In our relentless pursuit to identify and share with our community some of the unique and compelling startup stories from the ecosystem, this week we spoke to Shivani Singh Kapoor – Founder of ThinkStartup to understand more about their vision and the way forward. ThinkStartup runs Entrepreneurship Education programs for 8th to 12th Grade Students. Through their program students learn real life business skills and ideate and launch their own ventures. Let’s learn more about their journey and the way forward!
Excerpts from our conversation with Team ThinkStartup:
We are aware of your contribution to the ecosystem, tell us a little bit about your startup and the problems you guys are solving, please;
At ThinkStartup we are on a mission to unleash the potential of our nation’s youth. Our programs equip students with the business knowledge and the entrepreneurial mindset needed for them to live up to their true potential. By taking them through an experiential entrepreneurial journey and through mentoring we aim to help them identify their strengths and interests and take the first big leap towards fulfilling their dreams.
India is on track to have 60,000 startups and 100 unicorns before the end of 2025. We are gradually moving towards a more self-reliant and stronger economy. This requires us to rethink the skills that we are preparing our next generation. Along with math and science and all the other subjects taught at school students also need to learn about the world of business and entrepreneurship.”
The best time to teach these skills is early while students are still in their teens – a time when their minds are free and unconditioned and at their creative best.
You are the Founder And CEO of ‘ThinkStartup’ such a unique name. Our audience whats to know- where did the unique idea to start something like this come from?
Coming from a generation where we were encouraged to become either “Engineers or Doctors” I completed my Engineering from IIT Delhi and later went on to IIM Calcutta for my executive management education. I also did my time in a corporate career and was part of the amazing growth story of Infosys during the early years and saw it grow 10 fold in the span of a few years. It was a huge learning experience from the ground up and also gave me an amazing fast track on a corporate career. I later also got to work in a fast-growing funded start-up as a Regional Head which gave me a top-down insight into fast growth, the challenges companies face as they scale and how to overcome them.
I really experienced true entrepreneurship when I was trying to balance my life as a new mom and my career. Not wanting to compromise on either I started my first venture in Early Years Education. That journey became a hugely enriching experience in the world of startups and entrepreneurship. It made me see how an entrepreneurial experience brings about a whole different level of professional and personal growth – something that I hadn’t experienced through all my education or my corporate career. Entrepreneurship gives you a blank canvas and a platform to create tremendous value to the world as well as helps you truly understand what you are capable of achieving.
From these experiences came the idea of ThinkStartup – Stemming from a firm belief that entrepreneurship needs to be taught to every child. We need to give them that opportunity to explore and develop. Not having been so-to-say born an entrepreneur but having learnt it I also fundamentally believe that entrepreneurship can be taught and muscle memory for entrepreneurship can be built. Hence the decision to start working with students at a younger age.
During this COVID-19 crisis, what are the measures you have undertaken to continue your business without disruption?
Although COVID has been tough on many industries and businesses it has also forced us to rethink how we do things. At ThinkStartup we took it up as a challenge to rethink our programs, ideated and realigned, and moved our courses completely online. Doing this allowed us to do things that we could not have achieved in the physical format. We are now able to reach and impact students from all across India and are also able to collaborate with experts and mentors from across the country. Also, at a time when students are feeling tired of online classes, we have been able to get them excited about real learning and about creating and building something new.
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges? What drives the team?
ThinkStartup is a team of seasoned entrepreneurs and experienced mentors who are driven by a shared mission of empowering the youth of our nation. With the pace of change we are seeing happening in the world around us, we believe every child needs to have an entrepreneurial mindset in order to thrive in the future.
Please share with us about your expansion plans?
We currently run a 6-month program for teenagers and college students where students experience a hands-on entrepreneurial journey from ideation to business launch. They learn how to do market research, create a business plan, a marketing plan as well as a financial plan for their business idea. They also create their own brand identity, ad campaign and fully functioning website.
We are also adding on additional programs that focus on Social Entrepreneurship, Design Thinking and Product Design, App Development and Robotics, Social Media Marketing and Business Accounting.
We have recently announced a funding program where the best startup ideas and student entrepreneurs will receive funding. We are also collaborating with schools and colleges to jointly hold events around entrepreneurship awareness and skill-building where students can interact with experienced entrepreneurs and business leaders. We also look forward to working with the government to further the cause of initiatives such as NEP, Startup India, Make in India and AtmaNirbhar Bharat.
Our audience wants to know – what has worked well for you so far?
We are seeing a marked shift in parent aspirations and entrepreneurship is fast becoming an option that parents are keen to explore for their child. We are also seeing an increasing demand for programs that help their children develop critical 21st-century skills such as Problem Solving, Creative Thinking, Innovation, Initiative and Leadership skills along with real-world business skills.
There is also a shift in the mindset of young students today who quote control, purposeful life and being good to the planet as reasons to aspire towards becoming entrepreneurs.
What is one strategy that you guys believe has helped you grow as a team/startup?
Our focus on the larger mission of empowering our youth and building a better future for our nation acts as our North Star at all times, It keeps us focused and aligned and drives us to do more.
In your opinion – what is more necessary: Idea or a good team for a successful startup?
An idea is only the starting point of what constitutes a good startup. The rest of the journey is about the team that drives the vision forward and executes on it and your success is dependent on that. I believe it is important to have an empowered team that believes in the mission and that each individual within the team acts as an intrapreneur as well.
We would love to know your advice for all those starting out?
Drive the change you want to see. Life is an ever-changing journey and each stage of life is different in terms of the resources available to you, be it time or finances, the priorities you have as well as the outcomes you desire. It’s important to take the time to evaluate where you are on this journey and be the entrepreneur of your own life as well. Alignment of your startup with your life goals will ensure that you create the maximum impact and that you start each day with a sense of purpose.
Follow ThinkStartup At:
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/thinkstartup2
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/thinkstartup1
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/thinkstartup2
Program Queries:
Contact – 9818659010
E-mail ID – [email protected]
