November 30th saw the launch of “Campus Companies” in an event organized by the E-cell Committee of Jaipuria Institute of Management, Noida. The session was held in the presence of two of our illustrious alumni from the batch of 2013-15, both incidentally worked at Asian Paints. Mr. Vivek Mishra was designated as Marketing and Sales Officer and Mr. Ankit Choudhary as DSO. Together they began Quakart.com and were invited to share their experience with the students. The discussion panel included Prof. Anurag Singh, Prof. Poonam Sharma, Dr. Ritika Gugnani and Prof. Vinita Srivastava, and it led to interesting learning for all of us.

Four groups made presentations and shared their ideas about how they would become entrepreneurs. Ashish Dave set the ball rolling with a presentation on his company AD Jewellers describing how he would target women customers and work on building revenues. Talking about the family business, he made an interesting point when he said, “Product honesty and solving the queries of the customers are the only ways to gain their satisfaction and loyalty.”

Atisha and Gunjita then presented their company idea, Zeal and Pomp. It aimed to be a one-stop party shop for items and accessories one needs for birthdays, friendship day, Valentine’s Day, college events and other special occasions. They talked about key resources, pricing policy and affordable budgets to make every event on the campus memorable. Their Facebook marketing strategy to gain popularity hit the right notes with us.

The third group shed light on their new business company Torque, which deals in apparels, stationeries and flowers. Their focus was on creating a value proposition for their products. They also described their future plans, which were clear and made a lot of sense. The audience participation at the end of every presentation posed questions for the groups and added to the engagement. The groups were tested on their ideas, which led to lively discussions.

The session ended with the alumni sharing their experiences about starting a business and the challenges one is likely to face. They talked about their own business QuaKart, which is a new and improved drinking water delivery system. The company came into being with the need for pure drinking water and the journey has been a rollercoaster ride for them. They left us with an important thought that nothing can replace hard work and dedication. Maybe a direct quote can go here?

We went back after the eventful day having gained valuable insights about entrepreneurship. We now await the results of the presentations; though all the groups made their mark with well-presented ideas.

Student Contributor: Paulomi De