‘You don’t have to impress an investor’

Techstars, in partnership with Google for Startups, is organising its Startup Weekend, The Pune Chapter at The Daftar in Baner. At the three-day long event, a unique programme called ‘Startups in 54 Hours’ will be held. It will provide a platform for aspiring entrepreneurs to network, pitch an idea in 60 seconds, work on the project and create a cross-functional team to work with, over an interesting weekend. It will also provide an opportunity for these budding startup owners to learn from the best local mentors and get to work with excellent resources and support. “When they present their product or service in front of the crowd and a panel of experts on the final day, they will also learn from each other’s successes and failures. The weekend culminates with a celebration of all the hard work and success in the company of the mentors, judges and other teams,” says Anurag Maloo, regional manager, South and Central Asia, Techstars.  

Apart from meeting the experts from the industry and forming a community, the entrepreneurs can associate with investors and sponsors too. All this will help them fulfil their dream of starting their own venture.
Over to Maloo…. 

- Tell us about ‘Startups in 54 hours’
Startup Weekend — Learn, Network, Startup was founded in 2007 in Colorado, USA by Andrew Hyde which brought together 70 entrepreneurs. It has grown into an organisation with a global presence. As of December 2016, the programme has reached 135 countries, involving over 210,000 entrepreneurs. Upon its 2015 acquisition, Startup Weekend, alongside Startup Week and StartupDigest, became one of the Techstars families of startup programmes.

- How exactly are youngsters going to benefit from the programme?
Startup Weekend is a 54-hour weekend event during which, groups of developers, business managers, startup enthusiasts, marketing gurus, graphic artists pitch ideas for new startup companies, form teams around those ideas, and work to develop a working prototype by Sunday evening (July 21). It’s a great platform for youngsters to work on their ideas and pitch to a panel. It gives them great exposure into the startup ecosystem.

- What are you expecting from the youngsters from Pune?
We are expecting a bunch of 40-50 young individuals from diverse backgrounds to come together and create amazing products. This will help create a great startup ecosystem in the city where young minds can come together, build great products and services and help in their growth alongside other established startups.

- How are you going to select the contenders for startups?
There are no selection criteria. The event is open to all, you either come with an idea and make your team or become a part of an idea based on the skills you possess. You can also come as a team.

- What kind of ideas are likely to win you over?
Ideas that involve solving a problem are definitely going to be great.

- Why is there a sudden surge in the number of startups now?
There are a lot of reasons, one of them is that people are coming together and helping each other. Ecosystems like Startup Weekend are giving individuals the right kind of platforms to learn, network and startup,
                           
- While pitching an idea for fundraising or seeking investment, what should the founder of a startup keep in mind?
There are many things. One that I would recommend is being yourself, believing in your idea and product. Don’t go with any assumptions or misconceptions. You don’t have to impress an investor, you have to tell them what exactly you are trying to do, how will it add value and why is it needed.

- Why do startups fail?
Startups fail due to many reasons, sometimes it’s lack of funds, at times not having the right team and many times, the timing becomes the key. What is important is that a startup founder should analyse why it failed, learn from it and start afresh. 

- What would you advise those who have bright ideas but are  stuck in jobs and are therefore afraid to take the leap?
Just start somewhere. It may also mean becoming a part of a startup idea or a startup community. If you feel you are not ready to take the leap, you can meet other entrepreneurs, startups and network with them, become part of various communities and gain the confidence.

ST READER SERVICE
Startup Weekend is holding its Pune Chapter at The Daftar, Baner between July 19 and 21.  
To register, log on to  www.explara.com/e/swpune2019