Mukesh Jain

Founder

Zanskar Advisors, Mumbai

About Me

Zanskar Advisors is about a year old firm, focused solely on Private Equity / Venture Capital syndication and M&A advisory. I personally have been in this business for almost 19 years now. I have helped raise equity financing for startups as well as growth / mature companies. I find this business exciting and that's why I am still doing this.

Common Challenges Startups Face

Depending on the specifics of the business segment, different startups face different challenges. However, one of the commonest and biggest challenges is acquiring and then retaining customers. For a well balanced team and a good business thesis, capital is reasonably easily available given the rapid evolution of the Indian equity funding Eco-system with the proliferation of accelerators, angel networks, seed funds, VC funds etc.

My Advice If You are Starting Out

Entrepreneurs are getting savvier by the day and mostly are quite on the ball as to what VCs look for. VCs want a mix of the following few things : large market opportunity, market leader / potential market leader, sustainability/defensibility of the business model, great team and good governance & financial acumen...though on the last 2 points, VCs are a bit lenient in startup situations.

3 Piece Advice

I would advise the following: (a) be prepared to face many skeptics and naysayers; (b) do your research and be prepared with not just your story, but also with market intelligence about what others might be doing in the same segment or in adjacent segments; and (c) be flexible