Varun Priyan, Founder of VRnxt, a Kochi-based start-up focusing on Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality (AR/VR), had big ambitions while developing a mobile-based VR tool for property dealers and automobile dealers. But now, his dreams are in tatters.
After initial success, he has been finding it tough to find clients. “When we meet prospective clients, the first thing they tell us is to meet their senior officers/top bosses in Bengaluru,” he said. Now, Varun is shifting his company to Bengaluru in June, three years since he began the start-up. “I’ve taken an office in Bengaluru,” he said. Quite understandable.
VRnxt’s is not a one-off case. In fact, several start-ups, which have tasted initial success in Kerala, are moving to Bengaluru – considered the start-up capital of India. Robin Alex Panicker, Co-Founder, Basil Gregory Software Labs and volunteer of an NGO – Kerala Start-ups – said the main reasons for start-ups moving to Bengaluru were the talent pool, access to capital and market and peer networking.
“The tech community activity is lacking in Kerala,” he said. “Tech community events, which help software programmes learn the latest trends, besides upgrading and refining their skills, are very common in Bengaluru,” said Robin Alex.
Rahul Das of Fourth Ambit said his company was relocated due to business reasons. “We are doing a huge project with the Karnataka Government – 900-odd colleges are part of this. It’s better to have your headquarters closer to your business,” he said.
It’s easier to get funds for your projects in Bengaluru. “Almost all the leading angel and seed investors, besides venture capital funds, private equity have their offices in Bengaluru and this is a great help,” said another start-up founder, who is looking to raise funds from angel/seed investors. “In Kerala, we have the the Kerala chapters of TiE and Indian Angel Network but it’s not comparable to the sheer size of the Bengaluru market.”
Fourth Ambit, which still has an office in Kochi, recently raised $600,000 (Rs 4 crore) after moving to Bengaluru. Others including iTraveller have also raised multiple rounds of funding after relocating to the Garden City.
Saji Gopinath, CEO of Kerala Start-Up Mission (KSUM), admitted the loss of start-ups to other cities after the early growth has become a big concern for the government. “Stopping the outflow of start-ups from Kerala after achieving a certain growth is a priority for me,” he said.
Saji said KSUM has lined-up a slew of initiatives to make start-ups stay in the state. Some of them are: Making funds available for start-ups by promising the government will chip in with its contribution for every funding made by the private investors; assisting senior and experienced professionals to set up start-ups (brown start-ups) ensuring a right mix of ‘green (start-ups founded by youngsters) and ‘brown’ start-ups and creating focused accelerators like the tie-up with BPCL to encourage initiatives in the oil and gas sector. “We also see great opportunity for Kerala in hardware/embedded software,” he said.
Das of Fourth Ambit rated Kerala a better place for early stage start-ups. “The cost is cheaper, you get ‘sticky’ and loyal employees, an important part when you are building your business,” he said. KSUM hates the title ‘nursery of start-ups’ and wants to shed it at the earliest. “We don’t want Kerala to be just a nursery of startups,” said Saji.
Robin Alex felt Kerala should get integrated to bigger ecosystems like Bengaluru and Mumbai rather than competing with them. “Going forward, I think, Kerala as a standalone ecosystem won’t work,” he said.
Source: Indian Expres
