[music playing]
'Make some room.'
'Coming today on Shark Tank India'
'is the youngest Shark at just 30 years.'
'The Founder and Group CEO of OYO, Ritesh Agarwal.'
[music playing]
'OYO's journey wasn't a straight line.'
and a lot of difficult situations.
The highs have been exponential
and left people in awe of us.
When I started my own business,
I had really low ambitions.
What do customers like the most about the rooms?
I had set up one hotel and my ambition was
to be able to establish a few more hotels in life.
I come from a small town.
So, coming to Delhi and setting up my own business
was a big deal in itself.
During my early years,
when I was born and brought up in Rayagada...
There were a handful of things
that firmly shaped my life.
[school bell rings]
When I was in the twelfth grade,
my family faced a major financial hardship.
In that situation,
there was no other option but to sell the house.
That taught me sacrifice.
I learned my greatest lesson in the markets of Rayagada.
I used to visit the market as a child to sell SIM cards.
I'd listen to the problems and feedback of the customers there.
That made me realise
that the pursuit of excellence
and the values of our company,
in a way, stemmed from there.
The lowest point of my professional career
was during the pandemic.
All the hotels were vacant in one day.
My income dropped by 70 to 80%.
We focused on a few key things.
Firstly, our customers,
team members and our hotels.
We tried to talk to all three every month.
Secondly, we focused on the loyalty program.
Today, our loyalty program Wizard
is probably the biggest in India in the travel segment.
Thirdly, we focused on the app.
Today, 92% of our bookings come through our app and website
which are not third-party channels.
During Covid, our company stood at a loss
of Rs. 450 crores EBITDA.
I am delighted to say
that our company will earn Rs. 1,000 crores EBITDA.
[pleasant music playing]
- I hope you have a great experience. - Thank you so much.
I've been often asked, "Why Shark Tank?".
Shark Tank has built a brilliant platform.
It rapidly lent entrepreneurial ambitions in India
a new sense of excitement.
No matter which city I visited,
I noticed that people considered entrepreneurship
synonymous with Shark Tank.
[applause]
Sir, I will try my best...
My personal experience can be looked upon as a learning.
If a child like me with limited resources,
who wasn't a leader in studies or other areas,
can achieve success,
then other kids who are bright and clever
can achieve greater success than me.
All right! Good luck, Ritesh!
- All right. - Woo hoo!
I need all the best wishes.
[theme music playing]
[music concludes]
Taxi driver!
I wish to go to Darbhanga. Will you take me?
Sure, sir. That will be Rs. 4,000.
That's a steep fare for a mere 150 km!
I didn't pay that much to travel from Delhi to Patna.
Sir, I will drive 150 km to as well as fro.
I won't get a passenger on my way back here.
My children will starve.
Either come with me or walk all the way!
[laughter]
Sharks, this is very common in Bihar.
Owing to unorganised taxi services,
RodBez brings you the solution to this problem.
Greetings, Sharks.
where drivers select their routes, and passengers, their destination.
We connect passengers with drivers
I request you to come on board
and revolutionise the taxi industry in Bihar.
Wonderful!
Amazing. [claps]
- Welcome to Shark Tank. - Thank you.
Tell us about your respective backgrounds.
Sir, my father was a bus driver.
I got married in 2008.
Marriage comes with added responsibilities.
I was 16 years old at the time.
I had studied only till the tenth grade.
My first job interview was for the post of a peon.
I gave the interview but didn't get the job
- because I couldn't recognise the iPhone logo. - Oh!
- They'd decided not to hire people who didn't look dapper. - Okay.
When I got back from the interview, I burnt my educational certificate.
- I decided I wasn't going to do a job. - Did you really burn it?
- Yes, I did. - Gosh.
I told my father to teach me how to drive.
Dad was dejected but gave in to my wishes.
He taught me to drive.
I took up a job as a driver in the village for Rs. 3,500.
It didn't suffice as I had a child.
I had to provide for it and get it enrolled in school.
I went to Patna and took up a job as a driver for a year.
Over time, I thought of learning some new skills.
I gained experience in electrical work and fire.
Then I entered the construction line
and managed to save some money.
I started a company called AryaGo.
My concept was similar
to that of Ola and Uber that operate in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
We, on the other hand, operated in villages.
Within cities. Intracity rides.
Did you build that technology?
I hired a team for it.
- The team designed the application. - Did you hire the team?
Yes.
- Where were your engineers? - In Saharsa.
- You had software engineers in Saharsa. - Yes.
So, the business was operational then.
I started it in 2016, built a team in 2020
and when I left in 2021,
- That's right. - Wow!
Your total sales must have been around Rs. 60 lakhs.
I only took 10%.
- The sales were Rs. 80 lakhs. Yes. - 80 lakhs!
- Fantastic! - Yes.
You were getting bookings worth Rs. 80 lakhs per month
- from the villages to the cities on your portal. - Yes.
I had made small mistakes.
I diluted 70% at an investment of Rs. 20 lakhs.
We approached the locals
because people weren't convinced
a village boy could achieve something like this.
I have a sir who I call a guru.
He studied at IIT Kharagpur and is well-versed in Adobe.
I sought sir's help in this matter.
He gave me two options.
Either I give them 10x and let them exit
as they'd invested Rs. 20 lakhs.
- He agreed to arrange for the funds. - Really!
I thought it wasn't right to ask them to leave
because people would say that I let the very people go
who supported me from the beginning when it was time to grow.
I thought I should come up with a new brand pan-Bihar.
- We shouldn't stay the same entity. - This is even worse!
- You didn't give them any returns. - Did you give them equity?
No, that company is still operational.
- Ah! - Those people are running it now.
This wasn't generous in any way.
You saw a bigger opportunity.
It was the humane thing to do.
How do you know him?
He's my maternal uncle's son.
First cousins.
He could do that to you.
- He'll say, "Why should I give the investor money?" - He won't.
He could do that to us too if we invested money.
When an investor invests money
and becomes the owner of your company with a 70% stake,
then the problem is no longer yours, but his.
If we invest, we won't take the majority of the profits.
You didn't take the majority when you partnered with him, right?
- So, you started a new company in 2021. - In 2022, I...
- For this one too! - For this company as well!
This was through Mithila Angel Network.
Through Mithila Angel Network.
What percent?
- That was at a valuation of Rs. 4 crores. - Whoa!
My father drove a bus for the Roadways.
In Bihar, the pronunciation is 'roadbez'.
That's how it got its name.
- RoadBez. - So that people
- could recall the brand name. - Recall it.
Where does RoadBez currently operate?
We connect Patna to every town in Bihar
and every city to Patna too.
Don't Ola and Uber operate there?
Ola and Uber operate in Patna, sir, but that is for city rides only.
And the inter-city rides are two-way.
Out of the ride requests that were coming to us,
40% of the rides were both to and fro
with a time gap of three to four hours.
I thought why not associate with taxis
who will work with us full time.
They take the passenger via the desired route
and return via the same route with another passenger.
How many such people have you partnered with?
and it was a grand success.
Not a single taxi driver suffered a loss.
We've made Rs. 20,000 income on every taxi on average.
Rs. 20,000 only!
Rs. 20,000 is our profit.
What was last month's revenue?
We achieved Rs. 20,000 just a week ago.
It was Rs. 15,000 last month.
Okay. So, you made Rs. 6 lakhs.
You quit the last business with a momentum of Rs. 80 lakhs.
Now, you're almost there at Rs. 70 lakhs...
around Rs. 30 lakhs...
- Sir, my math is a little... - Done. It's correct.
May I show you the application, sir?
Sure.
This is the RoadBez mobile app which we have designed.
- You mean you designed it. Okay. - Yes, I did.
I have designed the graphics.
Where did you learn this?
On YouTube, sir.
You learned coding on YouTube!
The graphics are designed on XD.
After I design it on XD,
the developer converts it into HTML...
No, this is live.
- Live. - Yes.
Fantastic!
Sharks, suppose we feed...
- Patna to Darbhanga. - Darbhanga.
Ola and Uber have the same interface.
- It's just like Uber and Ola. - It's the same.
The icon of the car is also the same.
They invested billions in it!
He's asking you to wait.
[Sharks laugh]
Sharks, we offer One Way Taxi, Taxi Pool and Share.
Here's where we've changed the game.
This caters to customers who have a flight or train to catch
and cannot change their time.
Suppose a One Way Taxi customer
schedules a ride from Patna to Darbhanga
at the price of Rs. 2,486.
Within 24 hours, if that passenger wishes to return
from Darbhanga to Patna,
the Taxi Pool option will be available to them with the time.
For instance, the taxi is available on 29 September at 8:29 pm...
- Hmm. - The fare is Rs. 1,989.
This is cheaper.
It won't just show the availability for Darbhanga to Patna,
but for all the towns and villages that fall on that route.
The first one to book gets the taxi.
- Amazing. - Then it's no longer available.
- Nice. - It balances out.
That's right.
This is some interesting creativity
because you couldn't have replicated this on Ola and Uber.
- It isn't available. - BlaBlaCar had this.
Yes.
They can copy from you.
We'll see, sir. We're from Bihar.
What do you mean by that?
I have driven a taxi on those routes.
I know the problems that taxi drivers face.
I've lived and experienced
the problems faced by the passengers there.
- Great. - No one can address their woes better than us.
True, very good.
Two things are different. Here's the first one.
If the ride is confirmed
and you miss your flight,
our company will buy you a ticket on the next available flight.
- Gosh! This is a huge commitment. - It indeed is.
That is solid marketing. Customers find it great.
How this commitment helps is that our rides...
For instance, Ms. Vineeta Singh has used BlaBlaCar.
It is aggregated.
The information pops up on the application.
The driver will go only if he wants.
When your ride with us is confirmed,
we will send you a car on time by any means.
We have a dedicated captain who does that.
The captain's job starts
from the time a customer's ride is assigned to a driver
until the time the ride is completed.
They must take updates from you on WhatsApp a few times.
They check with the passengers whether they reached on time.
- Lovely. - This is your local touch
that you believe Ola and Uber can never incorporate.
This reassures customers that in the case of a blunder,
the drivers will be whacked because the ride is being monitored.
We're giving this touch in intercity.
Whacked!
I got the idea of having captains from Mr. Ritesh Agarwal.
Could you elaborate?
When I booked a hotel, I was assigned a captain.
When I faced a problem,
I shared it with the captain who resolved it for me.
I thought I should incorporate this
because winning people's trust is really important.
I'd rather offer fewer rides that are satisfying.
In five years, how much revenue can your business generate
if you operated only in and around Bihar and Patna?
We could offer up to 2,000 rides a day.
If we touch that number,
we'll have a turnover of about Rs. 80 crores.
- You're talking about commission. - Yes.
- You claim your annual revenue will be Rs. 400 crores. - Yes.
I get 100 orders per day on average.
We manage to fulfil only about 35.
- You can't fulfil them. - That's right.
What is your monthly burn, Dilkhush?
The company will shut down if you run out of money.
A few generous people are there to support us
when we need it.
Who might they be?
We take small loans on interest at about 1 to 1.5%.
- So, you'll take a loan. - Yes.
This way, your debt will gradually increase over time.
We will be back to making profits if we borrow Rs. 5 lakhs.
Then I will cool down.
- After that, I... - [chuckles]
Siddharth! Dilkhush!
Take any mobility company in India, I have invested in it.
I've known this space really well for the last couple of years.
You could call it my strength or weakness,
but it will come across as a weakness in this deal
because I know the problems that come with scaling this business.
You do not have the funding today.
I am out for that reason. Good luck to you.
Thank you.
Okay, let me try giving you an offer.
I think this would be a fair offer.
Ritesh and I will offer you Rs. 20 lakhs for 5% equity.
The rest Rs. 30 lakhs debt at 12% interest
which you take at about 2% a month.
I am out.
- Best of luck and hats off to you. - Thank you.
I'm out.
You've already been offered a deal and the deal is good.
Secondly, your runway is too short.
This might go in the risky territory.
What will you do? You make quick decisions. Tell us.
[tense music playing]
You are welcome.
Do come on board because we want to grow this business
and expand it.
- I need your support... - Done deal!
- Thank you, ma'am. - Thank you.
- All right. Guys, good luck. - Well done.
Continue to inspire the youth of Bihar.
Good job.
[music fades]
[music playing]
Before I begin my pitch, I want to show you a magic trick.
Vineeta, if you don't mind, will you be my volunteer?
Of course, any time!
My magic trick will be done using this small device.
And would you mind if I touch your arm?
- No, not at all. - Okay.
Hold this, please.
Give your hand.
- Oh, wow! - What is it?
[beeping]
It's crazy!
Meaning?
It's crazy.
- I don't understand. - Can you touch my nose?
Oh, wow! What is this?
My forehead.
Hair.
- It didn't work. - No, it didn't.
- I'll show you another trick. - You've turned me into a piano.
- If you don't mind, can you hold this? - Yeah.
[beeping]
- Wow! This is pretty cool, man. - Can I try?
Sure.
[beeping]
Oh my god!
You're embarrassing all of us.
This is cool.
Thank you so much, Vineeta.
It's very cool.
Sharks, did you enjoy it?
This is Queaky.
What Queaky does is that
when his circuit is completed like this,
then he makes a sound.
[beeping]
And our body can also conduct electricity.
That's why, when I held Queaky with both my hands,
then the current passed through my skin and completed this circuit.
- Wow! - Amazing!
Through a game,
I taught you the concept of electrical conductivity.
You must have learnt it in school at some point.
But who remembers it?
But I piqued your curiosity right now.
Then I ignited your critical thinking.
This powerful learning technique is what we call play.
And that is what we do at Blix.
Sharks, I'm the third generation toymaker of my family.
And with Blix,
we'll take toys a step further
and turn them into learning tools.
Through our products,
concepts of science and technology, like force,
power, voltage and even
robotics, coding and artificial intelligence can also be learnt.
You can find our products
use our educational kits
to provide an equal opportunity,
irrespective of their economic background,
to all the kids in India
to develop their fundamental skills and knowledge.
And to complete this vision,
I've come to ask you for Rs. 80 lakhs
This is a good purpose.
How did you get this idea?
When I was young,
my dad started a toy company called Zephyr Toymaker.
And they have a product
which is called Mechanix.
It has nuts, bolts, metal parts which can be joined
to build cars, toys, etc.
That Mechanix brand
- belongs to your dad's company? - Yes.
Mechanix is very popular.
Yes, ma'am. In the toy industry, it's of the largest toy companies in India
Okay.
I have worked in my father's business for ten years.
So, Mechanix inspired me to become an engineer.
I used to attend robotics competitions during class.
That taught me more about engineering
than what I learnt in the classroom.
That's amazing.
I wanted to provide kids with that experience.
But I have a fundamental problem.
Children should be allowed to remain children.
They're learning in school, learning at home, isn't it a bit too much?
I'll tell you what's happening now is
that the toys at home
are being replaced by PlayStation and phones.
Yes.
But the text books in school
are getting replaced by these toys.
In India, according to the National Education Policy,
robotics is an important and integral part of the learning.
All schools in India
will have to set up a robotics lab sooner or later.
It's good for schools, but as a consumer it isn't right for us.
Sir, there are many types of children.
We have children who are obsessed with this for 4-5 hours.
Abbas, when did you start this company?
Blix as a toy
started in 2016-17.
You started Blix under Zephyr
- as a product for Zephyr company? - Yes.
Since 2021, this is a separate entity.
In 2019, I stepped down from Zephyr
to focus completely on Blix.
Why did you do that?
Sir, my brother is my mentor in many ways.
In 2019, he said, your vision is too big.
But you're not going to be able to make this education thing come alive
if your focus is not on that.
And you still have an equity in Zephyr or...
I'm now 70% owner of Blix.
He's 20% owner.
And 5% each for my parents.
- And Zephyr? - Same ratio.
I owe 20%, he owes 70%.
But a settled big business,
your brother has 70% in it.
And the new business that you're building, you have 70% in it.
Yes.
Your brother turned out to be very smart.
He's the real shark whom you should've brought along.
He's actually sitting backstage, but he felt that
because this was my product and my vision,
he didn't want to...
How much liquidity did you get there?
- How much cash? - Around Rs. 7.5 crores.
Out of that Rs. 7.5 crores, I put in Rs. 1.5 crore more in this.
How big a company is Zephyr?
Sir, it's revenue is about Rs. 25-30 crores.
And how big is this company?
This company's revenue is about Rs. 4 crores.
Last month, we did Rs. 36 lakhs.
are sold through my brother.
He's my national distributor for our toys.
So, all of these boxes
are designed as toys
and those bags that you see
have a similar material,
but you also get a curriculum with it.
Today, my marketing spend is very low.
And that is because we are not yet sure how to do it.
You said that your brother is here.
Yes.
Why don't we meet him as well since
he has contributed so much and continues to do so.
My dad is also here.
What's his name?
My brother's name is Moiz and my dad's name is Zaheer.
Sir, we've all used your toys.
I have a lot of boxes of Mechanix at home.
Did you start that business yourself, sir?
Yes.
I was very fortunate that both my sons came to the business.
Sometimes, in such a situation,
I mean, I shouldn't say this but
if family relations go bad,
your business depends a lot on them.
Today, if I find a distributor
who commits to me
a higher sale than what Zephyr would do as a distributor,
then I have the full right to go and
give it to another distributor as well.
Shall we understand your gross margins, etc. better?
Last year, our profit was Rs. 7 lakhs.
Thank you.
Look, your
movement from Mechanix to education
is very good.
But I have a concern.
Your structure between Blix and Zephyr is very complex.
50% of your distribution comes from them.
You said that you'll go to someone else,
but it won't be easy to switch a 50% distributor overnight.
This is my concern.
- One moment. - I'll make an offer.
I don't see this as a problem.
I think the conflict of interest comes where
your relationship is concerned
where the gross margin, how much you sell it for.
What if they refuse to sell at this margin tomorrow and ask for more?
You'll lose half your sales.
If Zephyr says that,
then I have all of the network in the industry.
He gets along well with his brother.
Everything is good. Why are you bent on making them fight?
You're saying that what if they fight, but they're not fighting.
Tell me one more thing, we'll have all the numbers covered.
Yes.
This Rs. 8 crores of revenue that you're doing,
how much money do you make out of it?
In these six months, that is till the end of September.
Yes.
We would be about Rs. 8 lakhs in profit.
One second.
- What are you doing? - You want to hear it?
- I'll just answer that one question. - Can I give you an offer?
He'll not stop.
One second.
Stop pressing that. Keep it away.
- Abbas, look. - Yes.
The conflict of interest situation is real.
- Okay? - Yes.
So, my offer to you comes with a condition, Abbas.
Okay.
If a problem arises with this company,
then I can buy the shares of that company.
An option to buy your shares in that company.
I wouldn't mind that.
Abbas, you can refuse a condition.
But the condition is under the condition that we have a conflict.
I'm confident of that. So...
Very good! So my offer is Rs 40 lakhs at 4 per cent.
- Okay. - Equity.
Because we're not very profitable.
It's the right decision.
Don't worry, you will get an offer without a debt.
No. Hello, can you let me talk?
You said that you've invested all the money in your team.
Can you tell us a bit about your team?
Three strong pillars.
For development, we have this person called Harshvardhan.
He's an instrumentation engineer.
And we have a powerful lady in sales.
She kind of takes care of our sales.
And the third person is our operations head.
He's an ex-Capgemini.
Abbas, we'll be back in two minutes. Please don't close on the offer.
Do you know him?
Of course. I always use his example in all of my pitches.
- Oh, wow! - Yes.
Your valuation,
I think, is very expensive.
But you're on Tank and have stirred up competition.
So, we have to do something about it.
Because you're an amazing entrepreneur.
Vineeta will tell you what her offer is.
The offer is Rs 80 lakhs,
both of us will come in and we will take 5 per cent.
Look, the right to buy
makes me feel that
my primary challenge that it would remain a conflict,
I find it comforting.
Our proposal is for you to take Rs 1 crore as investment.
We will equally split it.
- The valuation will remain as is. - Rs 16 crores.
- Do the math. - 6.25 per cent.
It will be fun now.
Thank you so much, Peyush, and everyone else.
Can I take a two-minute call and come?
- Call? Your family is here. - Yeah.
But my wife is the company's chief operating officer.
- You didn't tell us earlier. - Oh.
- You didn't tell us earlier. - You didn't even bring her.
She's not a stakeholder.
He even asked who are the key people.
- You mentioned three people then. - Yes, Sir.
You forgot about the chief operating officer.
I'm really sorry. You're right. Actually, I
meant it as
those three people because they're not part of the family.
So, what's your wife's role in the company?
She handles the operations.
Are you the CEO of the company or her?
I'm the CEO.
But you're only into product development.
No, I also look after sales.
But I'm more of an engineer.
My wife and my sales head
make sure I don't talk to any customers.
Because I talk more about product
and it doesn't close down.
You are very passionate about this product.
Yes.
- Okay, you got the three offers. - Yes.
- All the best. Come back. - I'll be back.
He's only into the product so eventually, there's no problem
scaling the company.
I mean, he seems open, a very flexible.
But he didn't tell his wife is...
I don't think he meant it.
It's evident that he wasn't deliberately hiding.
But eventually then the COO is missing...
Abbas, welcome back.
I have a counteroffer. Rs 90 lakhs for 3 per cent.
A valuation of Rs 30 crores is double for us.
So, Anupam and I are out.
Okay, we'll make you the last offer. Accept or reject it, else we're out.
- Okay. - Ritesh and I will come as a team.
Rs 80 lakhs for 4 per cent.
But can I ask Peyush if he's having anything on his mind?
You're again doing the same thing.
Say a yes or a no.
Who made a decision about the 3 per cent?
- Shall we get out of it? - I did.
How did you arrive at this number?
- Uh, I felt that-- - Listen.
Listen, we've been talking for a long.
Tell me if it's a yes or a no, else I'm out.
Give me just 5 seconds to see if
- Peyush is-- - Okay.
- If not, then I'm-- - I'm out.
Aman, I have only one opportunity on Shark Tank.
I would really
- like to... - Why aren't you? Your original ask was 2%.
We didn't ask for a lot. Just finish it.
Are you still in, Sir?
I'm in if you take it at that value or I'm out.
[music playing]
Sharks, after clearing my board exams finally,
after toiling, I've secured a seat at my favourite university.
Well done.
I left home with my bag of dreams
but little did I know
that not finding good accommodation can cause so many problems for me.
And soon, this bag of dreams
turns into a baggage of troubles.
The first problem
is lack of options or brokerage.
The second problem is unhygienic hostels.
The third problem is bad food.
And after all this,
if it comes to booking cancellation,
then there is no question of a refund.
This industry is so unorganized
that there is no guarantee from check-in to check-out.
So, Sharks,
it's time to solve students' problems with Homversity.
[music playing]
in booking a good accommodation.
enrol in more than 50,000 universities, colleges,
and stand-alone institutions.
But only 10 to 12 per cent of the students get campus accommodation.
Hmm.
Filling this gap,
and organizing this industry at the helm of technology,
and taking it to the global standards.
It's Homversity's vision.
Because hostels mean Homversity.
Welcome, Saurav.
Thank you, sir.
- Tell me something. - Yes, sir.
You used a few heavy words there.
- "Smart digital hostel." - Yes.
How can a hostel be digital? One has to live in a house.
When we speak of digital hostels, we are referring to
every insight and piece of information
a student might need to make a decision,
because booking a hostel
is different than booking a hotel, sir.
We need to fix every data parameter from the front-end to the back-end.
Overall, the efficiency is improved.
- So, you've digitalised the experience. - Yes, sir.
- Right? You didn't give an example of that. - Sir...
- Let me give you an example, sir. - Okay.
Every time we visit a hostel,
the students come to us saying,
"Sir, we told them two days ago"
"that there is no water in the tap, the geyser doesn't work,"
"and the bedsheet is stained but no one has come to clean it."
The problem was
owners visit the property once a month.
The property is run by managers.
So, we started providing maintenance services.
Our app has a section called Service Requests.
The app is designed to recommend on its own.
If your fan stops working,
it will automatically send a message to the concerned person
- to repair it. - Good.
- It's very well connected.
- There's a company called Prustel Living. - Okay.
There's one called Zostel.
- Zostel... - Earlier...
- Zostels are backpacker hostels for travellers. - Yes.
No. This company provides student housing.
- Yes, sir. There are many. - There are many, Aman.
- Stanza Living. - Yes.
When we talk about these companies, they're operators.
Their properties are listed on Homversity too.
They're operators and you're the marketplace.
Yes. We're a SaaS-based marketplace.
Tell me something, Saurav.
What problem are you trying to solve?
Are you providing an organised hostel like OYO does
- or are you merely helping with finding a hostel? - A platform.
Sir, suppose someone wants to start a hotel
or a restaurant in India, there are set guidelines.
There are no guidelines for hostels, sir.
One room can have five beds or even ten
- depending on the mood of the property owner. - True.
When I was in university, we came up with a form.
I was in my third year
- and when we got funding... - You started Homversity.
Yes.
We started with 90 parameters and gradually added more.
Today, Homversity has 145 parameters.
On the basis of that,
a hostel needs to surpass at least 75%
to get onboarded on our platform.
Look. He started the business
because the ratings from trip advisors were not improving.
You're claiming the same thing,
that your quality is improving based on the ratings.
Demonstrate that to us.
Sir, this is our application. Okay?
Coming to the first question which is if you need a hostel or a PG.
On the top, it has 'Get me a hostel' or 'Get me a PG'.
Select 'Get me a hostel'.
You can use the filter to search for hostels near the university.
For example, I've chosen Dehradun.
If I type in UPES,
- it will pull up all the hostels in its vicinity. - Okay.
I don't see the review score.
The review scores are not live yet, they're on the backend.
- Your main proposition was reviews.. - Reviews and ratings.
They're missing.
Sir, the reviews and ratings do reflect on our website.
We just launched the app two months ago.
We've just got early access. The bookings happen on the website.
- People normally search on the website. - Yes.
We upload the photos of all the sections.
The mess, kitchen, washrooms and other rooms
which is done by our team.
Your photo is current.
What if the place is a mess after a month?
- You wouldn't have those. - They're updated on the website.
How frequently do you click pictures?
Every three months as of now.
Now, it is asking me
whether I want to book on a quadruple sharing basis or triple.
Now, we need to select the duration.
So, we ask them to book for at least a month.
Rs. 13,000 per month!
Yes, ma'am.
- It's the rent. Yes, ma'am. - For a hostel!
Does the full payment need to be made?
It has the option to make a partial payment.
Rs. 5,000 or whatever the booking amount is.
The entire money flows through us.
There are loads of housing websites
on which you see photos
and buy properties or take them on rent.
Your USP is that you're allowing sharing,
and a monthly booking or a two-monthly booking.
You say that you update your photos regularly
- which other websites do not do. - That's right.
Let me tell you our biggest USP.
When we collect data,
we don't ask if it's a veg hostel or a non-veg hostel.
We ask this.
If the student is in college, where will he have lunch?
Will he come back or will the food van deliver it?
Whether they serve veg and non-veg food,
what's the frequency of menu change,
what about milk provision... Everything.
How do you make money?
We have two ways currently and the third was recently introduced.
The first is commission from bookings
Initially, we used to have leakages in Kota in the beginning.
We call them leakages in the case where the booking is bypassed.
Suppose the booking is bypassed.
Both the owner and student say that they didn't place the booking.
If it's a walk-in customer,
even then the check-in happens on our app.
- That helps prevent a bypass. - Okay.
So, our agenda for the next eight months is
Where do you currently stand
and how far will you take the business?
Sir, starting January 2022, we had our proper first year
we raised bookings worth almost Rs. 6 crores on our platform.
We hadn't monetised it back then.
In April this year,
we'll be getting close to bookings worth Rs. 30 crores on our platform.
How is seasonality not there?
All the colleges start between June to September.
It has to peak then. Seasonality can't be disregarded.
In every city that has colleges,
for example, Dehradun or Kota,
our average booking period lasts from three to six months.
If we talk about Delhi and Bengaluru,
the average booking duration there is one month.
They switch after a month,
or after a month, they decide to go elsewhere.
So, the seasonality gets counterbalanced.
Why? Isn't this a retention issue?
- Tell me something. - The churn rate is high.
What's the average duration
a student spends in one of your hostels?
Ma'am, defining this in one line is a little difficult
- because... - Answer in one line.
If I talk about Dehradun,
the average duration is six months to a year.
For the rest, the average duration is three months.
the problem of hostel living among students,
then your retention span should be in years.
- We've observed that students try to move in with friends. - Yes.
- True. - This is a major factor, ma'am.
That's what she is saying.
- Precisely. - Ultimately, it comes to this.
There is no confusion.
Three months is your average duration on the platform.
- Yes or no? - Yes, sir.
- And that's... - It's a retention problem.
Yes.
Visit to booking.
- Yes, sir. - The customer goes to the site, the visit is done.
Booking means that he paid you an advance and booked the place.
What was your conversion earlier?
It was close to 30%, sir.
30%!
- Yes, 30. - Not possible, bro.
- Let me tell you... - That's one lakh bookings a month.
Should I give you the booking figures?
- Visits... - Okay.
Look, clear this... Here's what is happening.
You're saying so much so quickly
- that we cannot close even a single point. - Yes.
Let me tell you this in very clear terms.
There's a metric in place.
Give me the number of visitors.
- You could quote unique visitors or total visitors. - Total.
And the booking conversion.
- I'll talk about all visits to booking. - Okay.
From the point of search to the final booking,
- that is quite a low number, sir. - Tell me.
Around 10%.
It's just not possible. Anyway.
Our total monthly cost is Rs. 8 lakhs.
We project our top line or bookings
to be around Rs. 45 crores.
That was because
we would have retained the properties
we were going to add this year by maintaining good relations.
I can't quote the exact amount,
but we will break even really soon.
Based on our profitability, our burn should be
around 2.5 crores.
We'll make some profit. Around Rs. 2 crores.
For hostel owners,
this at scale
with a three-month retention and seasonality.
This isn't sensible in my opinion.
I'm out.
I want to tell you
that you speak incessantly
and fail to listen at times.
There's a reason we have two ears and one mouth.
At times, you get so excited about your own project,
you don't focus on what others are saying.
That's just feedback because it's very much like me.
The biggest problem here is, whosoever makes a marketplace
pumps in not hundreds of millions of dollars,
- but billions of dollars... - Billions.
To build a large business.
You speak of profitability.
That's just not possible.
- Which one... - It's impossible.
Secondly, I asked you about your conversion metrics.
You did not know.
You should be honest and say upfront you don't know.
Whether it's your energy or something else...
You're a smooth-talker and are quick to answer,
- but you can't build a business on words, my friend. - Of course.
I believe you have a goal and possess the energy too,
but you lack business maturity.
So, I am out. Good luck to you.
Okay.
The problem is big.
I am also scared of this industry.
There have been many players until now.
As I mentioned OYO and others.
I'm scared of this industry
because I don't know when it will be profitable.
The chances are bleak.
You have a lot of energy.
Whether you have two ears and one mouth,
draw the energy wherever it is coming from.
That's your plus point.
Energy needs to be directed though.
I am out.
I believe you're getting distracted.
The pressure of making revenue is getting to you.
I'm out too.
- You should think hard about how you will solve this problem. - Yes.
Sure, sir.
I believe that instead of targeting 100 cities
and acquiring loads of hostels,
you should target just two cities.
Become the king of Kota
- or the leader of Dehradun. - Okay.
That, in my opinion, has a higher chance of success.
Given the stage at which your business is,
it is unclear to me whether after three years
you wish to be a SaaS player,
- a marketplace or a brand. - Yes.
For that reason, I am out.
- Best wishes to you. - Thank you.
I hope you become the king of Dehradun or Kota soon.
- Thank you, sir. - Awesome.
[poignant music playing]
Today's question
is by Nehal Athani from Belgaum.
'Ma'am, I am part of my family's hardware business'
Got it.