Entertainment
Pushing the envelope
With the aim of providing a platform for Nepal’s most disruptive startups, small businesses, the entrepreneurs and investors, The NEXT Growth Conclave, a one-day seminar was organised by M&S NEXT Venture Corp, on Sept 25 in the Capital.Alisha Sijapati
With the aim of providing a platform for Nepal’s most disruptive startups, small businesses, the entrepreneurs and investors, The NEXT Growth Conclave, a one-day seminar was organised by M&S NEXT Venture Corp, on Sept 25 in the Capital.
The conclave titled “Decoding Business Growth” brought together 12 prominent speakers from Bangladesh, China, Hong Kong, India, Nepal and Thailand, including Amarit Charoenphan, Group CEO and Co-founder, Hubba; Bhupendra Khanal, Founder, Simplify360; Vinay Singhal, Co-founder and CEO, WittyFeed; Mahesh Murthy, Managing Partner, Seedfund. The speakers, who have founded or nurtured start-ups, worked as an angel investor or provided co-working space for budding companies, spoke to over 600 entrepreneurs, small-business owners and investors at the event .
The high-profile speakers—apart from sharing their stories and experiences—also talked about unlocking the potential of Nepali businesses, provided tips on “making-it-big” and explained how support systems can assist in growth of enterprises.
The NEXT Growth Conclave, the first of its kind in the country, also featured “Start-up Valley”, where start-ups exhibited viable products to attendees, potential investors, customers and senior entrepreneurs, or simply engage with founders of other start-ups.
The “Start-up Valley” also comprised of “Kick-start Hill”, where new start-ups launched themselves or their products. The start-ups that have secured a place in “Start-up Valley” or “Kick-start Hill” were given the opportunity to interact with investors, investment companies and few conference attendees.
With the conclave a resounding success, The Post caught up with three of the keynote speakers from the event to talk about their experiences from the event. Excerpts:
Mahesh Murthy Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Seedfund
What is your impression of the start-up culture and environment in Nepal?
I feel the entrepreneurs need to come out of their comfort zone. When I came to Nepal a long time back, there were a lot of businesses but I think they are all laid back now and have plateaued. First, these businesses have not been taught how to grow. You need to find a Nepali solution for a Nepali problem rather than duplicating something that already exists. Healthy competition is always fun and entrepreneurship is all about taking risks, Nepal could improve in that regard.
What is the scope for foreigner investement in start-ups in Nepal?
There is no fixed policy and guidelines or proper infrastructure through with foreign investor could come in and invest. If the rules and regulations for foreign investor are clear, I definitely do feel that a lot of foreign investors would want to invest not only their money but also time here. Without being political, if you have proper
dialogues with the government, I don’t think things will be difficult to manage. If start-ups are given more priority, there will be more employment opportunities too, which is a win-win situation for the government, businesses and employees at the same time.
What are some ways that fresh graduates can be motivated think like entrepreneurs?
There is a big stress on children and they are perennially in the rat race—they need to complete their studies and get a good job.
But I disagree with that.
It’s a matter of choice.
To become an entrepreneur, you don’t need to
have a degree; you need to
have the idea, passion and confidence. See, even Bill Gates is not a graduate but he is one of the richest
people in the world only because of one great idea.
I think children need to
be pushed to think out of
the box from a young age in order to inculcate values of entrepreneurship.
Ajeet Khurana Mentor, Angel Investors
How is the start up scene in Nepal in comparison to India, South Asia and the world?
To be very honest, I feel the start up scene in Nepal is only a fad. People are going crazy to start new things just because they have seen it grow in other places. I feel Nepali entrepreneurs lack originality. The entrepreneurs here need to widen their horizon and look at things that need more attention. For instance, tourism is a booming industry in Nepal; create something that makes people want to come here time and again and not just only once. In today’s world, the bandwidth needs to be spot on. If companies offer high range of bandwidth in Nepal, people from all over the world can come here and work as long as they want because the rest of the commodities are affordable.
How are today’s youth inspired by entrepreneurship and startups?
The buzz of entrepreneurship has been ridiculously high in the past four to five years—almost to the point of craziness. Observing the youth now, it is very clear that there are a lot of success stories, which drives them to follow this path. The creation, of few wins has been a huge thing in motivating entrepreneurs everywhere.
What startup ideas did you like during your meeting here?
Every person has their own strength and weaknesses and it’s the same with startups too. One needs to start something that is in line with their caliber. One of them wants to venture into Nepali tea, which is great because yes, Nepal has its own tea gardens but that’s not really an ideal place to initiate a startup but it’s a good attempt. Apart from that, I was taken away with the idea of making eccentric video games.
Ansoo Gupta
Traveller and Travel Blogger, Chief Operating Officer at Pinstorm
What sector do you think Nepal has most scope for startups?
I am a traveller and blogger myself. Whenever I travel, I make sure that I have a strong bandwidth network. Coming from a tourism background, I feel Nepal slowly needs to stop branding itself for Everest, Pokhara and Kathmandu. There is so much more to see here apart from those three places. Startup entrepreneurs need to look into those sectors seriously. Just because a startup is doing something great around the world, it necessarily doesn’t mean that the same business will do well in your country. However, I do feel that the start-up scene is getting better every day but I still would want to see from fresh, motivating and inspiring ventures launched here in the future.
What advice do you have for start-up entrepreneurs?
Your drive in life should be to have the most amazing life. Being an entrepreneur is the most fun you can have in your life. There is adventure, risk, fun, satisfaction and I think there is more fun in it than anything else. You make money and if you don’t it doesn’t matter. Being independent and making an impact has its own charm.
Nepal has a culture where failure is frowned upon. How can this mindset be changed?
It’s not only in Nepal but failure is frowned upon everywhere. Honestly speaking, it’s no big deal. You cannot take failure in your head and stop taking risks because you failed once. Failure is part and parcel of life. It happens all the time.
I’d say it’s also in the way things are approached. For example, you are weak at certain subjects and that you fail every time doesn’t mean that it’s the end of the world. We all have failed in our lives at some point or another. It’s the same deal in entrepreneurship too. It isn’t difficult to change the mindset.