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Shark Tank India 3: What do Sharks consider before investing? Vineeta Singh, Aman Gupta, and others reveal
In a recent interview, Shark Tank India 3 judges Aman Gupta, Azhar Iqubal, Vineeta Singh, Namita Thapar, and Ritesh Agarwal revealed what they look for before making investments.
Shark Tank India 3 is currently on air and so far, viewers have seen some really interesting deals making it through. While every pitcher enters the tank with the dream of securing a deal from the Sharks, a few deals fall through. On the other hand, a few deals manage to impress all the Sharks, while others bag the deal from one or two.
One thing that goes on in the minds of viewers and pitchers alike is how do Sharks choose if they want to invest in a company. In a recent interview, Sharks Ritesh Agarwal, Namita Thapar, Vineeta Singh, Azhar Iqubal, and Aman Gupta answered the question.
Ritesh Agarwal goes with gut feeling
Ritesh Agarwal, one of the youngest Sharks on the panel of Shark Tank India 3 shared that one of the most important factors for an investor is to have faith in the pitcher. He said, “Most of the entrepreneurs that come to the tank are very early stage companies, they are just getting started. So, to be able to identify the business models, numbers, etc, that will only be an indication. You can't do standard private equity style math of past financial, future financial. You have to have high conviction in the entrepreneur."
He added, "You have a gut feeling that the business will go through highs and lows, but the entrepreneur knows their business, customers so well that they will figure it out.”
Agarwal continued, “In Hindi, I would always say, ‘main ghode se zyada jockey pe invest karta hu’, investing in the person driving the ship rather than the ship because the ship can have challenges.”
Vineeta Singh is a fan of numbers
Vineeta Singh who has been associated with the show since the first season shared why numbers are everything to her. The Co-founder & CEO of SUGAR Cosmetics shared, “I think everybody’s gonna say founders, because that is the number 1 thing, but I’m gonna go beyond that. For me, I tell my team also, numbers is my love language, so if you don’t know your numbers well,that's a big turn-off. So, know your numbers.”
Talking about the numbers that she considers, she explained, “Fundamental, gross-margin, you could be making losses, but if you have gross-margin, you could tip to the other side. Similarly, understanding of things like repeat percentages, so you are looking at the right metrics because if you're not looking at the right metrics, I can’t gauge in 30 minutes whether your product market fit is done or not. You have to tell me that and if you don’t know the numbers, how am I gonna take that?”
Aman Gupta on what’s important for him
Aman Gupta, one of the most popular Sharks of Shark Tank India 3 and undoubtedly one of the most preferred Sharks of the investors shared, “For me, profitability, ROI driven marketing, ROI driven sales, ROI driven financing, ROI driven business mindset is very important.”
He continued, “Public markets has taught us a lot, look at how Zomato has proven that how they are performing now and with the profits coming out, look how market is rewarding them and the market was the one that bashed them when they were not profitable, so now realization is there in a lot of founders and entrepreneurs.” Hearing Aman’s last statement, the other Sharks laughed.
Namita Thapar considers scalability
Namita Thapar shared how her father’s company scaled over the years. From 400 crores to 700 crores, she has seen what it takes to scale. The Executive Director for Emcure Pharmaceuticals and one of the leading businesswomen of India said, “The first metric that I look at is if this business is capable of scaling. And that can happen like Vineeta said if you have an attractive TAM.”
Talking about the second factor, she said, “The second is if you have a very strong USP, a differentiator. So, these are the two specific things I look for because if you are not able to scale, I am not gonna have my exit.”
Azhar Iqubal focuses on repeatability
Azhar Iqubal who joined the panel this season said, “I judge based on one number, if it’s available. If the number is not available, then there are other factors to consider. And I think every business gets this number at a very early stage and it's repeat use case. If there is repeatability, the business can be built, otherwise not. Even if only 5 people have used it, if they are using it continuously, then there’s a scope of widening the market. This is my core metric.”
So, now you have answers to one of the most commonly asked questions, ‘What do Sharks look for before investing?’
Whether you are an entrepreneur or someone dreaming of taking baby steps toward entrepreneurship, keep the words of the Sharks in mind.
Shark Tank India 3 airs from Monday to Friday on SONY LIV at 10 PM.
