The week that was: From homegrown brand Wat-a-Burger to Corteva Agriscience changing farming
This week, we bring you the story of homegrown brand Wat-a-Burger, edtech startup S P Robotics and its impact on education, and more.
What happens when an information technology professional and a pilot come together? A homegrown burger chain is born. Farman Beig and Rajat Jaiswal founded Wat-a-Burger in 2016 to offer Indian consumers a taste of fusion burgers in a market dominated by US fast-food chains McDonald’s and Burger King with their international and desi flavours.
Since opening the first outlet in Noida Sector 18, Wat-a-Burger has scaled up to more than 60 joints across 16 cities in over four years. This includes Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ghaziabad, Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Lucknow, Chandigarh, Gorakhpur, Faridabad, Ranchi, Jhansi, and Srinagar.
Farman Beig, Co-founder & CEO, Wat-a-Burger
Ideas are changing legacy businesses.
With agriculture being the primary source of livelihood for 58 percent of India’s population, innovations and developments in this field are pertinent for farmers to increase growth and productivity. Corteva Agriscience is a global pure-play agriculture company that provides farmers around the world with a complete portfolio of agriculture solutions in the industry.
This includes a balanced and diverse mix of seed, crop protection, and digital solutions focused on maximising productivity to enhance yield, sustainability, and profitability.
Saradamba at the farm
Moving on to edtech.
Robotics, drones, virtual reality (VR), Internet of Things (IoT), and artificial intelligence (AI) are all buzzy, thriving sectors in current times, but without hands-on experience, they are tough, theoretical concepts. An edtech startup offering children practical exposure to these concepts through kits and personalised online guidance is Chennai-based SP Robotics Works.
It is a platform where children aged 7-17, as well as college students and graduates, can learn concepts practically in a fun-filled way and understand where they can be applied, says Pranavan S, who founded SP Robotics with Sneha Priya.
S P Robotics
Influencers play a critical role today.
Delhi-based biker and entrepreneur Jasminder Singh aka Jaysn was a graphic designer. But, in 2016, Jasminder turned to YouTube to showcase his travelling videos on superbikes. Today, his Youtube channel JS Films boasts of 2.68 million subscribers, with more than 425 million views. In fact, he claims he is one of the fastest motovlogger to achieve a million subscribers on the platform.
Starting from Delhi on December 10, 2020, he travelled on his Suzuki Hayabusa, all the way from Kanyakumari to Udhampur. The 8,500 km long road trip ended on January 8, 2021.
Edited by Saheli Sen Gupta