At BrilliantRead Media, it is our constant endeavour to bring meaningful and powerful stories from India and around the world to empower and motivate our growing community. As part of this, we invited Venkata Saiveer Reddy Gutha for an exclusive interview with us. Venkat Saiveer is an Entrepreneur, Leader and Consultant. He is the Founder and CEO of LionCharge E-Mobility Private Limited. Let’s learn more about his incredible journey, his background, and his valuable advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Venkata Saiveer:
We are aware of your contribution to the ecosystem, talk us through your background and your journey as an entrepreneur, please;
I did my engineering in I.T. from Muffakhamjah College of Engineering and Technology from Hyderabad. I graduated from college in 2016 and moved to the US for my master’s in computer science.
As a child, I was always interested in renewable energy and sustainable living. During my college, I’ve attended a workshop for E-waste management where I learnt a lot about how our unstainable practices are accelerating global warming and learnt some ways to reduce it through waste management. This got me very interested in topics like reducing carbon emissions to tackle global warming.
After graduating with a master’s degree from California State University East bay in 2018, it took me 6 months to find a job in the bay area.
While I was looking for a job, I was also flirting with the idea of being self-employed and starting a business with no concrete plans. I always knew that I would never settle in the US for the rest of my life.”
Once I got a job there and started working as a software engineer, I was learning a lot about teamwork and the effort it takes to develop a great product. While I was working at my job I always made time for myself on the weekends to explore new avenues for starting a business. I would pick any book to read about self-help or starting a business.
This helped me a lot in understanding the risks of owning and what it takes to run a business. I was also reading about the evolving EV market in India which seemed like a great opportunity to me. India has great potential to become a world leader in the EV space, and I wanted to play a part in it which is also in line with my passion for sustainable living.
Once I decided to work on this problem for developing and accelerating the EV market in India, I understood that EV charging infrastructure was key to realize a carbon-free commute in India and to become world leader in the EV space. I studied how the US and some European countries were implementing the charging infrastructure and started planning on how I can implement this for the Indian market.”
This was when covid hit and lockdown was announced everywhere in the US and other parts of the world. Great, now I didn’t have to go to the office for work, I could just work from home. This gave me more time to work on my idea, while I was still at my job. I put together a team to develop a mobile application to operate EV chargers using your phone.
The test application was ready in a month, and I successfully tested it with a charger and a vehicle. The next month I moved back to India to study the Indian market further on the ground and in three months’ time I quit my US job and started setting up my network with whatever savings I had from my job in the US.
What attracts you towards entrepreneurship instead of a corporate career?
I chose entrepreneurship because I always wanted to make an impact and solve real-world problems. I have always been intrigued by entrepreneurship and read the success stories of many successful entrepreneurs.
I like the day-to-day challenges in starting a business which keep you on your toes looking for opportunities to improve daily. I always believe one should only work on anything if they are willing to commit full 100% in their role or rather not do anything. A corporate job is good and necessary to learn basic work ethics and discipline.”
A corporate job limits your abilities only within a boundary allowing no room for learning other aspects of running a business. The best way to learn to run a business is to start a business and not wait for the perfect time. With time you and your business both will evolve.
‘LionCharge E-Mobility Private Limited’ is such a unique name; talk us through more about it, please. Our audience would also love to know what kind of problem you are solving?
LionCharge literally means Lithium Ion(Li-ion) Charging. It really conveys what we are doing.
What does your company specialise in?
At LionCharge we operate a network of EV charging stations in 7 states in India, providing a seamless charging experience from plugin to a full charge through our mobile app – Lioncharge available on Android and iOS.
LionCharge users get access to a wide network of charging stations along highways, in residential spaces, retail spaces, hotels, and workspaces.
EV users can download our app to find the nearest available charger, start/stop the charging session, monitor the charging status in real-time, and pay for consumption over the app making EV charging easy and convenient to use.
We have recently opened India’s first EV charging experience centre, where users can fast charge their car while they can sip some tea and learn more about EVs in our lounge
During this COVID-19 crisis, what are the measures you have undertaken to continue your business without disruption?
As the business is born during COVID, each measure is taken to ensure that the model aligns with the challenges of the pandemic.
~ Our business model consists of a lean team which is not at all resource-heavy and has minimal overheads.
~ Every aspect of the business is online and tech-enabled to ensure automation as much as possible.
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges? What drives you?
The idea of a clean and carbon-free commute in India is the major driving force for me. India has 14 of the world’s 20 most polluted cities. If India wants to be called a world leader we must address this problem immediately and work towards improving our air quality.
Please share with us, what has worked well for you so far?
We maintain a very close relationship with our customers and clients to understand what their requirements are and what needs to be improved. Our constant interaction with customers and clients helped us grow our network
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
My family and friends motivate me the most. Their trust and love for me motivate me and keep me grounded to focus on my work and not worry about anything else.
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
There are a few:
> Being mindful
> Always make time for yourself to learn and improve
> Sticking to your goals and not changing it with time
> Trusting yourself and putting in the work
> Positive mindset
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
I will say it straight that there are many factors but if you really have to have the key elements then to me these are the ones:
(a) Building human connections
(b) Taking up ownership and responsibilities
(c) Building a team
(d) Being punctual and persistent
(e) Positive Attitude
(f) Ability to improve using constructive criticism
What advice would you give students and young professionals who want to have a successful career?
The most important thing to build a successful career is accepting yourself the way you are and being happy with yourself and having a positive attitude.
Dreaming big to build a better future and trusting yourself. Nothing is impossible if you put in the time and effort. Discipline, persistence, and sincerity are the most important things.
BrilliantRead is committed to bringing stories from the startup ecosystem, stories that reshape our perspective, add value to our community and be a constant source of motivation not just for our community but also for the whole ecosystem of entrepreneurs and aspiring individuals.
Note: If you have a similar story to share with our audience and would like to be featured on our online magazine, then please write to us at [email protected], we will review your story and extend an invitation to feature if it is worth publishing.
