May 2011

Hi Ashwin, and welcome. You’re from India, so I have to ask, what’s new to entrepreneurial India? Most people think about India as a place to get cheap labor and outsource stuff.

Ashwin: The new India has more people taking risks and even more people willing to facilitate the process of taking risks. Entrepreneurial India is abundant with angel investors and venture capitalists, who now understand that India can also innovate. And India is innovating, like never before! Labor is still cheap, and we still outsource, but we also know how to utilize the ever-increasing globalization.

Did the crisis change the business rules? What do you think, during the crisis, companies outsource more or cut spending altogether, outsourcing included?

Ashwin: To some extent, it did. India saw a strange trend, different from what the US showed. We did see several large corporations losing big money and businesses, including outsourcing showing a loss. Still, the period also brought risky entrepreneurs in the business world who wanted to benefit from the negative times. The number of small businesses increased significantly during the crisis, and many businesses centered on these SMEs also surfaced.

You recently started a new company, what is it about?

Ashwin: Well, this question looks like a continuation of my previous answer. Because we also started our company to utilize the fact that India has more than 2.5 million SMEs and this number is growing at a very high rate. Our company Incept creates, sells, and services unique Office Automation products for SMEs (small and medium businesses).

So who exactly is your customer?

Ashwin: Every Small and medium-sized enterprise across India belongs to our current target group, and we are also looking at global expansion. Small shops, as well as commercial offices, can benefit from us. We are starting with Time & Attendance Management Biometric Systems and will move on to many more exciting products.

What is what makes your company special?

Ashwin: This is an interesting question because there are more than 600 companies in India that supply office automation products. But when you consider the fact that our products are created with only SMEs in mind, we become somewhat special. Add to this the fact that our products are novel and innovative, and we become even more special. But the final nail on the wall of specialty is the way we do our business: our business model is such that we do not involve distributors or resellers but sell and service our products directly, using our own service partners.

Did you start alone, or you have some partners?

Ashwin: I started with the help and support of an entrepreneur who had seen the risks to come out clean, Hariom Sharma. And today, we have a 12 member dedicated team.

What are the most difficult things to overcome when starting a company in India?

Ashwin: Though the answer may vary based on the sector to which a company belongs, the biggest problem faced by us and also by various other entrepreneurs is the legal tangle that forces you to take undesirable steps. For example, the taxation system in the country is so complex and poorly managed that small businesses still suffer hugely, and the worst effects are seen during start-up.

How was your path from idea to getting the first customer?

Ashwin: Tough but exciting. We decided to pitch the idea to a customer who could have been the last choice for our products. But after various meetings, when he was convinced, we knew that we would succeed. So we took the tough road, hoping to get rewards if we can cross it.

What about the future? New product lines? New customers?

Ashwin: Future plans include expansion into tier 2 and 3 cities of India. And talks of expansion to other countries following similar economy as India are also on. Among new product lines, we are next coming up with remote employee surveillance systems.

What was most difficult? Finding an idea? Making the first steps to transform the idea into a real business? Getting your first customer?

Ashwin: The most difficult, in my opinion, is always the first set of steps. The idea can be abundant, but the implementation of the idea to be able to create a business out of it requires a lot of mentoring and support from investors as well as peers.

What about the legal part? Is it difficult to comply with the business rules in India?

Ashwin: As mentioned earlier, though things are easier than ever before, there is still no flexibility to support small businesses. Also, various small companies work while blatantly disregarding laws, and they still thrive, which is sad. But situations are changing.

What would be your best advice for companies abroad working with Indian companies?

Ashwin: There are a huge number of innovators in India who remain hidden unless seriously scouted for. So while making associations with Indian companies, you should be able to find out these hidden talents to maximize the utilization of resources. Also, on a different cautionary note, it’s better to avoid companies following traditional rules conventionally in India, as the market is changing and it’s time to welcome unconventional thought processes.

Coming back to your business, how did you come up with the idea?

Ashwin: It was the period of recession that forced us to develop products, especially for SMEs. We analyzed the target group and steadily zeroed on the products. So it was customers first, products later.

What are the most important advantages your customers get when working with your products?

Ashwin: That they feel it’s made only for them. Moreover, a high level of interactivity, and focused customer support, are our other high points.

Any success stories you would like to mention?

Ashwin: I’d like to share one testimonial from a customer, who said that they improved their profit in the quarter in which they bought our product by about 20%, due to the indirect effects it brought. They had bought our attendance management system, which helped them reduce their HR loads and focus more on work while helping increase productivity. It was nice to hear someone giving us a quantitative complement rather than qualitative praise.

Are you proud of what you have accomplished so far?

Ashwin: I’d say it’s the beginning, and we are still learning. We are proud of what we have achieved and also of what we have failed to achieve, as it has taught us more. It sounds like dialogue from an inspirational book, but it’s really true.

Any advice for young people not having the courage to start their own businesses?

Ashwin: As I also mentioned in one of our company’s newsletters, try to run naked in public, and that’s when you’ll be ready to become an entrepreneur.

You can become a better entrepreneur at any age by taking masters of business administration classes.

Hi Michael. When you first contacted me, I thought, WOW, this is a great idea, too bad it wasn’t mine! So what is it about?

Michael: Well, our initial idea was to put live webcams in bars so bar-goers would have a Real-Time tool for finding hot spots. We quickly realized there was a great opportunity to provide a complete service, so we set out to create a ‘complete marketing suite’ for venues.

I ask everybody how did they come up with the idea and get all sorts of answers, but really your idea seems so obvious! But still, how did you come up with the idea?

Michael: My Co-Founder, Peter Viviani, was trying to rally his friends to go downtown on a Wednesday night and thought to himself how cool it’d be if they could check in via live cam to see what the crowd looked like. Since then, we’ve incorporated mobile coupons so that bar-goers can get hooked up for their loyalty to local venues.

What are the main benefits for the bar owners?

Michael: The Live bar cams act as a beacon that drives traffic not only online but on-premise as well. Real-Time knowledge is growing by the day, and people want the best tools to make decisions with. We aim to be THE tool for avid bargoers. These cams also double up as 24/7 security straight to the bar owner’s mobile phone, a sweet extra perk.

You mentioned there are some additional marketing benefits, “complete marketing suite” – what are these, and how do they actually work?

Michael: Yes, bar owners extremely busy and know they need social media marketing and are always looking for an effective, easy tool to make it work harder for them. Through our platform, venues are able to create and manage email, text message, Facebook, Twitter, and Daily Deal campaigns. In essence, we’ve taken all the industry-standard tools, put them in one place, and provided a ton of automation to make their lives easier.

Our mobile coupon platform is one feature we’re most proud of. With this, customers are prompted to ‘opt-in’ for a drink deal. The deal is sent to them via text which they then redeem with the server, and at the same time, their number is automatically added to that venues’ Barspace Phone Book for receipt of future deals and announcements. Essentially we’re giving bars an incredible way to gain access to and reach bar-goers in the format in which they want to be reached, via text message.

What about the bar customers. How does your system help them?

Michael: Our customers use the Live bar cams to make Real-Time decisions on where to go for the night. It’s awesome to be out at a bar and see people scrolling through cams on our iPhone App to see which bar to hit next. Again, to reiterate an earlier comment, the customer also benefits from our mobile coupons as well as real-time announcements sent to them from venues via text message, Facebook, and Twitter.

I remember 10 years ago I was going from bar to bar to find the perfect location for the evening. Sometimes this was annoying, but sometimes as part of the charm of going out with your friends. What do you think?

Michael: Oh definitely, ‘the bar-hop if you will. We think our app is making people more social by driving more bargoers down to the scene. People at home are being spurred by a busy cam or an impromptu drink deal or band invited to leave their computers and head out for the night. We’re enhancing the nightlife, not stripping it of its charm.

I bet some wives will think about using your system to check on their husbands 🙂

Michael: Haha.. yea, we always get the classic wife/husband ‘checking in’ comment. For this very point, we purposely choose high vantage points, degrade the quality of the video, slow the frame rate, and don’t include audio. We’re really focused on checking out the scene, not checking in on who’s there. Besides, we’re finding that Facebook and Foursquare check-ins are busting more people than our live webcams. Great question though, its’ something we put a lot of thought into.

What about privacy? Do bar customers think about this?

Michael: Sure, like any new emerging technology site customers, are talking about what we’re doing that’s new and although I answered most of this on the question above, one point worth noting is that initially this was more of a topic and has significantly subsided as we’ve grown and as other Real-Time sites have emerged (Facebook, Foursquare, Gowalla).

How can bars join your system?

Michael: Easy. They can call us anytime at 1-866-68 BAR TV (682-2788) or email us info@barspace.tv or check out our plans page at http://barspace.tv/plans – We’re growing like crazy right now, and we’d love to show them how we can help their business as well!

What regions are you covering?

Michael: We’re primarily focused on the San Francisco Bay Area but also have a presence in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Diego, Boston, and New York

How did you get your first customer?

Michael: Great story, actually. Peter and I walked into our first meeting, a local Irish Pub in Cotati, CA, a small college town, and were asked if we were Bible salesman. Shrugging this comment off and disregarding the fact that we wouldn’t actually launch for over a year, we sold the owner with little more than a screenshot and a dream of what we hoped to become. She had faith in us, and we never looked back!

How did you actually startup? You probably needed some technical developments, business plans, legal stuff, marketing, and sales.

Michael: We jumped into the Sonoma Mountains Business Cluster (http://sonomamountainbusinesscluster.com/), where we got amazing mentorship in finding the right team members, legal staff, and business planning. One thing that’d I pass onto fellow startups is to go straight into developing a ‘pitch deck’ and spend less time on a 30-page biz plan.. from our experience; the deck is the only way to go. See details on Venture Hacks (http://venturehacks.com/articles/deck)

What is the worst thing when having your own business? Asking because people tend to think only about the nice parts.

Michael: Haha.. great question! All the upside, and sometimes people forget about the hardships. I’d say the worst thing for me is living bootstrapped month to month… hoping and praying the investor deals you just closed actually result in the checks your handshakes ‘sealed.’ We’ve gotten pretty used to this fact of life, and I’d say the upside far outweighs the downside. When you have entrepreneurship in you, it’s hard to imagine doing anything but… I’m sure your readers will attest to that.

And what was the most difficult?

Michael: Tough to say… every time we hit a moment when we feel like ‘wow, this is extremely difficult,’ we’ve gotten past it, and then months down the road, we don’t even remember that difficult feat. It’s all about problem-solving and determination to continue on!

Now, talking about the future, what are your plans?

Michael: We’re currently working closely with advisors and investors to secure a seed round. We’re also developing great partnerships with brands looking to engage our customer base. So really, just keep steady with our progress and develop our strategy for scaling to a national platform.

I bet you already had some happy customers. Can you name a few?

Michael: Sure. We’re currently working with over 200 bars and have an assortment of brands like Southern Comfort, Svedka, Devotion Vodka, and Redbull. We’re looking to work with more bars and brands alike and define ourselves as THE Network for bar-goers, bars, and brands alike.

Would you still go on the entrepreneurial path knowing what you know now about starting and running your own business?

Michael: Most definitely! Despite the tireless workdays, ramen, soda, and sleepless nights the goal is still clear and achievable. I aspire to find my own way in life and have a team of partners all committed just the same. I love this path and wouldn’t have it any other way.

Hi Daniel and welcome. Tell us a bit about yourself.
DBD: Hello, I’m David Ben-David, “DBD” from Miami. Co-Founder and Creative Director of Sprayground bags in NYC.

And naturally, you’re running a fashion business. What is this about?
DBD: Fashion moves faster than life. To be on top of the game, I have to forecast the future every season… every day.

You have created some unique backpacks based on a concept that I believe it’s very appealing to artists.
DBD: We have single-handedly changed the bag market with the Hello MY Name Is bag and Graffiti Utility Backpack and have started a new market of conceptually designed bags.

We first started as a blank bag company that can hold spray cans; after those bags sold-out, I expanded the idea to make cool, cutting-edge designs on bags.

How did you come up with the idea?
DBD: The market is full of “black bags” and “repeat-pattern bags” and saw an opportunity to transform this category into a major accessory that people now need to wear to match with their outfits. Just like what Skullcandy did to the headphone industry, Sprayground plans to transform the bag industry.

Who is the typical customer that would love your products?
DBD: All ages, everyone needs a bag to carry their shnit. The beauty about Sprayground is that we cater to a crossover of customers. We make bags for the skater kid, for the hip-hop kid, the graffiti kid, and the hipster kid, etc.

Did you get support or recognition from other artists? How does marketing work for the fashion business?
DBD: We did some collaborations already with artist Cope and photographer Henry Hargreaves. Our “Graffiti Utility Backpack” is used by all the top graffiti artists. Regarding marketing, we have gotten bags onto celebrities thru their stylists and building relationships with them.

Talking Baby from Sprayground on Vimeo.

As an artist, what was the most rewarding about creating a line of backpacks?
DBD: To me, the reward is about how a little company with 2 employees managed to sell to the best retailers and changed an industry…and the most rewarding is when I see someone in New York City walking around with my bag on.

What are the main ingredients for creating a high-end, stylish and functional product?
DBD: First comes the design, then the style of the backpack. You need all the right ingredients in making a durable bag for today’s tech kid to fit his skateboard, laptop, iPod, iPhone…the list goes on an o, but we are there to hold his life in his bag.

Thinking about artists, I think one of their challenges is that they can’t only focus on the artistic part but also need to make “art that sells.” What’s your view on this?
DBD: Yes, that is the most important key in this business.if the art is whack, then none will buy it. You gotta find the right concept for the right consumer.

What about protecting your products, brand, and so on? Is this something to worry about? Any advice for other artists?
DBD: Fashion changes so fast, so there is hardly any protection, but the best thing to do is copyright the art that a designer is using.

I had a look on your site, and your products are available at select retail stores in NYC, LA, Miami. Can you name a few locations, and how was the process of getting your products there in general?
DBD: Amazing shops like Kingston, Nordstroms, Bodega, Shoe Gallery, Atmos, Goliath, Karmallop.com…to name a few

How did the crisis-affected your market? Or better said, what were the main factors that assured your success?
DBD: The accessories business has been strong thru this financial disaster mainly because people usually buy 1 or 2 bags a year..we just gotta make sure it’s our bags they are buying.

What about the future? Planning to expand with other product lines?
DBD: Just grow into an iconic bag company that is involved in all types of bag categories for men and women.

Any final words you would like to address readers?
DBD: Do what you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life!