The Hustle Lounge

Socially Desi

Hustle Lounge aims at showcasing stories of entrepreneurs across the world. The idea is to bring narratives that speak of real hustles that every founder has to go through to start and run one’s business. Thank you everyone for tuning in - expect life lessons, hacks, and some real learnings and stories of entrepreneurs across the world.

Episodes

  1. 12/21/2021

    Startups need relationships before anything else

    Nitesh started being an outsider in the industry. His way to build and scale O'be cocktails has been through effective rapport and relationship building bottom-up. In his own words, it has taken “many chais with the sales and marketing folks near wine shops” to learn the nuances of the industry. He started making craft cocktails in his kitchen and serving friends and their friends in bottles - acceptance and desire for the cocktails was crazy. Welcome to a brand new segment by Socially Desi. This is the Hustle Lounge! Hustle Lounge aims at showcasing stories of entrepreneurs across the world. The idea is to bring narratives that speak of real hustles that every founder has to go through to start and run one’s business. Thank you everyone for tuning in - expect life lessons, hacks, and some real learnings and stories of entrepreneurs across the world In this episode of the Hustle Lounge, we are interacting with the founder and CEO of obi cocktails Mr. Nitesh Prakash. He has over 10 years of leadership experience across different industries He has been a manufacturing leader at PNG. He has led multiple businesses at Ola Cabs across Auto, Cabs, and Food. He is an IIT Bombay alumni and he was born and brought up in Patna. Check out O'be Cocktails O'be Cocktails Instagram handle Check out The Hustle Lounge Our Website Don't forget to subscribe to our Youtube channel for more of such content. Till then, Keep Hustling!

    31 min
  2. 12/21/2021

    Recover from the Analysis Paralysis and STARTUP

    Luuma means to be found and established - a home decor brand started by two pilots which took flight in the pandemic. Most founders get stuck in an analysis paralysis world and end up missing opportunities that lay in front of them. In this episode of The Hustle Lounge, we interact with the founders of Luuma and interact with them to know what it took them to take the leap of faith and START-UP. Topics Discussed - Before launching LUUMA you had several ideas, what is that one thing that made you go ahead with this one?How did you identify the market need - none of you have on-ground experience in handicrafts - what was the process to start?You launched amidst a pandemic - how has that experience been? I am positive there were challenges, how did you manage within the restrictions?How did you arrive at the pricing model? How do you manage quality control and standardization? Welcome to a brand new segment by Socially Desi. This is the Hustle Lounge! Hustle Lounge aims at showcasing stories of entrepreneurs across the world. The idea is to bring narratives that speak of real hustles that every founder has to go through to start and run one’s business. Thank you everyone for tuning in - expect life lessons, hacks, and some real learnings and stories of entrepreneurs across the world. Check out LUUMA Check out The Hustle Lounge Our Website Don't forget to subscribe to our Youtube channel for more of such content. Till then, Keep Hustling!

    31 min
  3. 12/21/2021

    The hustle to keep your finances in check as an early stage startup

    Poor finance management is one of the top 3 reasons startups fail in India. As an early-stage startup, the role of the founders becomes all the more crucial to maintain financial stability in their startup. In this episode of The Hustle Lounge, we interact with the Founder and Director of Vanity Cube - India’s larger mobile salon! A lot of entrepreneurs feel women aren’t good with money, Renu a true blue hustler just busted that myth. This is one true hustle you cannot afford to miss! Welcome to a brand new segment by Socially Desi. This is the Hustle Lounge! Hustle Lounge aims at showcasing stories of entrepreneurs across the world. The idea is to bring narratives that speak of real hustles that every founder has to go through to start and run one’s business. Thank you everyone for tuning in - expect life lessons, hacks, and some real learnings and stories of entrepreneurs across the world. Check out Vanity Cube PODCAST CHAPTERS: 0:00 Intro 2:00 How did you decide on your seed investment amount how long did it last? 6:12 Was there ever a runway scare situation? What was it and how was it averted? 10:21 Strategies to avoid a runway scare 15:19 Was there a specific valuation target you had before you embarked on raising funds? 18:16 Is there a magic metric to convince investors about the viability of an early-stage startup? 22:15 How to handle rejections? 25:19 Two mistakes you did or things you missed which you would advise other entrepreneurs to never lose focus on? 28:57 Key Takeaways 30:50 Closing thoughts Check out The Hustle Lounge Our Website Don't forget to subscribe to our Youtube channel for more of such content. Till then, Keep Hustling!

    32 min
  4. 12/20/2021

    Flexibility is the new normal!

    Welcome to a brand new segment by Socially Desi. This is the Hustle Lounge! Hustle Lounge aims at showcasing stories of entrepreneurs across the world. The idea is to bring narratives that speak of real hustles that every founder has to go through to start and run one’s business. Thank you everyone for tuning in - expect life lessons, hacks, and some real learnings and stories of entrepreneurs across the world In this episode, we interact with Shreya Prakash. Shreya Prakash is the CEO and Co-founder of FlexiBees. She leads Business Development & Marketing, focusing on helping companies understand and unlock the massive potential that a flexible workforce can bring. She has nearly a decade of experience prior to FlexiBees, in Branding, Communication, Marketing, and Sales with Hindustan Unilever. FlexiBees provides vetted part-time, project-based, and remote-working talent to businesses via qualified women professionals returning to work after a career break. The Hustle - Well, the thing we do differently, and that works for us, is that we are a 100% remote team. Our 40-member team is spread out across cities and even countries, from before the pandemic. A majority of them work part-time, a majority are returning mothers. Hiring from our own pool helps us hire the best talent in a geography agnostic manner and scale in a lean way with a committed and purpose-driven team. Check out FlexiBees Flexibees Instagram handle Check out The Hustle Lounge Our Website Don't forget to subscribe to our Youtube channel for more of such content. Till then, Keep Hustling!

    25 min
  5. 12/20/2021

    Roll-up your sleeves and don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty

    Entrepreneurship is all about rolling up your sleeves and getting hands-on with your products and services. This week we interact with the Co-founders of Basta, Krishna, and Amit. Their hustle will surely inspire and motivate all of you on how it's crucial to get your hands dirty into your business. If you're an entrepreneur, you need to be able to get your hands dirty and make things happen. It's not about being a suit in the office and delegating, it's about understanding the product from the ground up and making it happen. Basta is India’s first Direct-To-Customer – Organized Goat Dairy! We are pioneers in Goat Milk Products - Milk, Cheese & Yogurt. Basta has spent years perfecting the art of Goat farming with technology but has not left natural and sustainable methods. They are available in Bangalore and supplied to 7-star hotels, retail stores, subscription apps, portals, Flipkart, etc. They are Blending tradition, science, and passion in the Goat Value Chain. Topics covered - What convinced Krishna and Amit to start this business?While there were a lot of challenges early on, what were the visible green shoots that kept them going?It’s a fairly large team with varied backgrounds how easy or difficult was it to assign specific roles and stick to them?How did they manage the shift from micro-managing the business to letting go for scale and expansion?What was their go-to-market strategy, what were the challenges and how did they overcome the challenges? Check out Basta Check out The Hustle Lounge Our Website Don't forget to subscribe to our Youtube channel for more of such content. Till then, Keep Hustling!

    30 min
  6. 12/20/2021

    Do you really need a website to start a subscription / ecommerce business?

    Welcome to a brand new segment by Socially Desi. This is the Hustle Lounge ! Hustle Lounge aims at showcasing stories of entrepreneurs across the world. The idea is to bring narratives that speak of real hustles that every founder has to go through to start and run one’s business. Thank you everyone for tuning in - expect life lessons, hacks, and some real learnings and stories of entrepreneurs across the world In this episode, we interact with Nidhi Gupta. She is the Founder of Shades of Spring. Shades of Spring is redefining the flower delivery experience, making the giving and receiving of beautiful fresh flowers the joy it is meant to be. Check out Shades Of Spring Shades Of Spring on Instagram PODCAST CHAPTERS: 0:00 Intro 1:03 Hustle of the Day! 1:31 You started your company whilst you were still working, please tell us how easy that was? 3:50 How did you make the decision to start the business using whatsapp and excel in 2017? 6:40 What was the trigger for you to jump ship full time into your project? 10:12 Your pricing model is unique and still new in the Indian market- What convinced you about the subscription model? 13:45 Why and when should an entrepreneur look at this as a viable model for their business? 16:59 How big a barrier was the local language for you? How did you solve this problem? 22:00 How did you manage the quality of deliveries in the early days? 27:43 Closing thoughts 28:54 Outro and CTA Check out The Hustle Lounge Our Website Dont forget to subscribe to our Youtube channel for more of such content. Till then, Keep Hustling!

    30 min

About

Hustle Lounge aims at showcasing stories of entrepreneurs across the world. The idea is to bring narratives that speak of real hustles that every founder has to go through to start and run one’s business. Thank you everyone for tuning in - expect life lessons, hacks, and some real learnings and stories of entrepreneurs across the world.