learnt the ropes from some incredibly talented leaders at GE. It took over 7 years for that dream to take shape, and then another 5 before the dream turned into reality.

It was early 2004, after a meeting with my boss Pramod Bhasin, then president and CEO of GE Capital, that it all came together. I realized that I wanted to create a company which would be the reflection of my ethos and experiences, focused on ensuring the journey is as enjoyable as the destination. My first step was to gain more experience in customer facing roles. The opportunity came knocking when Scott Bayman, CEO and president, GE India offered a role to help set up the GE India growth team over a chat in the cafeteria, and I never looked back. Over the next 5 years, I led sales and businesses across companies, industries, and countries. I honestly spent more time in flights, hotels, and airport lounges than at home but the learning was immense.

In 2009, I was seeking entrepreneurial opportunities when I met my future collaborator and mentor, Harish Bahl (arguably one of Indias best serial entrepreneurs in the internet space). I met Bahl while Pearl was negotiating the Fashion and You term-sheet. Entirely to his credit, Bahl made it his personal passion to convert me from a fence-sitter with a dream into a real entrepreneur. I have always been passionate about the internet as it is only just the beginning to transform our social and economic fabric. As a result, the opportunity to innovate in it is only growing every day, and wealth creation opportunities are abundant and disproportionate to the brick and mortar world. Over the next 6 months, Bahl and I worked together on building business plans, raising funds, acquiring a small business and getting talent into the ecosystem. On the night we launched Deals and You, we took the site live at 1.30 hours on a Saturday night and ran off to catch a drink to a new beginning!

We were a late entrant in the market, but we set off to innovate and build a business that would create value by innovation and creating value for the customer. It has been a challenging journey to say the least. It was a tough transition from the comforts of being a corporate and its advantagescash, talent, and support systems. What we had gained was speed of decision making, adaptability to consumers, and the best work environment we could create. We have made quite some progress from the night we launched the portal. Not only did we catch up with the market leader, we have been the cutting edge, shaping the group buying market in India. We hit a million members in 200 days. Now in the ninth month since our launch, we see several members who have bought more than 50 times in 8 months. Word of mouth is our strongest growth driver, and 50% of our employees have come through a recommendation of another employee (were now a 100 man team). I take pride in all these facts. But theres a long way to go before we call this venture a success, and were still young and hungry to win.

Of the lessons I learnt over the years, I would like to share 3 which shaped me. First, value that sustains a relationship over time is a positive impact on the wallet or status. There is no other sustainable formula. Second, always walk the talk. Never commit something you cannot deliver. Your word is more important than what the fine print reads. Third, always keep your ears open for the customer voice. If the customer is not complaining to you, hes going to the competition. Solve their issues quickly and you will create brand ambassadors. There is no business where customers dont face challenges. Its how you respond to them that will determine how they speak of you. These are lessons that I live every day of my life and strive to implement in my work.

My story is not one of a born entrepreneur, but I gradually became one learning more about business. I do hope that this helps some of the young talents in organizations, who would like to pursue their dream of creating value in their own way.