Get All Access for $5/mo

The Role of Incubators in Empowering Early-stage Entrepreneurs in India To realize the vision of transforming their company into a sizable flourishing enterprise, founders can greatly benefit from startup incubators

By Tanvi Singla

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

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

Pixabay

With approximately 50,000 startups, India has the third most startups in the world. Almost everyone at the helm of these startups expects to replicate the success of businesses that went on to command multi-million dollar valuations.

At an early stage of a venture, it is critical to focus on building a strong value proposition and validating that the venture is solving a problem worth solving for a customer base that wants the solution.

To realize the vision of transforming their company into a sizable flourishing enterprise, founders can greatly benefit from startup incubators.

Access to a dynamic ecosystem

Of the approximately 50,000 startups in India, a significant number are in tier 2 and tier 3 cities where access to resources is limited. With greater exposure, many entrepreneurs leading startups can boost the efficacy of their business model. In helping their businesses realize their full potential, a dynamic community comprising industry insiders can play an essential role. Such experts can help entrepreneurs streamline their business model and bring it to market at the right time.

There is no shortage of talent in India. The technical prowess of Indian inventors is renowned across the world. Many with superb technical skills have an outstanding grasp of technology and clarity of the product. Still, they might lack the insights to transform their inventions into profitable businesses.

When such startups join a sophisticated ecosystem like an incubator, they gain access to mentors who have mature insights. Mentors assist entrepreneurs develop their inventions into marketable and revenue-generating products.

With the experienced insights of mentors, exceptional designs developed by founders become useful solutions with identifiable paying customers.

A vast network is an unbeatable advantage

An incubator does more than provide access to mentors; it lets entrepreneurs network with dozens or even hundreds of professionals who have considerable financial resources and expertise at their fingertips, and fellow founders who are in the same journey of building ventures. Indeed, networking plays a crucial role in the success of every startup. If a startup founder has access to a strong network, the chances of the venture's success can increase substantially.

As an addition to the product brilliance of founders, incubators help in connecting the dots by fostering network connections with the right people. The core of many incubators also resides in peer learning and support, enabling founders to learn from a network of other founders alongside them on the same path. This makes an incubator a productive, vibrant, and fast-paced environment where the best minds brainstorm the next big things.

An ecosystem cultivates founders personalities

Interacting with founders, we've seen that when faced with a panel and asked to explain their idea, more than a few founders, despite having a great product, flounder. As a result, they are unable to impress those who have the means to finance or greatly support their company.

Excellent interpersonal and soft skills play a massive role in an organization's success. Entrepreneurs learn these skills when they become part of an incubator.

Armed with soft skills, entrepreneurs can articulate their ideas clearly. More often than not, founders who can explain their vision win over investors. That's because the latent potential in a startup is often complicated. It can always be told well by someone who can express themselves.

Access to domain experts

An incubator can also give entrepreneurs access to domain experts. Entrepreneurship is so vast and interlined, that no one person or even a large team can master all its aspects. In an incubator, an entrepreneur has access to domain experts whose support can lead to the creation of a better product.

With an incubator, entrepreneurs get a platform to easily connect with domain experts who have the right expertise their startup needs.

Startups can dramatically fast pace their road to success by partnering with an incubator, where they get a conducive environment of personalized resources, people, and partners that are committed to helping them realize the vision they have for their company.

Tanvi Singla

Co-founder of Supreme Incubator

Tanvi Singla is the co-founder and CEO of Supreme Incubator, an incubator that helps early-stage startups build strong and scalable businesses. Being a virtual incubator, the program inducts startup founders from across the country in 6-month cohorts of intensive venture building alongside industry experts.

She is a graduate of the prestigious Shri Ram College of Commerce. Following graduation, she joined her family-owned financial services business. Having grown up in an entrepreneurial family, Tanvi was from an early age aware of the power of entrepreneurship. Tanvi started Supreme Incubator with Disha Singla after co-leading projects over several months.

In addition to managing Supreme Incubator, she is a Global Shaper with the New Delhi Hub- an initiative of the World Economic Forum, where she is leading a project on awareness about and access to sustainable menstruation products.

She strongly believes in investing in the community, and though for the time-being Supreme Incubator is sector agnostic, in the future, Tanvi expects it to have a social impact track.

News and Trends

"45% of All Ongoing Hydropower Projects in India are Ours": Patel Engineering

Patel Engineering reported a turnover of INR 4,400 crore in the last fiscal year, with a projected 10 per cent growth for the current year.

Marketing

5 Critical Mistakes to Avoid When Giving a Presentation

Are you tired of enduring dull presentations? Over the years, I have compiled a list of common presentation mistakes and how to avoid them. Here are my top five tips.

Business News

Former Steve Jobs Intern Says This Is How He Would Have Approached AI

The former intern is now the CEO of AI and data company DataStax.

Side Hustle

'Hustling Every Day': These Friends Started a Side Hustle With $2,500 Each — It 'Snowballed' to Over $500,000 and Became a Multimillion-Dollar Brand

Paris Emily Nicholson and Saskia Teje Jenkins had a 2020 brainstorm session that led to a lucrative business.

Business Process

How CEOs Can Take Control of Their Emails and Achieve Inbox Zero

Although there are many methodologies that leaders can use to manage their emails effectively, a consistent and thought-through process is the most effective way to systemize and respond to emails and is a step of stewardship for the effective leader.