How to build a global brand with no funding

Every morning, a young Raj Darji would watch his father tend the crops on his farm. The young boy would even occasionally accompany his father and watch him harvest crops with the help of other workers. What struck him was the way his father treated his farm labour.

“The farm labour in our village particularly looked forward to working for my father. When I asked him why, he told me since he takes care of them well, they take care of him in return,” Raj says.

These words left a lasting impression on the young boy, and went on to shape and define his entrepreneurial journey.

Many years later, Raj completed his engineering and went on to work in the US with Oracle, Hyundai Motors America, and Siemens, among other companies.

In 2012, he came back to India to start product engineering and IT consulting services firm Aarav Solutions, which he registered in Ahmedabad.

Applying the lessons he learnt from the farmland, Raj has grown his bootstrapped business without receiving any external funding — not even from friends and family.

While Raj doesn’t disclose his business’ current revenue, he says, “Today, Aarav Solutions has over 130 employees and corporate locations in India, the US and Canada. Since inception, we have been growing at 100 percent year-on-year.”

Read all about how the Indian startup ecosystem is battling the second wave of COVID-19 here.

Here are some useful tools to help you find the nearest vaccine centres in real-time.

You can also share a tribute to COVID-19 warriors, saviours, and survivors here.

The Interview

Through the CleanTheAir series, YourStory and Project StepOne aim to bring clarity regarding the pandemic to efficiently combat the further spread of COVID-19. In this episode, Paediatrician Dr Umakantha Adiga and Dr Zirak Marker, Senior Psychiatrist and Advisor, Mpower, discuss childcare and mental well-being amidst COVID-19.

Editor’s Pick: Monday Motivation

In Jharkhand, there is a quaint little village called Patrayur, situated about 13 kilometres away from Torpa block, Khunti district. About 230 families live in the hamlet who mainly rely on agriculture for their livelihood.

Among them is 25-year-old Christina Herenj, a woman of the Munda tribe who lives in a joint family of 10 with her children and her husband, Deepak Topno. She is now running a small vegetable business and is the main breadwinner of her family. Read more.

Startup Spotlight

This edtech startup provides extracurricular activities to engage children

Experts say outdoor play is vital for a child’s overall development and learning. It is also important to hone and encourage different kinds of talent for their early development. 

With an idea to ensure children experience multiple aspects of their talent early in life, IIT Kharagpur friends Amritanshu Kumar and Kapish Saraf founded edtech startup KidEx in March 2020 in Gurugram. Read more.

News & Updates

• Online math learning platform CueMath is looking to make inroads into 30 new markets in 2021-22 and is keen to go for another bigger round of funding later this year to support its expansion and growth blueprint. Founder and CEO Manan Khurma said that the company hopes to raise at least $100 million later this year.

• Under the initiative called 'Medicines from the Sky', Flipkart will lead a consortium tasked with the development and execution of the drone deliveries of medical supplies, including vaccines, to remote areas amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 

• Mining baron Anil Agarwal, who runs the globally diversified Vedanta Group, had first hinted at investing in startups in 2017. The business conglomerate has announced that it will invest Rs 100 crore to accelerate tech startups through 'Vedanta Spark' — an open innovation programme it unveiled last October.

Before you go, stay inspired with… 

“Isn’t business eventually just about the P&L? Yes and No. Eventually, the purpose of every business is to serve customers in a profitable manner. However, one needs to chart a viable path to get there.”

— Amit Somani, Managing Partner at Prime Venture Partners

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