You’ve checked into a five-star and call up room service for a refreshing drink. And before you can count to 10, your drink is there. Impressed? Well you have to thank a software—Triton—for delivering such efficient service. Of course, there is the house-keeping staff to be thanked also.
Creating and establishing Triton took its creator company Knowcross three years, but for its CEO Nikhil Nath they were the most rewarding years of his life. Nath’s life had always been packed with achievements. A year-long dream job with Goldman Sachs at 21—hobnobbing with head honchos and clinching deals. A degree in business management from Europe’s leading business school HEC France at 23, followed by five years of zooming up the corporate ladder with another globally renowned consulting firm Monitor. A year of highs riding the dotcom boom at 29 as partner at Antfactory, an international private equity firm. And then a thumping fall at 30.
“I was on the plane almost every other day. When the dotcom meltdown affected our investments in 2001, I realised I needed to slowdown and take a break,” says Nath, who just travelled, hiked, skied, scuba-dived for six long months in 2001. The sabbatical did rejuvenate him but he remained clueless about his future. Not the one to indulge in impulsive spending, Nath had built a comfortable nest egg. Since he had burnt his fingers at the stock market initially, he stuck to safe bank deposits.
When a friend suggested that he be part of his startup in software services, Nath took the plunge. “I had nothing better to do plus the idea of starting my own thing excited me,” says Nath, son of a Delhi-based lawyer. The start-up already had a business module and plan. The project was to integrate comprehensive workflow and guest service management that allowed hotels to improve their operational efficiency. Since hotels in Europe had shown interest in the software, the duo was confident of finding takers for their product.
For Nath it was stepping into untested waters—a graduate in Economics from Delhi University with specialisation in finance, software services was an area he had never worked in. “But I am tech-savvy and a self-taught programmer,” says Nath, who put in the initial amount of Rs 10 lakh into the business and set up the office on rented premises in the outskirts of Delhi in 2002.NIKHIL NATH, 35 |
| Education: MBA from HEC, France |
| Worked with: Goldman Sachs, Monitor, Antfactory |
| Age at starting business: 30 years |
| No. of years as entrepreneur: 5 years |
| Initial investment: Rs 10 lakh |
| Sources of fund: Savings |
| Company: Knowcross, an IT consulting firm offering software design, development, implementation services |
| Turnover: Rs 10 crore (expected in FY 2007-8) |
| No. of employees: 30 |
| Idea occurred: A friend suggested the plan for the start-up |
For a year, Nath couldn’t fathom where the company was headed. The area of work was new, the product hadn’t been market tested, capital had to be pumped in regularly, there were no returns and 12 people needed to be paid their salaries. By now Nath had put in “serious” sums of money.
Personally, too, for Nath it was a climbdown. Suddenly money was a constraint, peers from the same profession were doing extremely well, parents worried about him and for once he was not in control. “Quitting was never an option. I had to emerge successful,” says Nath. He had to cut down the size of his staff to four. “It’s like making a movie. Put in everything first and wait for audiences’ reaction. A hit ensures your returns, a flop sinks you. Similarly, I had to put in all into the creation of the software and was waiting for client’s reaction,” says Nath.
By 2003, the beta version of the product was ready but the hospitality industry was still reeling under the impact of epidemics and the Iraq War. “We hobbled along, catering to small projects, making meagre amounts.” says Nath.
The long and lonely journey was one of the biggest learning experience for this adventure sports enthusiast. “All along I had taken a lot of things for granted, this phase of set backs altered my approach to life,” says Nath. His perseverance soon paid off. The Oberoi group of hotels approved of the product. Slowly his client base increased as the word spread in the hospitality sector.
The year 2005 dawned better with the hospitality industry looking up. Clients were coming in, but Nath was cash-strapped. He had scaled up his team to seven members. Delhi-based BOA, a group of angel investors, was scouting for business ideas that needed funding. Nath’s concept and growth plan clicked instantly with the members of BOA (see Guest Column, pg 72). Along with Umen Bewtra, co-founder of IIS Infotech, and a couple of other private investors, Knowcross received Rs 2.3 crore as initial funding.TIPS FOR ASPIRING START-UPS |
| Think ahead of the competitor: Nath improvised on what their competitors had to offer; thus making the product unique |
| Work with a start-up first: Setting up base for other companies helped Nath gather experience |
| Keep emotion out of business: Don't fall in love with your idea. Tweak, dump, look afresh if it fails |
| Employees are your biggest asset: Make them part of the company with stock options, rewards, etc |
The days of sleepless nights for this bachelor were finally over. The systemic changes the software provided to the users greatly enhanced their efficiency. With the product established, Nath’s next step was expansion. The contours of the battle had changed; it was no longer about survival but how fast they could grow.
The team was scaled up to 30 persons, business from overseas was the main focus and tie-ups were being looked at. The product too was upgraded, customised to meet the clients’ requirements. “Even though we were a start-up our product had many features which the established companies had missed out on, this gave us an edge over competitors,” says Nath, who has already set-up offices in China, Singapore and will be setting up the US office in June this years.
With presence in over 10 countries, Knowcross is now ready with its second product for new age hospitals. The company reported an astounding 250% growth over last year and expects to touch a turnover of Rs 10 crore in 2007-8. Amidst all the accomplishments, Nath is happy that he can now plan his weekends better and travel only when he wants.
