To start your business, right place and experience DO matter
I am neither MBA nor from a business family but the two incidences made me to learn a small business lesson.
FIRST INCIDENCE :
One fine morning while waiting at the bus stop for office bus, I saw two guys almost between 20 - 26 years were starting to sell Bhajji-vada. They brought their bhajji and one stand in a maruti van. I could easily see their restlessness to first spot a good place to start their business. Soon enough they spotted a place and kept their stand and bhajji cane on it and started waiting for their customers.
First I thought, wow India need such enthusiasm in young people who on their own starts earning or at least think of earning themselves instead of just playing, drinking or roaming here and there and teasing other people.
But gradually I started feeling pity for those two person, as they chose a wrong place to start their business, you want to know why i found it wrong, so here it is:
1. It was around 7:30 AM and Sun started spreading its sunshine everywhere, for morning it is alright, but gradually the Sun rays becoming stronger and stronger, and making difficult to stand in sun. I thought they will definitely face challenge to stand with it and find difficult to find their customer.
2. They started their business near a bus stop, well more precisely near a traffic signal. So other possibility for not attracting customer is where will they park their vehicle when they stop by to enjoy the bhajji.
I thought about it at first instance, where are they going wrong but I could not collect courage enough to tell those two person where are they wrong. I thought let them learn themselves, LIFE always teaches you a lesson everyday!
So the very first day till I was waiting at the bus stop I hardly see one person bought bhajji from them which they gave on a piece of news paper.
To my surprise, second day they shifted their place under a shed where people could also park their vehicle.
I was happy to see more customers at their stall. Finally "इनकी दुकान चल पड़ी"
SECOND INCIDENCE:
After few months, I found those two persons disappeared from that place, don't know whether they stopped their business or started somewhere else. But now what I found is an old man aged around 55+ started his business. And since day 1 he started very good and now his customer are pedestrians, bicycle rider, joggers from near park, motor bike riders, people from four wheeler ranging from car, bus, truck etc. Following things I observed which this old man did and those two young guys missed:
1. He placed his cart under the shed, almost like small PAN shop.
2. He placed his cart on sideways of the road, so almost everybody on the road could easily spot his shop.
3. He placed his cart at such a place that anybody can easily park their vehicle on the road, its almost 0.5 km away from the traffic signal.
4. He sells tea, biscuits, cigarette, toast, some other home made cookies. Even a high profile person driving a car stops by his small shop for a cigarette. And two ladies (one lady with her child) working for BBMP who cleans the waste on roads, enjoy tea and biscuits at his stall. Probably this old man understood very well, how Indian people start their morning i.e. by having tea. biscuits and/or cigarette.
5. This old man also took care of the cleanliness, he placed a small torn bamboo tokri in front of his stall for people's convenience even though there is a big lump of coconut waste beside and a garbage tunnel nearby.
6. This old man stand all the time at his stall waiting for customer, but for customer's convenience he placed a wooden chair almost broken but fitted by some iron wires. Once again thought about his customer's convenience.
These two incidences let me realize and made me learn a life long lesson :
"To start your business, right place and experience to understand customer matter"!!
FIRST INCIDENCE :
One fine morning while waiting at the bus stop for office bus, I saw two guys almost between 20 - 26 years were starting to sell Bhajji-vada. They brought their bhajji and one stand in a maruti van. I could easily see their restlessness to first spot a good place to start their business. Soon enough they spotted a place and kept their stand and bhajji cane on it and started waiting for their customers.
First I thought, wow India need such enthusiasm in young people who on their own starts earning or at least think of earning themselves instead of just playing, drinking or roaming here and there and teasing other people.
But gradually I started feeling pity for those two person, as they chose a wrong place to start their business, you want to know why i found it wrong, so here it is:
1. It was around 7:30 AM and Sun started spreading its sunshine everywhere, for morning it is alright, but gradually the Sun rays becoming stronger and stronger, and making difficult to stand in sun. I thought they will definitely face challenge to stand with it and find difficult to find their customer.
2. They started their business near a bus stop, well more precisely near a traffic signal. So other possibility for not attracting customer is where will they park their vehicle when they stop by to enjoy the bhajji.
I thought about it at first instance, where are they going wrong but I could not collect courage enough to tell those two person where are they wrong. I thought let them learn themselves, LIFE always teaches you a lesson everyday!
So the very first day till I was waiting at the bus stop I hardly see one person bought bhajji from them which they gave on a piece of news paper.
To my surprise, second day they shifted their place under a shed where people could also park their vehicle.
I was happy to see more customers at their stall. Finally "इनकी दुकान चल पड़ी"
SECOND INCIDENCE:
After few months, I found those two persons disappeared from that place, don't know whether they stopped their business or started somewhere else. But now what I found is an old man aged around 55+ started his business. And since day 1 he started very good and now his customer are pedestrians, bicycle rider, joggers from near park, motor bike riders, people from four wheeler ranging from car, bus, truck etc. Following things I observed which this old man did and those two young guys missed:
1. He placed his cart under the shed, almost like small PAN shop.
2. He placed his cart on sideways of the road, so almost everybody on the road could easily spot his shop.
3. He placed his cart at such a place that anybody can easily park their vehicle on the road, its almost 0.5 km away from the traffic signal.
4. He sells tea, biscuits, cigarette, toast, some other home made cookies. Even a high profile person driving a car stops by his small shop for a cigarette. And two ladies (one lady with her child) working for BBMP who cleans the waste on roads, enjoy tea and biscuits at his stall. Probably this old man understood very well, how Indian people start their morning i.e. by having tea. biscuits and/or cigarette.
5. This old man also took care of the cleanliness, he placed a small torn bamboo tokri in front of his stall for people's convenience even though there is a big lump of coconut waste beside and a garbage tunnel nearby.
6. This old man stand all the time at his stall waiting for customer, but for customer's convenience he placed a wooden chair almost broken but fitted by some iron wires. Once again thought about his customer's convenience.
These two incidences let me realize and made me learn a life long lesson :
"To start your business, right place and experience to understand customer matter"!!