October - 2016 - Special issue > Editorial

Being Niche-focused is the Key to Success

Anamika Sahu

Friday, October 7, 2016

Forward

The road to startup is not aureate but harsh and thorny. When on last Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced Start-up India, Stand Up India initiative, the startup ecosystem suddenly got a roller-skates to sail through at a pace which they never envisioned. Self-certification, Start-up India hub, register through app, patent protection, Rs.10,000 crore fund, National Credit Guarantee Trust Company, no capital gains tax, no income tax for three years, and many more such initiatives poured new life to the lingering ecosystem in the country.

But then it is equally important for startup entrepreneurs to bring in fresh ideas to solve glocal issues rather than copy the idea from global players with no significance to its audience. Poor strategy and lack of funding and scalability equally affects the startup’s bottom line. Contrary, many startups that raise funds struggle to keep the cash burn rate and ends up drying funds sooner than anticipated, resulting in failure.

But in this issue of siliconindia, we bring to you the story of few such startups who have successfully created a niche place for themselves within the industry in our ‘Startup of the Year – 2016’ edition. Each of these startups has home-grown products/services that are crafted to address specific needs of the consumers. Their unique vision, product, work culture, success & failure stories, struggle, enthusiasm that seems never ending and dare to grow their startup organically are few points that really catches our eyes. Hope their story inspires young and old to join the startup bandwagon and create history for the country.