Get All Access for $5/mo

Offering Localised, Vernacular After-School-Tutoring With India's first vernacular e-learning platform, Saini looks to capture 40% of their target customers

By Deepa Vaidya

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Vidyakul
Tarun Saini, founder and CEO, Vidyakul

Tarun Saini, founder and CEO, Vidyakul, on his mission for 'Bharat' kids, says, "We all know in the whole of Bharat, 70% kids come from State Boards. This 70%, out of the 250 million students, learns online or any content in their local language. So Vidyakul is building the first vernacular e-learning platform or after-school-tutoring for state board kids. So, out of the 250 million, we will capture 70% of the entire market, which are the state board kids. We are more like a social impact for profit ed-tech."

"Vidyakul pivoted its business model right at the cusp of the pandemic. We provide live online classes for students in a one-to-many format in vernacular language via its app. It complements schools, it covers the entire course in much greater depth for students who may not be able to understand in school. Our content is available to students in a recorded format that can be accessed anytime during the course duration. So, pandemic or no-pandemic, our model is conducive to both scenarios. We did not really have to rework as we always co-existed with schools," says Saini.

Himself a State Board pass-out, on their efforts to reach the underprivileged Saini says, "We have partnered with grass roots influencers who help at the village level to build Vidyakul."

Commenting on their model, Saini says, "We give basic education totally free on YouTube. We have a 5-million subscriber base altogether for each state. If someone wants to access structured courses, we charge Rs. 300-Rs.350/month for all the subjects."

With ed-techs' operational and financial metrics stressed in general, how does Vidyakul stay afloat?

Says Saini, "We want to fix the unit economy and viable business model first, then scale it. So Vidyakul is at a stage right now, where our business model's unit economy is very viable and scalable, because we picked only one state to start with which we look to replicate pan India. So, I would say, every entrepreneur should see the unit economy and viable business model first before scaling it. Otherwise, you see what is happening right now in the market when it comes to the valuation side."

On their growth plans, "When we started in April and May '21, we had around 400 paying students last year, we have seen 10x growth in the paying user. So, this year, we are looking to expand in UP, Bihar and Gujarat to reach 40% of the market and aiming to have 100k paying users by the end FY 2023."

FACTSHEET

· Year of establishment - 2021

· No. of employees – 45 employees and 50 teachers

· Amount of external funding and leading investors – USD 1 million led by JITO Angel Network, SOSV and We Founder Circle.

· Average course fee : Rs. 300- Rs.350

· No. of students taught : 5 lakh (free); 25k (paid)

· Customer acquisition cost : Between Rs 200 – 250.

News and Trends

Recur Club Announces Credit Offerings for Startups Beyond Series A and SMEs

In FY 24–25, the platform also plans to deploy an additional INR 2000 crores through its Recur Swift program for startups.

News and Trends

East Ocyon Bio, Culture Circle, Power Gummies, and Navanc Raise Early-Stage Funding

The startups listed below have disclosed investment rounds.

News and Trends

Australian Human Spaceflight Pioneer Expands Indo-Pacific Footprint with New Operations in India

With a focus on pioneering advanced human spaceflight services, the new India office will serve as a strategic hub to cater to the growing demand for innovative space tech solutions in the Indo-Pacific region and foster collaboration with Indian government agencies, research institutions, and private enterprises.

News and Trends

Stride Ventures Launches Fourth Fund with USD 300 Mn Target Corpus

Industry leaders like BlueStone, Upstox, Moneyview, Ather, Pharmeasy, Infra.Market, and Ola Electric have benefited from Stride's support.

News and Trends

Supply-Chain Financing Platform Mintifi Raises USD 180 Mn in Series E, Valuation Soars to USD 850 Mn

The raised funding will enable Mintifi to diversify its product offerings, such as dealer management systems, loans against property, and factoring services, powered by artificial intelligence.

News and Trends

How Cactus Partners' Growth Playbook Drives Valuations and Success for its Portfolio

The modus operandi of Cactus is helping companies put the governance systems in place with required boards and committees, preferably at the series A stage or beyond.