[theme music playing]
[music playing]
This looks like a bag company similar to Wildcraft.
With that many bags around, it can't be another company.
It could be a travel company.
[theme music playing]
Utensils.
Jackets.
Clothing.
- Sleeping bag. - Nice.
Whenever I leave for a trek,
I carry my luggage like this.
But the products available in the market turned my journey
into suffering.
So, I thought, why not create my own rucksack
along with an outdoor equipment and apparel brand...
To easily access handy items,
we have provided dedicated pockets here
on all sides.
Anupam, if you ever go on a trek,
you need many accessories.
Like a pole, mat,
and hydration bladder.
To drink.
There are special attachments to carry these things.
Namita, you seem pumped up.
I am certain you will go on a trek.
If you've decided
to carry everything and climb the mountain,
we have an internal frame system that will support your back.
Ah, nice!
Kunal, you must be wondering if this is durable.
This rucksack comes with a five-year warranty.
Aman, there is no need to worry about the price.
Sharks, my vision is to transform
...Tripole into a one-stop destination for the outdoors.
And for that, my ask is Rs. 1 crore for 1% equity.
Whoa!
Wow! Rs. 100 crore valuation.
Hold on, sorry!
I forgot to share one feature about this rucksack.
There is an extra secure pocket
where all your cheques will remain safe.
If you get them.
You look happy with this business.
You look very passionate about it.
So, please share what you did before this.
I am from Delhi. I was there till 12th grade.
I applied there and I got in.
I spend around seven months in Riyadh.
But I was not sure.
I returned to Delhi and took a sabbatical.
- I thought of taking a break. - Which year was that?
This was in 2017.
When did you fall in love with the mountains?
That started a little earlier.
But I fell in love with trekking in 2016.
When I was working,
I went to Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh.
From there, a very famous trek starts, the Triund Trek.
But there was a lot of noise at night
because it has become a very famous and mainstream trek.
So, we thought of climbing a bit higher.
Then we saw
that there is more beyond this that people don't visit.
When we were walking there,
I still recall that it felt different.
I have never felt this way.
How did you derive this product idea from that experience?
This was in 2016.
When I returned, I told my friends
that we should go on a trek.
A friend suggested
that we should visit the Everest Base Camp in Nepal.
We have to buy a lot of gear to go there.
We spent a lot, and there were things we couldn't find.
We had to rent many items. Something didn't feel quite right.
It felt like there was a gap in the market.
- When was this? Which year? - 2017.
- When did you start this business? - In 2017.
So, you've been doing this for the past seven years.
- Yes, for seven years. - Nice.
You must've seen that there was a company
called Nasher Miles in Season 3.
- A lot of Sharks invested in it. - All five.
All five of us! He's right.
It was an all five Shark deal.
When they came to meet me, they gave me an interesting insight.
Backpacks are becoming a bigger percentage of the revenue mix.
They were launching many backpacks and designs.
I want to understand from your product portfolio
what your focus is when it comes to backpacks and rucksacks.
The focus has been on the rucksack.
But the split will gradually change.
For the first couple of years, we were only doing rucksacks.
Now, the rucksack accounts for 70% of sales.
We also focus on tactical bags.
A significant part of our attention is on the army,
as they are one of our major purchasers.
We will make such backpacks
as we aim to create a mix.
- Utility backpacks. - Very interesting.
- Will you show us some of your products? - Sure.
Rohan, I would love to see backpacks.
Sure.
- So, this is our rucksack. - Very nice.
- This is a backpack. - You take this.
Yes, let me see.
There are apparel as well.
- Oh, nice. - Oh, wow!
These...
- Wow! Do you make these as well? - Yeah!
- Oh, wow! You didn't show that. - The jacket.
I want that! Show it to me.
Very nice.
Good! Good quality.
The jacket is really good.
I think it's very well done. How much does it cost?
It's for Rs. 1,700.
Rs. 1,700. Not bad at all.
Good quality, man.
- The back support is good. - This is quite impressive
- for Rs. 1,700. - Yes!
How many SKUs do you have?
If you include the sizes of clothes, the SKUs are 250.
Where do you sell them?
E-commerce platforms and offline channels.
What is the ratio between offline and e-commerce channels?
International is 20% and domestic is 80%.
And 68% is marketplaces and 12% is offline.
So, Myntra and...
Not Myntra. Amazon, Flipkart and our website.
He hasn't shared the revenue.
The revenue is Rs. 14.2 crores last year.
- Wow! - Which is not bad.
70% is coming from rucksacks,
10% from tactical backpacks and the backpacks you can see.
6% from waist packs,
6% from apparel
- and the rest is miscellaneous items. - Okay!
- What was the revenue in FY23? - Rs. 11 crores.
How much were your sales in the last three months?
In the last three months,
the average has been around Rs. 1.6 crores.
Our average order value is Rs. 1,525.
53% is COGS.
So, I make a gross profit of 47%.
Approximately 29% goes towards marketplaces and fees.
9% goes towards ads.
3% for overheads.
- So around 7%-8% is EBITDA. - Yes, 6%.
- Very good. - I don't get one thing.
If your EBITDA is 6%
- and you made Rs. 14 crores in sales. - Yes.
How much did you make last year?
- Rs. 1 crore. - Not even Rs. 1 crore. Around Rs. 8 lakhs.
- Right! - How much will you make this year? Rs. 1.5 crores.
Around Rs 1.25 crores.
How did you come up with that? Did you just take a wild guess?
Is there a prior round?
No, there isn't. It's a bootstrapped company.
You will receive a valuation based on what you have done.
How did you manage to come to a valuation of Rs. 100 crores?
Based on the turnover.
- 5 times sales. - 5 times sales.
What would you have done if someone came to you with this pitch?
Ask for more numbers and details.
There is no external support or push,
such as raising funds or anything.
It is no big deal.
Life will pass by, but this will never be a Rs. 100 crore business.
That's why I am here to take the next step.
We did everything we could together.
Now, we want to see how we can push it.
If you had more money, you could have expanded your business.
There is a constraint with working capital.
I have some debt.
...when more working capital is needed,
we end up using around Rs. 50-Rs. 60 lakhs.
- Why didn't you use more? - We are using.
You are only using half of it.
I need a buffer. What if something goes wrong? We have a factory.
So, we always wonder what could go wrong.
Where did you get the money to set up the factory?
I started it very slowly.
Did you build everything organically?
Yes.
How much money have you invested?
I had Rs. 15 lakhs in my account.
Rohan, which brand do you consider
as your competitor in India?
There are around four competitors.
You have legacy brands such as Wildcraft.
I don't consider them your competitors.
They are there.
There are online brands and there is Adventure Worx.
What do they do? Are they importers who put their labels on
- and sell? - No! As far as I know, Adventure Worx
manufactures their products.
What is their scale?
No idea.
I am confused.
- You said the market size is Rs. 15,000 crores. - Hmm!
If you are making Rs. 15 crores
and you don't know what Adventure Worx's revenue is,
you couldn't mention a big player.
Who is this?
How is it market... Who is selling products with 2 billion dollars?
There is a huge industry in Dehradun.
- What is it called? - There are a few players there.
When Kunal asked,
you only mentioned Adventure Worx.
I was saying who is selling online. That is what I was explaining.
They don't sell online.
How does that matter? What matters is that the product is being sold.
- They do sell their products. - Where is it generally sold?
- Which shop? - These people have legacy army units
so the outdoor equipment market has a significant stake from the army.
How much? It must be around 20%-30%.
No, it could be more. It's no big deal.
I am wondering why you don't have an understanding of this market.
Aren't you hungry for this business? What's the issue?
I can name all the players.
Then tell us who is the biggest player.
Tell us who is the biggest player offline as well.
In offline, Decathlon is currently the biggest player.
You can say that Decathlon started this market.
How much is Decathlon contributing to Rs. 16,000 crores?
They sell sports equipment as well.
Getting these numbers isn't possible.
You just... I think there's something going on here.
Didn't you study this
- or do you think it's unimportant? - Study...
- Tell me something... - There is a simple thing, Anupam.
Our price point is much better.
How much is the difference?
...at half the price and sell them with a profit,
then Decathlon will buy a lot of products from you.
- If you are saying... - Decathlon will do it under its label.
They won't put our label.
What do you care? If you are making a business of Rs. 200 crores.
No! I am not interested in doing that.
- He wants to make a brand. - I want to make a brand.
I want to ask you one question.
Your track record has been successful.
Bootstrapped.
To understand your thought process better, can you share one failure?
Your one setback in life
that made you a stronger entrepreneur.
Good question.
I think
being soft-spoken is a setback.
For an investor like me.
- So sweet! - Yes.
This is where I've faced a setback.
Because then people start taking you for granted.
Yeah! I agree.
Being too compassionate is also not good.
Too much aggression is also not good. To bring a balance in this...
I loved the way
you answered my question when I asked about your setback.
It's a very difficult question, but it seems easy.
But even the best can't answer.
You answered this with so much simplicity and honesty,
and you won my heart.
Founders like you, with your personality, are referred
to as 'soft rocket' at Titan Capital.
- Oh my! - Gentle in demeanour,
but intense and driven when it comes to work.
Rohan, I have an offer for you.
Yes.
- I'll give you two offers. - Oh my!
Rs. 50 lakhs for 1% equity.
So, I will value you at half, which is Rs. 50 crores.
And Rs. 50 lakhs debt at 9% for 3 years.
My second offer to you
is Rs 1 crore for 1.5% equity.
And I will take a royalty of 1% on your sales
- till I recover Rs. 1 crore. - Thank you!
There should be a significant role for community involvement here.
- Yes, definitely. - People talk to each other.
- Definitely! That's the... - They make groups.
They are active on social media.
Do you have followers on YouTube or Instagram?
We have around 8,000 followers on Instagram.
That does not matter in seven years.
- And YouTube? - We don't spend at Meta at all.
There is no need to spend.
The kind of passion within the community is such
that if your content stands out, it will draw them in on its own.
Failing to build a community
or create a sense of community love
is a major red flag for me
in a category like that.
You should have had like a million followers on Instagram
or at the very least, a hundred thousand.
I also didn't see any major differentiator
in your products.
And I don't think you are a 'slow rocket'.
I feel like you're not quite taking off yet.
- I am sorry to say. - No worries.
- But for that reason, I am out. - Okay.
How much is your rating on Amazon?
It's above 4 in all categories.
Across products?
Across products, the average is more than four.
It could be less in apparel, due to sizing issues.
He is too honest.
[laughing]
Which is wonderful.
I think I will be able to help you
with exports.
Because we have many related segments.
We are both somehow related to the travel industry.
I have an offer for you.
My offer is an equity cheque
of Rs. 60 lakhs for 1%,
which values the company at Rs. 60 crores.
Along with that, we will provide you with a credit line of Rs. 40 lakhs
at a 9% interest rate.
The loan tenure will be 5 years.
Okay!
If you get money from the Sharks,
would you start making losses for growth,
or would you prefer to continue operating in a way
that ensures 30%-40% growth while maintaining profitability?
I want to run it profitably.
Losses are something I can't comprehend.
I find you truly impressive.
I like founders like you.
Someone who is humble, authentic
and just being true to who you are.
This is who you are, and this is how you are.
If people like it, that's great. If not, then it's goodbye.
I really love it.
If it reaches a revenue of Rs. 100 crores
and does so profitably,
- that's what we call an Indicorn. - Indicorn.
I have an offer for you.
Whoa!
But I don't play these 1%-2% games.
Because it's not worth the time.
I also think that you need more money.
At this point,
you're probably feeling stretched from all sides.
Build a solid team, and do it right.
Let's row the business and take it global.
I will invest Rs. 3 crores.
For a valuation of Rs. 40 crores.
So, that would be 7.5%.
And I don't do royalty deals.
Thank you! Thank you for your offer.
Rohan, you are a solid entrepreneur. It was a pleasure meeting you.
But I don't understand your valuation.
I don't find value in your deal.
So, unfortunately, I'll be out.
[music playing]
Okay! Great! Aman and I are out.
Yes. You have four offers from three Sharks.
- What would you like to do? - So, basically
you are giving a Rs. 50 crores valuation.
And you are giving a Rs. 60 crores valuation,
and you are giving a Rs. 40 crores valuation.
You got it!
I'll take a minute.
- Yes, please! - Thank you.
- He is composed. He thinks before speaking. - He's amazing.
What do you think, Anupam? Who will he choose?
I think he will maximize valuation.
Do you think so, given that he's an analyst?
- Huh? - I think he will actively consider the size of the capital.
- I think he will come and counter. - Valuation!
He already has capital which he isn't using.
So, I don't think he is leaning towards that.
- That's a risky capital. - That's risky.
OD capital is risky.
Welcome!
Kunal, please ponder upon the valuation.
- I don't mind you putting in more money. - What is your counter?
Do you have a counter? What is the offer?
If you could bring down the percentage.
- How much would you be okay with? - 4%.
So, is this counter for Kunal or others as well?
Same counter for Ritesh. Rs. 70 lakhs for 1%.
Whoa! Doesn't budge.
Ritesh, would you like to change something?
I have a final offer for you.
I will put Rs. 75 lakhs equity. No problem.
But instead of the valuation being Rs. 75 crores,
I request you to bring your valuation to Rs. 65 crores.
Somewhere midway.
The debt will be Rs. 25 lakhs
I match his offer.
What do you want to do?
I think the evaluation is too low, Kunal.
Sorry! So, I can't take your offer.
And between you guys, I think Ritesh has...
- Our industry matches. - Travel.
I think that will be quite helpful for me.
So, Ritesh, we have a deal.
- Take him on a trek now. - Sure.
[camera shutter clicks]
- Welcome to the PokerBaazi Zone. - Thank you!
...product, team culture, etcetera.
Our five hands in focus are different.
- Here they are. Okay? - Okay!
According to this ranking, you have to tell me...
Which is your Royal Flush, Straight Flush and Flush.
Please choose your top 5.
I think the product has to be the Royal Flush.
You can't do anything without a product.
R&D would be my Flush.
And Straight Flush is Quality.
We've offered quality.
But if the customer is not satisfied,
you can't do much.
And then,
we handled everything.
But if we don't have the right team, we can't do much.
Great! Okay, so here are your five in focus.
Your demeanour and clarity of mind is very inspiring.
So, download the PokerBaazi app now.
[theme music playing]
'Today's next pitch is a personal assistant'
'which you can also wear.'
'But looks like Anupam will not be present for this pitch.'
[music playing]
What's up!
Just as
food, clothing, and home are essential,
but technology is just as crucial.
From sleeping to waking up,
and from waking up to eating,
technological advancements have reached every aspect of life.
However, due to these technological advancements,
the memory retention rate has dropped significantly.
75% of the world's total data
has been created in just the last five years.
You must've noticed
that you remember things that happened seven years ago,
but you don't remember what happened seven days ago.
So, Sharks, it is time
for humans, that is, for homo sapiens to evolve.
We bring you to the NeoSapien pendant
designed to take you from humanity to NeoSapiens.
[music playing]
Sharks, NeoSapien pendant is an AI-powered wearable
This is the future of personal computing.
So, your important tasks,
such as booking cabs, ordering food
or even drafting an email
will be possible through NeoSapien Pendant.
With the NeoSapien pendant,
we want to create a technological revolution.
For that, our ask is Rs. 80 lakhs
for 2.5% equity.
Guys, kill it!
- Thank you, Anupam. - See you later.
I will take Anupam's seat.
Look!
I sat on Anupam's chair and I have a second brain.
I have a lot of knowledge.
Good one!
He is somewhere.
This is the era of innovation.
You are doing something similar with NeoSapien.
Tell us about you.
How did you come up with the idea of making NeoSapien?
Tell us about your journey to Mumbai from Gwalior and Indore.
I worked in the early stages at Razorpay.
I worked as the Head of Customer Acquisition at HomeLane.
Then I was a part of
Livspace store as a founding team member and chief growth officer.
- Hello! - Then I moved to Zalando.
What next?
Our biggest trigger point was when I was working in Berlin...
Okay? And it was my personal story of my ex-girlfriend.
Basically, when you are in a new country and
a new city, effective communication becomes very difficult.
We are unable to effectively communicate
with our dear ones because we take them for granted.
This had happened to me in the past when my brother... My cousin
died in Sopore. He was in the army.
And he had called me three days before he passed away
to tell me that he will come to meet me soon.
But as usual, I was busy back then.
And that for me has left a mark.
Because I was unable to communicate effectively back then as well.
So, it left an unfulfilled void within me.
We often don't analyse the words we say.
If we start analysing it,
we will be able to communicate effectively
and solve a lot of things for everyone.
Tell us about you, Aryan.
I did my schooling in Indore,
which is in MP.
After that, I did engineering from IIT Madras.
Yeah! He's brilliant.
How did you two meet?
- We are cousins. - Okay.
- All right. - When he shared his story with me,
I also realised
that these spoken words are causing issues
in my professional life, affecting efficiency.
For example, when you have in-person meetings,
if the meeting was for an hour,
you fail to recall anything.
You could barely write... You write down a few lines.
When did you start this?
- In January. - This year?
- Yes, this year. - Okay! Very nice.
Explain what the product does.
...and the facts and figures between them.
It continues to grow
as I keep speaking aloud.
In this scenario, Aryan and I were talking before the pitch.
What it essentially did is that it recognised that it was Aryan and me.
Because
it can pull on my context and conversations I have had.
It can give you a response that’s unique to you.
Sameer Mehta is our angel and advisor.
So, it can pick up that he is the right person to help me with this.
Sameer is my co-founder.
Yes, he is.
Is this Sameer, the co-founder of boAt?
- Yes! - Yes, that is him.
BoAt has helped us a lot in sourcing and hardwire hiring.
Did you take consent? Let's say you are talking to me.
I don't want my conversation to go in some database.
Do you take a consent form?
What we currently do,
which is also done globally is...
Just giving you an example.
When cameras were launched,
and the iPhone came out with a built-in camera,
it was a huge inflection point.
Prior to that, cameras weren't allowed
in offices.
What they did was, whenever you have an iPhone,
they would prompt users by asking, 'Do you acknowledge?'
So, the onus is on the user.
And the second thing,
the company working on meta glasses in the US,
uses trust lights.
There we would have LEDs. You can see the LED, right?
You can see red LEDs in meta glasses too.
You will see a red LED on Zoom as well.
So, we use trust lights.
In the US and Europe,
you have to ask, 'Do I have your consent?' Even for Zoom
or Google Meet, right?
It handles the digital signature in the backend.
Similarly, if I am recording
Ritesh's, Kunal's and Aman's voice,
I will ask, 'Do I have your consent?'
...is that applicable in the court of law?
I can deny that I gave consent.
Zoom started 'consent'
because you are conducting a meeting digitally as well.
It's like anything can happen digitally.
Okay, we can move forward because it's a grey area.
Dhananjay, could you show us all your products?
- Yes! - Show us the difference between all four.
[music playing]
We tested this first.
It looked like J.A.R.V.I.S. from Iron Man.
It was connected directly to a laptop
to see whether it's working properly.
It made us viral.
A lot of influencers and investors tweeted us.
What this did was, it has a companion app for the first time.
that it became significantly smaller.
We worked on the battery life.
The battery life became four days. Okay!
Also, we created it to look like an accessory.
This is the recent one
we recently created.
- You are wearing it. - Yes, we're wearing it.
These three are discontinued, right?
- Yes, these three. - Only this one is working.
- You are selling this one. Okay! - Let's sit and talk.
[music playing]
How much data do you store locally and on cloud?
Right now,
we store all the data on cloud.
so that no data leaves our wearable, which is NeoSapien pendant.
Tell me if this is something you've already considered or implemented.
Many times, people fail to realise that they are forgetting the basics.
- Yes! - And that's a red flag to go and check your dementia score.
I still haven't understood one fundamental thing.
The questions you asked NeoSapien,
you already knew the answer.
- No, three... - You are a very smart guy.
Right? If you had asked your brain,
'Who can help me with hardware?'
- Your brain might have also said Sameer. - Correct!
But I will give you an example.
I am into marketing.
And I am working with HomeLane
where I need to launch a campaign featuring Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
I have to get approval from the founder.
I will have to get approval from my team
and then the agency.
These are three different meetings.
I can collate it in one place
rather than going back and forth.
I can collate the data at once and make a decision.
- We have all the data. - Hmm!
But we didn't wear the device for the next meeting. By chance.
Okay! Or it wasn't allowed.
And when you ask something from the device the third time,
the data was fed incorrectly because it only collected data
from the first meeting.
- The notes from the second meeting are missing. - Hmm!
What happens in such scenarios?
Most likely you will take notes through a note-taking app.
Right?
What we've done is we started
integrating note-taking apps and emails.
We have an interesting use case. There was a user
who called us because he wanted our device right away.
I asked, 'Why?'
'Because whenever I attend an investor meeting'
'I think through my voice.'
'And then I have to open Slack and put it on draft.'
This is completely frictionless.
So, even when I meet in person, it is storing all the information.
Secondly, all of you must be knowing
that if you want to keep a recorder on for 8 hours
the battery will die down.
Battery life is not the reason why Apple cannot do what you're doing.
Your biggest mistake is that you used
minutes of the meeting, such a minor point as a use-case.
You see, there is a thing which is going on.
People don't want to share their data with Big Tech.
- Okay. - Absolutely correct.
Excellent answer.
- People are very suspicious about Big Tech. - Yes.
So, you must have seen an iPhone.
All your information is being shared through ChatGPT.
So, they've received so many retorts for that.
And now, people are not sharing there.
I think, enough of theories and assumptions.
We've spoken enough on that.
- We are not here to do a science project, it's for business. - Right.
So, what have you thought about pricing
and, how will you sell and who will buy
your first thousand units?
Sir, our pricing will be 14,999.
15,000 is what we're going to price it initially.
The first thousand users...
are leaders that we have chosen, to start initially.
These individuals are people like you
who are very particular about efficiency.
They are very particular about calendars also.
Because, more than data sharing
A one-year free subscription.
So, we've kept it free for the first year.
What next?
Monthly charges will begin, we are going to charge Rs. 850 per month.
...you want to aim for the ceiling.
Your end goal is to make a leader efficient
or, is it mental health?
So, our end goal is, making people more efficient.
Then, when I mentioned use cases, why did you say
- why did you screen... - He just answered with a yes.
No, but, he shouldn't have.
Why? They can do it, they don't want to.
No! They can't do it. They said, that's in the pipeline, Aman.
So, what exactly is your end goal?
First thing is, we are starting
Okay, Dhananjay, quickly tell me, how big can this company become?
Our target for 2 years is to touch 2 million.
And, overall, the company...
Talk in rupees, we're doing business in India.
Actually, our target is...
to do 16 crores in
18 months operational.
And, our target for the next 5 years
is to actually make it an 85 crore company.
If it doesn't, it will fall to zero.
Not 85 crores.
I'll tell you my view, okay?
Wearable tech is growing 100%.
I don't know...
what space is going to work currently.
Like, a ring.
Some people are working on spectacles as wearable tech.
And, you're working on this.
Where it will settle, is a huge debate.
And so, I don't want to invest on this side.
Because, I want to wait and watch on the fence
on which area is growing more.
I'll double down on the area that will grow.
So, unfortunately, I'll be out.
Dhananjay and Aryan.
I think, this business is at a very early stage right now.
Where, the key use case...
say, a power use case has not been identified.
So, till the use case isn't identified
you cannot identify pricing, or the willingness to pay.
And, till that cannot be identified
we can't understand if this is a real business
or, only a good technology.
- So, today, I'm out, guys. - Thank you, Kunal.
There are two implications to the use case of a personal assistant.
One is, it is a small market size, by design.
And secondly, in today's date, in wearable technologies
people want everything.
People want music, entertainment.
They want everything in productivity.
They want Excel to work, extract files, receive the minutes.
Will you find multiple use cases?
Maybe you will.
But, today, I feel...
it's not completely clear.
For that reason, I'm out.
- Thank you. - Thanks, Ritesh.
Dhananjay and Aryan.
What shall we do about you?
From homosapien, please become a neosapien.
We will love to have you on board and build a product together.
I have one condition.
Would you want to, eventually, I mean, not 10 years later...
focus a lot on mental health use cases?
Yes or no, tell me.
- 100%! - Be honest.
Seriously, 100%.
But, in what timeline?
So, basically, within the... uh, give us this...
Give us a time period.
Within... after the first year, we are going to focus on this.
Why? I will come to that too.
So, within a year. That's okay, I get the timeline.
If you're willing to do this in a year, on that condition...
- This is my expertise. - Correct.
- Well done, well done. - Thanks a lot, Namita.
What did you do, sinners?
Come on! You should have at least taken a valuation of 100 million.
Good to see you, guys.
Oh my god! I just realised, I'm on the cap table with Anupam.
- Can I get the cheque back? - Not yet!
Want to become a med-tech company?
Pick between me and Anupam.
Oh my god! No guys, good pitch.
Could have been better.
Anupam, they did a great job. Their passion came through.
- Thank you so much. - Thank you.
Thank you, take care. Bye.
- Finally! - Finally.
Congratulations, Namita.
Thank you. I'm very excited about this. - Yes, congratulations.
You got it at a very sweet valuation.
How much did you enter at?
- I don't remember the valuation. No, really. - Oh yes, right!
I do know that I have 5% of the firm.
- So, I have 4 % now. - Oh!
Problem.
[theme music playing]
Welcome to Acko Changemakers
where we really welcome change.
Whether educational empowerment or rising digital growth
we are building the legacy of a new culture.
And today, if we talk about digital
today's Changemakers are Dhananjay and Aryan.
- Welcome, guys. So, congratulations. - Thank you.
We are super happy! We have worked hard for this.
And, we were firstly very excited that we have reached till here.
And finally, getting funded!
It's super exciting and we thoroughly enjoyed it.
Now, we have got 2 Sharks, so, it's super fun.
Yes! So, you're taking over Shark Tank.
I have a question. If we talk about AI...
- people become very fearful. - Hmm.
So, if we want to bring a change
on how to change our perceptions
to not fear AI, but, to accept AI.
AI needs to be not the doer, but, the enabler.
That means...
- basically, it should help you with your efficiency. - Yes.
It shouldn't do your work for you.
And, that is where we want to focus. How you, as a human...
can become more efficient.
I'm so glad you spoke about efficiency.
And, when people ask me if AI will take over our jobs
I always tell them...
use AI to enable you to get better at your jobs
but, don't be fearful of it.
So, thank you for bringing that change along.
And, like they're bringing a change
Acko is changing the insurance landscape
with its revolutionary offerings.
Acko's health insurance plans
will give you no limit on hospital room rent.
That means, whatever room you take, 100% bill covered.
Not only room rent, but doctor visits, medical tests.
No tension of surcharge on all other expenses too.
And, because, we're talking about change, Acko gives you
along with Shark Tank, a small gift.
Two boys from Bangalore, a tech pose. - Thank you.
[camera clicking]
Shark Tank India, co-presented by Acko Insurance
Pokerbaazi and Swiggy Instamart.
Co-powered by Adani and Jaquar bath and light.
And, partners, Rayzon Solar, ICICI Direct
Lenskart and Sofy.
- There's cheesecake here? - Yes, I love it.
Hey, you must have been to Cheesecake Factory, right?
- Many times. - Which one's your favourite flavour?
- Cheesecake Factory sucks! - Ah, what!
- I only eat basque cheesecake now. - Which one do you like?
Where do you get it?
Burnt basque cheesecake is from San Sebastian in Spain.
Okay. What's different about it?
Uh, it's molten in the centre.
Oh, interesting!
[theme music playing]
Hi, Sharks! My name is Pooja Balani.
But, people affectionately call me Miss Cheesecake too.
Hello, Sharks! My name is Narpat Singh Rathore.
And, we've come from Jodhpur city
and, we are founders of Miss Cheesecake.
It was tasty but quite heavy.
For our stomachs and on our pockets!
In Jodhpur, we saw...
that nobody knew what cheesecake was.
It was available at very few places and was very expensive too.
That was it. We took up the responsibility
to provide cheesecake to the people of Jodhpur.
We kept doing trials for a whole month
and, continued till we made them perfect.
The most expensive ingredient in cheesecake is its cream cheese.
So, we started making it at home
without any preservatives and very low fat.
It made our cheesecakes delicious and very light.
And, the best part, it reduced the price and cost.
Amazing.
Both of us weren't from bakery backgrounds.
Coming in the middle of already old established bakeries,
and growing a brand was very tough.
- But now, it was either do... - Or die!
We searched for a shop, and, we took advantage of social media.
And, only 20 days later...
we were not the only ones on Miss Cheesecake.
And so, we need you.
Our ask is 30 lakhs in exchange of 5% equity.
And, if Mr. Rathore's ask has made you sad
then, we have a saying at our store.
'You're not sad, you need cheesecake!'
[laughter]
- Love it. - So, let's eat it.
- Sure. - Ha!
Right at the start, she wants to eat the cheesecake.
First, feed me, then, give them a welcome.
How will we talk if we haven't eaten?
Thank you.
- Thank you. - This is nutella and lotus biscoff.
You told us that biscoff is your bestseller.
- It's excellent. - Thank you.
- Do you know, all food needs my approval here? - Very tasty.
This lotus biscoff is very good.
And, for me? You don't have anything?
You are lactose intolerant.
Cake jar is an option.
- But still... - That has lactose too?
- Uh, yes. Whipped cream. - Whipped cream.
Cream, I can eat, actually, because, it's just fat.
I have a lot of experience in cheesecake.
In tasting it, not cooking it.
So, I'll give you some feedback later.
But, it's good.
How is it?
For me, it's very very sugary.
- Okay. Yes. - For my taste.
That's why, they were hesitating to give you.
[laughter]
- I tried both, I agree with Kunal. - Both are tasty.
Both are outstanding.
Rate from 1 to 10.
- 7 on 10. - 7?
You give a rating, 1 to 10.
I'll give it 8 on 10.
Thank you.
- You? - I would give 8 on 10.
- I eat it a lot too. - 8,8 and 7.
- And, Aman? - I would say 8.
He doesn't eat sugar much, so, it's okay. Don't get disheartened.
Our inspiration for starting cheesecake is Anupam sir.
Oh my!
Oh wow!
So, I will tell you how.
I quit my job in July last year.
I quit my job and my family gave me a deadline.
They said, 'you're getting married in December.'
Oh no!
And, they made my profile on Shaadi.com.
I used to be very angry at that time
at the founder of Shaadi.com.
It's very easy. Place a dartboard with Anupam's face and throw darts.
- The cake wasn't poisoned, was it? - No!
Then, I was very scared because I didn't want to get married yet.
And, I just wanted to be successful in life.
So, I began making cheesecakes in October.
I made them for myself.
And, I cooked them for a whole month.
But, it didn't turn out very good.
But, it was good by the end of it.
So, I thought, why not sell it if it's turning out good?
Later, I used to sell it at my friends' shop on the weekends.
And, we took part in exhibitions too.
They said, it was just a hobby for the weekends.
Then, we were friends and he told me
that I should open a shop.
So, I felt, I couldn't do it alone.
Then, he said, he'll help and we can start it together.
So, he quit his job.
and, 3 days later, as we were having great sales, my mom herself said
that they'll get me married after 3 years.
Oh my god.
- 1 lakh people joined you from day one on social media. - Yes.
How did that happen?
We held our shop opening on 23rd May.
And, we started making videos on 1st May.
I had 5000 followers then.
Then, I made videos every day.
And, we used to shoot everything.
Shopping for goods, shopping for furniture.
- The work going on... - Videos of process of baking.
We showed all the making.
And, people got so interested in that
and, they were so happy to see a girl doing it
that people kept joining us.
That's when, on our launch day
we were doing a veneration, and we completed 1 lakh followers.
- 'I have become a fanatic now.' - This is the most viral video.
- 'I came at 9 am to sweep.' - It got 60 million views.
'Because, electricity and POP work was finished.'
'It was now time to clean up and I took up that responsibility.'
- 60 million?! - 'Why feel shame in cleaning my own shop?'
- Six zero? - 'Now, I have a struggle story.'
'Just need to become successful.'
'But, the real struggle was going to begin now'
'when we had to go 45 minutes away in 45 degrees to get furniture.'
'There was a furniture godown there with great items.'
'But, what we liked was out of stock.'
'I don't know how I can be so lucky!'
'No, I'm not getting married. I was just drinking water'
'because, Jodhpur was very sunny today.'
'So, I drank cool water.'
'Then, the items for our furniture arrived.'
'So, we came to the shop to help.'
'And, my contribution in helping'
'was as much as I did in my school group projects.'
60 million are substantial views.
- And, a lot of people aspire to start their own business. - Yes.
They were living their dream through you.
Exactly.
Okay, can you share your pricing?
The prices of our three bestsellers are between Rs. 120 and Rs. 140.
Do you mostly sell from your store or on food apps too?
Sir, from the store.
On an average, we are doing 8-8.5 lakhs.
Who thought that a 100 sqft shop
in Jodhpur will sell cheesecake worth 1 crore?
The consumer's tastes are changing.
But, what is the dream?
First, we didn't have such plans, I never planned
on opening something like this. Things happened very suddenly.
But, some things are always sudden.
And, we never know that something is our destiny, like they say.
Coming here is a big deal.
Our dreams are growing big now.
We want to expand.
We don't want to stay confined to Jodhpur.
Because our base is pan-India.
We receive calls every day enquiring about franchisee outlets.
'Open an outlet here, we want to eat cheesecake. We want to meet you.'
This is our plan,
to have a Miss Cheesecake in every city.
- Standardization of processes. - Yes.
...what is going to happen with that, specifically?
We plan to have a central kitchen in Jaipur.
which will cover Delhi and Gurgaon.
Apart from that we will get your mentorship
for how to scale it further.
How much do you make in one store?
- Uh... Cheesecakes? - No, margin.
- Tell me about the cheesecakes itself. - 6,000 cheesecakes are made.
So, the gross is 50 per cent.
And the net is around 35 per cent.
So you earn about 2.5 to three lakhs profit every month.
- Yes. - Sometimes more.
How much cash do you have with you now?
Including the bank and money withheld
we have around ten lakhs.
Very nice.
Look, the market for deserts
is growing rapidly. Several brands are being built.
As far as your product goes,
Because of these reasons, I'm out.
But good luck. Dream bigger, run faster.
You started from Jodhpur,
My view is, instead of giving five per cent to the investor,
you should bring a co-founder.
Bring in a management team that will
help you expand this beyond.
Unfortunately, I will not be able to join you right now.
You still have some homework left to do.
Bring your business to a certain size
where the investors are also excited.
- That's right. - They should be able to see an exit plan.
So, we'd love to meet you when you are there. But for today, I'm out.
Thank you so much.
That you converted a challenge into an opportunity.
Many times when I think of how I was ten years ago,
let me tell you, I was refused by so many investors,
even Mr Kunal refused me. Though we are good friends now.
But understandably, because I did not have a background.
Neither did I... I just came from a small city to a big city.
But I think we can place a bet on you.
I want to give you an offer.
30 lakhs that you asked for,
but not for a token of five per cent.
For a token of 7.5 per cent, which is a little more.
And I think I can help you.
I loved the vibe that both of you are carrying.
I mean, you're very positive people. I think
that along with cheesecakes, your stores have a lot of happiness too.
If I was in your place, I wouldn't take on an investor.
It would give me a headache.
The business that's running fine, continue it the same way.
Today, while my stomach was saying yes, my mind is saying no.
- So, I'm out. - No problem.
Thank you.
Okay, four sharks are out. Ritesh's offer still stands. What would you like to do?
We came with the decision
- that we can't dilute more than five per cent. - Oh, wow.
Because we've just started.
Maybe this five per cent will become a bigger number someday.
I think we can think of only five per cent.
I can understand
which place you're coming from.
I think you will do great, regardless of my investment.
- I wish you all the very best. - Thank you so much.
If we can help you in any way
that will always be available from my end.
I got free mentorship, without diluting equity.
- Take his number. - I was about to ask him that.
Take his number.
You can take my number.
[music playing]
Thank you so much, sir.
I wish you all the very best. Do well.
Thank you so much, sir.
- Do well, Mr Rathore. - Thank you.
Thank you.
Initially, with great difficulty we had a mindset
of diluting five per cent.
I think we'll wait for a while before we can dilute 7.5 per cent.
We got very good advice.
Which I think is more important than 7.5 per cent equity.
- We got his number too. So that's the best. - Yes, we got his number.
But luckily, I can order everything on Swiggy Instamart.
So, let's see. I'm a little hungry.
Uh... Oats.
Fruits.
Something snacky, so I need a cup of noodles.
My make-up artist was saying that my lips are chapped, so lip balm.
And order placed.
Simple.
This will reach me in ten minutes. So, by the time I see my pitch
it will be here. Go on Swiggy Instamart and order now. Bye
'Jaquar - Bringing Good Ideas To Life.'
Jaquar presents, 'Bringing Good Ideas To Life.'
The pitchers who have come on Shark Tank India
have got some brilliant ideas. Not just that, but they're going to create
a huge ripple effect in our society.
Be it bringing change through new innovations,
or empowering local and artist communities with their skills,
every pitcher has done something different.
I know you have not missed anything,
but it's nice to refresh our memories, right?
Yes? So, let's have a look.
'Sharks, NOOE is a premium'
'lifestyle accessories brand.'
'This product'
'has been awarded with the Red Dot Design Award,'
'which are considered as the Oscars of design.'
'Wow.'
'Go Zero is a brand'
'where you get all types of ice-creams and desserts'
'with zero sugar.'
'And zero guilt.'
'If you would like to know yourself'
'then you should know your food.'
'And if you want to know your food'
'then you should understand your country India.'
'Gudworld is a brand which provides consumers'
'with pure and hygienic jaggery'
'in convenient sizes like'
'five grams and ten grams.'
'The product is good, I must say that.'
- 'We have sold more than two crore Gudbites. - Wow.'
'We've been successful in preventing more than 145 metric tonnes'
'of carbon emissions in just one and a half years.'
- 'Oh. - How many views does this have?'
'47 million.'
- 'One minute, how many? - 47 million?'
'And how many people do you have on your social media team?'
- 'I handle it all alone. - Oh, my God.'
'There's a certain image in our country'
'about how start-up founders should be.'
'They go to IIT or big colleges.'
'You're very different from that image.'
'You should know that'
'it's just incredible. You'll be an inspiration
for so many people who will watch this.'
All the pitchers proved one thing,
Made in India, for the world, like Jaquar.
We have with us the co-founder of Snapdeal and Titan Capital
the promoter of Unicommerce.
- Welcome, Kunal. - Thank you, Sahiba.
One of the questions is
from Sourav Ghosh.
He's from Bhatnagar, near Kolkata.
I think an investor's job is not avoiding risks,
Choose your favourite Shark and they'll be happy to answer them.