Category: Startup

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Startup

5 Biggest Challenges Faced by the Cold Storage Industry

Cold Storage (Photo Credits: Pixabay)
Cold Storage (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

Cold storage business is important in ensuring the smooth operations f other industries. Proper storage is crucial requirement for firms that deals in perishables goods, without a proper inventory storing place their entire produce will go waste, and so will all the financial and human resources invested in the production process. According to a report by Crisil, the cold storage industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 13–15 per cent till 2023, mainly driven by rising demand for processed food, fresh fruits & vegetables, seafood and bio-pharmaceuticals in exports markets. Though the initial investment in a cold storage plant is huge, and involves a lot of paperwork but the business surely ensure continues long term returns, once established.

Despite the necessary nature of the industry, the progress of cold storage in the country has also been extremely skewed.  As per the NCCD data for 2019, Uttar Pradesh contributes the maximum cold storage space in the country, around 33 per cent followed by Gujarat at 15 per cent. A cold-storage owner has to face several problems – legal, administrative, operational, and environmental – to keep the plant functional. Here are some of the problems the cold storage plants face-

  1. Infrastructure –

One of the biggest initial challenges is to build a suitable infrastructure for the cold storage plant, itself. It requires careful identification of location of the plant, which is not too far from the production outlet and is connected through a proper transportation system. Once the location is chosen, well trained and specialised workers are required for its construction. They should have knowledge and experience in fitting and installing the freezers, condensers, and other devices. It requires huge financial commitment as well.

  1. Workers Protection-

Another challenge is to keep the workers well protected all the time. People working in refrigeration facilities need to stay warm, so proper protective gear should be made available to them. The workers are highly prone to get ill because of extreme working condition and environment. They deal with electric equipment on daily basis; cases of electrocution have to be accounted for.

  1. To maintain the product temperature-

Each product has its own temperature for it to stay fresh and consumable for long term. However, every time a product is placed in the warmer area from the freezer zone- for example, when it needs to be picked and palletized- it loses its required temperature and gets warm. So when the product is brought back to the fridge after being out for some time, it needs to be carefully put inside by to maintain the temperature so that it does not get spoiled or unfit for consumption.

  • To Maintain Different Temperature Zones-

But maintaining a cold storage plant is actually a lot more difficult than that. For example, depending on the type of product being stored, different areas of the same warehouse need to be stored at different temperatures- fresh products should be kept at 12.778 degrees Celsius, dairy products should be kept at 1.11 degrees Celsius, meat should be stored below freezing at -2.22 degrees Celsius, Ice cream should be at – 23.33 degrees Celsius.

  1. To Change Temperature Zone Sizes-

All at once, the size of various temperature zones often needs to be scaled up or down depending on the number of products. In traditional warehouses, layout relocation is relatively straightforward- one can move or stack material pallets until they are in the right place. But with the cold storage plant facilities, the temperature has to be taken into consideration. The modular curtain wall system is the method by which the problem can be solved.

Continuous and coordinated efforts and investment go into the maintenance and proper functioning of a cold storage plant. There are several challenges a cold storage owner faces from day to day, be it employee health, maintaining proper temperature zones, government clearances, ensuring product quality among others.

 

 

 

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Startup

Cold Storage Business in India: Here Are 5 Major Investments Required Before You Plan to Start a Cold Storage Business

Cold Storage
Cold Storage (Photo Credits: Wikimedia Commons)

New Delhi, November 25: Cold storage is a one-time business investment, where the initial investment required is on the higher side. However, the returns are higher and are on a long-term basis, as compared to other small businesses.

Also, it will become more popular and the demand will increase over the next few months as cold storages will be used to store vaccines.

There are certain big investments that need to be made if you want to start a cold storage business. Some of the food items that require cold storage are fruits and vegetables, poultry and fish products, meat.

  • Buying cooling machinery
  • Acquire the land and construct the storage facility
  • Get required licenses from the Government
  • Managing essential things like water, electricity, and other related materials
  • Hire equipped staff who will be able to handle the machine.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held a meeting with chief ministers of all the states and Union Territories to review Covid-19 situation where he asked them to start working on cold storage facilities for coronavirus vaccine.Three billion people may be denied a COVID-19 vaccine when it’s here because a number of countries don’t have sufficient cold storage facilities, the Associated Press reported.

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Startup

5 Ideas to Start-Up Business in Healthcare Sector

Start-Up Ideas for Healthcare Sector| Representational Image (Photo Credits: Pixabay)
Start-Up Ideas for Healthcare Sector| Representational Image (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

The business environment is quite uncertain. There are constant changes in the way it operates. It is affected by several factors, including political, social, legal, and cultural among others. A business therefore experiences many direct and indirect interventions making its path highly unpredictable. However some businesses are hardly affected by such market fluctuations. One such is the healthcare sector. The medical and healthcare businesses are not prone much to disturbances in the external environment.

As more and more businesses are away from the traditional brick and mortar shops to advanced website and other online platforms, varied opportunities for starting non-conventional business in the healthcare sector has also emerged. Here are some of the start-up ideas for healthcare sector-

Health Information Website

One of the most straightforward business ideas for healthcare or medical sector is to start a website to provide information on routine healthcare. People are increasingly becoming more and more health conscious and are seeking for quick tips to stay healthy or the uses of medicine. The website can have multi-format content such as blogs, podcasts, infographics, videos, tutorials, articles, multimedia stories etc. It can be divided into different categories based on the food habits, working life, other health problems of the people.

Daily Nutrition App

More and more are becoming aware about the need of proper nutrition in their diet. An app with provides information for the nutrition requirements of the user depending upon his/her physical activity, BMI etc., can be highly useful for the health conscious people who are busy in the life enough to not have any time for separately looking for such information. Users can also provided by the opportunity to get in touch with a trained nutritionist or dietician who can help them to regulate their intake, helping them realise the effects that various foods have on their health.

Medical Records Management App

One of the best healthcare start-up ideas could be to start a digital service for hospitals, clinics, and doctors’ offices to help them manage their medical records It could assist the users to maintain and identify medical records of their patients in an organised and chronological manner. Moreover, even individual with heath conditions can also keep regular records of their condition.

Maternity/Child Care Guidance App

Many new parents face difficulty in accessing doctor as and when required and look for continuous guidance on how to take care of their new born.  You can build an app that has all the necessary information related to various stages of child birth and care. A child-specialist can be roped in for advice in emergency situations. A similar guide on pregnancy will also add to the demand and usage of the app.

Mental Health Tracker App

In today’s faced passed-anxiety inducing world, more and more people are facing several mental and emotional disturbances. Many of them are too afraid to seek help owing to the stigma associated with it. An app devoted to keep a track of the mental health of individuals is a highly viable business idea. Counselors and therapist can be roped for users to discuss their problems anonymously. Daily mental de-stressing activities and exercises can be an added attraction of the app.

Heath is the biggest wealth a person can ever earn, with growing awareness of importance of leading a health life, people are progressively looking for sources to guide and regulate their lifestyle. A start-up in the health-care sector will be highly profitable and useful for both the service provider and user.

 

 

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Startup Strategy

‘Innovation Culture’ Important for Performance and Resilience of Indian Businesses, Shows Study

Innovation important for business resilience, shows study (Photo Credits: Pixabay)
Innovation important for business resilience, shows study (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

Any firm that aims for a long-term survival and growth, innovation is of utmost importance. Owing to rapid changes in the macro and micro environment of business operation, a firm needs to be flexible and accommodating to new opportunities and threats. A dynamic and innovative attitude becomes important for an overall development and existence of the organisation. The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, for instance, is one such situation where innovation was highly desired for to keep the firm afloat.  According to a recent study by Microsoft and IDC, 77 per cent of Indian organisations have found innovation to be critical or important to their performance and resilience, amid the worldwide pandemic. Around 439 business decision makers and 438 workers were surveyed in India within a 6-month period, before and since COVID-19 outbreak.

The study concluded that the businesses in India have increased their ability to innovate by 4 per cent in mere six month time period, as it became essential to cope up with the threats of the external environment. It also revealed that around 78 per cent of the Indian organisations are speeding up digitalisation in a variety of ways to adapt to the new reality. Thereby launching digital products and introducing digital payments, and increasing moving towards e-commerce and automation by adapting the innovative culture in businesses. As a result, Indian companies are aiming at increasing their revenue from digital products and services to 50 per cent in the next three years from 36 per cent at present.

“Innovation is no longer an option, but a necessity. We have seen how the recent crisis has spurred the need for transformation; for organizations to adapt and innovate in order to emerge stronger,” Rajiv Sodhi, Chief Operating Officer, Microsoft India, told reporters in a virtual round-table. “We commissioned this research to gain better understanding of the relationship between having a culture of innovation and an organization’s growth. But now, more than achieving growth, we see that having a mature culture of innovation translates to resilience, and strength to withstand economic crises to recover,” he added.

Since the external environment, amid the COVID-19 outbreak, has necessitated the innovation and diversification of business operations and its products, more and more firms are looking for opportunities and areas to innovate. According to the survey, 64 per cent of respondents acknowledged that innovation has become easier in the post-COVID-19 era. Prior to the pandemic, only 32.5 per cent of Indian business found innovation in their products and services easy. The study introduced the culture of innovation framework, which spans the dimensions of people, process, data, and technology, to assess organizations’ approach to innovation.

According to the survey, as much as 45 per cent of the Indian organisations feel that their priorities for the next 12 months will be to focus on technology as most essential for business resilience and recovery. Some best practices will include developing a culture that promotes investing in disruptive technologies and leveraging data to differentiate and enhance products and services, the study said.

 

 

 

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Startup

Online Gift Business: Follow These 4 Steps If You Want to Boost Sales Ahead of Christmas & New Year 2020

Gift
Gift (Photo credits: Wikimedia Commons)

Mumbai, November 24: Online gifting business is one of the most profitable business options which you can open just ahead of Christmas and New Year 2020. This is such a category, where there will be demand 365 days and the sales will also peak as the festive season approaches. This is such a business, which doesn’t require a big investment.

However, thinking of the huge competition in this space, it is very important to take care of few factors in order to stay ahead in the race.  We have listed a few steps for you to follow if you wish to boost sales ahead of Christmas and New Year.

Stock Up with good products: Create a good website and stock up with essential products. The festive occasions should be properly highlighted and gifts around those specific days should be arranged for.

Marketing strategy: Once you have a good stock, it is important to market it so that customers will come to know about it. Be regular with social media marketing, update at least thrice a week. Whenever you add a new product, inform your customers about it. The website should also be updated with the latest products.

Product Delivery: Pay attention to product delivery. In today’s age and day, hire a good delivery partner who will ensure that your product will reach in the safe hands of the customers.

Customer Relation: Remember, you are in the servicing industry. The topmost priority should be to make the customers happy and leave a good impression on their mind. If customers have complaints, then address it and don’t sit over it. You should make them feel special and be humanely in your approach.

Customers are not only spending their money but also their time in buying your product. So it is your responsibility to see that they have a fruitful shopping experience. In today’s digital age, customers share their experience in a jiffy on social media, be it good or bad.

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Startup

IESC Signs Pact With FLO to Provide Guidance to Startups and Women Entrepreneurs in Becoming Job Creators

Women Entrepreneurship (Photo Credits: Pexels)

New Delhi, November 23: In a bid to provide guidance and to mentor startups and entrepreneurs to grow, the Incubation and Enterprise Support Centre (IESC) of IIM Shillong has signed an MoU with FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO). Reports inform that the IESC chairperson Sanjeeb Kakoty and FLO national president Jahnabi Phookan signed the deal for their respective organisations on Saturday. The pact is signed with the mission to generate and disseminate knowledge in all aspects of management for sustainable development and to develop innovative leaders with strong ethical values.

Under the pact, entrepreneurs who are a critical stages of starting up a new business will get nurturing, instructive and supportive environment which would increase the chance for a startups to succeed. The mentorship would shorten the time and reduce the cost of establishing and growing its business, the IIM said in a statement issued here. The new pact between two very influential organizations is just the right boost at the right time particularly for women entrepreneurs of the region.

Talking about the importance of women, particularly those in the northeastern part of India, in safeguarding the rich culture and traditions of the people, Prof Sanjeeb Kakoty felt that women were also very much responsible for keeping alive the entrepreneurial nature and spirit emanating from the region. Speaking about the work of FLO, Phookan elaborated that FLO’s vision under her presidency is to focus on ensuring sustainable practices and creating sustainable livelihoods for the economic empowerment of women towards becoming sufficient job creators than just mere job seekers.

IIM Shillong chairman Shishir Bajoria expressed confidence that this initiative could be a defining moment in impacting firstly the region and then beyond, in line with the responsibility bestowed on this premier institute of national importance in the region.

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Startup

LPG Distribution Business: Here’s Why You Can Start a Gas Dealership Business For a Regular & Profitable Source of Income

Gas dealership agency
Gas dealership agency (Photo Credits: Wikimedia Commons)

Mumbai, November 23: If you have some money in hand and have been thinking of starting a new business then there is one idea which is extremely profitable. You can think of getting a dealership of a gas agency.

Gas companies run dealership programs from time to time. You can do this business by taking a dealership. Gas companies need dealers in every city and village to expand the distribution network.

These three companies issue advertisements and notifications from time to time to find dealers. You have to apply for them. To apply, it is necessary to be a class 10th pass.

Starting a gas agency is not a difficult task, one just needs some money to start it. The price may vary according to your city, village. In addition to this, there should be enough space for the gas agency.

Indane is the biggest LPG cylinder provider in the country followed by HP and BP. It is a highly lucrative business because there is a huge demand for it and also, there is no need to market.

However, it is very important to remember that since it is a service industry, it is very difficult to please the customers, who keep on complaining about the long waiting hours and other problems.

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Business motivation Startup

Catering Business in India: 6 Quick Tips to Boost Sales, Attract New Customers & Stay on Top of Customer’s Mind

Catering Business
Catering Business (Photo Credits: Pxfuel)

Mumbai, November 23: If you have a knack for cooking, experimenting with different ingredients and a taste bud which appreciates different cuisine, a catering business can be a very profitable idea for you. However, this business is more about just food and ingredients. It requires great business skills, organisation planning and creativity.

We have curated 6 quick tips which you can use in your every day catering business to improve sales.

Have a business plan: Finalise on a business plan, where you need to decide your catering business will specialise into which kind of cuisine and what would be the highlight.

Stick to quality food: It is very important to feed your customers not only good but tasty food, this will make them come back to you again. Use good ingredients, where the health of the customers are not compromised. Innovate on the menu as people love to experiment and try out different things.

Make Your customer happy: Catering business till today works on the basis of word of mouth. If customer A is happy with your food and service, he will surely spread the word to two other people and therefore, it is very important to make your customers happy. Not only the food, but the service should also stand out.

Take care of hygiene: Keeping the COVID-19 crisis in mind, it will be a big challenge for caterers to present themselves in such a manner so that people can have their food without any tension. Look after the hygiene and sanitise all the food items and utensils frequently.

Offer competitive pricing. Remember one thing that your pricing should be such that it matches with your competition. If your price is higher than your competition, then your food and service should offer something more than what others are not giving.  Profitability is important in any business, so it doesn’t make sense to drop your prices to the point of losing money.

Market your business: In order to reach out to your prospective customers, it is very important that your market using both the online and the offline mediums. Make an attempt to always stay on top of the mind of the customers.

We hope these simple steps will help you focus and will reap success in your everyday business.

 

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Startup

5 Schemes Focused on Development of Women Entrepreneurs in India

Women Entrepreneurs in India (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

The Indian startup ecosystem is thriving successfully. For the past few years many entrepreneurs have emerged and established their business across the industries with much success, giving tough competition to the existing stalwarts. Not only men, Indian women are progressively moving the bandwagon on entrepreneurship forward. Women have been fraying well in the start-up community, starting, sustaining and succeeding in various businesses ranging from food to clothing, entertainment to event planning, tech to handicrafts. They have been proving their worth in the business sphere.

Keeping in view the enthusiasm and determination of the women entrepreneurs, the government has launched various schemes to support and encourage them. The aim is to motivate more and more women to enter the business sector, have their start-ups and fulfil their dreams. Quick finance, loans and other facilities are provided to women at easy and flexible terms and conditions, so that they can start and sustain their businesses.

Here are five schemes that are offered for the development of women entrepreneurs in India-

  1. Stree Shakti Package For Women Entrepreneurs

The scheme is offered by the State Bank of India and its branches. Under this loans up to Rs 50 Lakh are sanctioned to women entrepreneurs who have at least 50 per cent share in the ownership of a firm0020vvvv0072 or business and have taken part in the state agencies run Entrepreneurship Development Programmes (EDP). If the loan exceeds Rs 2 Lakh, a 0.50 per cent concession is granted on the rate of interest.

  1. Annapurna Scheme

Offered by the State bank of Mysore, this scheme is available to women entrepreneurs who have started or plan to start a food catering business. The loan can be utilised for buying various goods required in the business including kitchen equipments. A loan up to Rs 50,000 is sanctioned under the scheme. The loan can be paid back in 36 instalments. The interested charged as per prevailing rates. To secure the loan the candidate needs guarantor and has to offer some asset as collateral.

  1. Dena Shakti Scheme

The scheme is offered by Dena Bank. Under this, women who plan to start businesses in various sectors including agriculture, manufacturing, micro-credit, retail are provided loans. A loan up to Rs 20 Lakh can be sanctioned under this scheme There is a concession of 0.25 percent on rate of interest. Under the scheme, loans up to Rs 50,000 are offered under the microcredit category.

  1. Udyogini Scheme

This scheme is offered by Punjab and Sind Bank to the women entrepreneurs involved in Agriculture, retail and small business enterprises to get loans for business at flexible terms and concessional interest rates. The maximum amount of loan under this scheme for women between the age brackets of 18-45 years is Rs 1 Lakh but the candidate’s family income is also taken into consideration and is set at Rs 45,000 per annum for SC/ST women. For widowed, destitute or disabled women from SC/ST categories, a subsidy of 30 per cent of the loan, up to Rs 10,000, is provided.

  1. Mudra Yojana Scheme for Women

This scheme is offered by the Government of India for women who want to start small new enterprises and businesses including beauty parlours, tailoring units, tuition centres, among others. There are three schemes under it each with different criteria for loan sanction. Firstly, Shishu Scheme, where loan up to Rs 50,000 is sanctioned to women to fund the initial stages of the business. Secondly, Kishor Scheme, here the loan amount ranges from Rs 50,000 to Rs 5 Lakh and is offered to well-established women enterprise. Lastly, Tarun Scheme here loan amount is Rs 10 Lakh and is offered to established business looking for expansion and diversification.

Apart from them, various other schemes for the development of women entrepreneurs are being offered by several organisations in the markets. The main aim of such schemes is to ensure financial support to women entrepreneurs to help establish the business and keep it afloat in later stages.

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Startup

Startup Registrations at GeM Portal Doubles in Past 1 Year Giving a Major Boost to Make in India Initiative

Startup (Representational Image Only, Photo Credits: NeedPix.com)

New Delhi, November 21: The startup registration at the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), the public procurement portal, has more than doubled in the past one year, reports said. The registration of the startups have witnessed a spike and has doubled to 7,438 in just one year as they are receiving many orders from government departments and public sector units, a senior official said. The Government e-Marketplace (GeM) was launched in August 2016 for online purchase of goods and services by all the central government ministries and departments.

GeM CEO Talleen Kumar was quoted by PTI saying that providing increased market access to seller groups like startups, and MSEs has reinforced Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Make in India initiative. “We now have 48,038 buyers, 7.42 lakh sellers with 2.42 lakh MSEs (micro and small enterprises), 7,438 startups, 10,252 product categories, and 173 service categories. One year ago, we had 40,275 buyers, 2.98 lakh sellers, 59,536 MSMEs, and 3,509 startups”.

The official further added saying that the startups have fulfilled orders worth over Rs 1,800 crore through the marketplace. He added saying that the GeM is taking a number of steps so that more and more startups, MSMEs, artisans and weavers can register their goods and services on this platform. “Presently, over 20,000 artisans and 1.2 lakh weavers have registered so far as sellers and are uploading products in their relevant categories,” Kumar added.

Talking about the steps taken for startups across India, the officials said that the GeM portal started a ‘Startup Runway’ so that these entrepreneurs can showcase their innovative products and solutions, and they can also list multiple products with minimal technical specifications. The official said , he said a new and advanced version of the platform will be launched soon which will have powerful features and availability of big ticket items to attract large buyers like PSUs, Railways and Defence.