The startup ecosystem

LightCastle Partners recently organised a roundtable discussion in association with The Daily Star, on the startup ecosystem of Bangladesh. The event took place this Sunday, March 13, at the Daily Star Centre. The panelists, who were representatives of various corporate and private bodies, startups and development-based organisations, provided their insights regarding the topic at hand. 

Saifur Rahman (Co-founder and Director, Marketing and Business Development, LightCastle Partners) started it off with a presentation about a survey that LCP conducted. The survey findings focused on important startup metrics from the perspective of both entrepreneurs and investors. One of the most interesting data that came out of the survey is that about 31% of startup founders do it for the passion, 29% do it to make use of the opportunity in the market and the remaining 15% prefer the independence they might not find in the corporate sector. Adding to that, about half of them found inspiration from their academic institution.

Right now, e-commerce sites are getting more visitors than ever. According to LCP's survey, ekhanei.com is the most popular e-commerce site among Bangladeshi users with 21% of the total users, other sites come second with 18% share. And Bikroy.com ranks third at 17%. The majority of e-commerce business in Bangladesh fall under C2C (consumer to consumer) transaction business model where a consumer sells products to another consumer. Companies like Ekhanei.com, Bikroy.com, Priyoshop.com and daraz.com are the top players. A growing number of B2C (business to consumer) e-commerce sites are also operating currently. These are mostly existing businesses adding an online shop front. However, there are also social media based firms as well. B2B (business to business) transaction-based business is the least prevalent form of e-commerce business in Bangladesh. Mostly companies operating in the RMG sector utilise B2B online transaction to do business with foreign firms.

Zahedul Amin (Co-founder and Director, Strategy and Finance, LightCastle Partners) conducted the discussion. On the matter of whether or not financial benefit is the primary aim of investors while mentoring startups, Samira Zuberi Himika from Team Engine explained that the case is not always so. Some investors, if not the majority of them, do it simply because they want startups and new businesses to grow and come to life. It's not just about the profit they make; implementing an amazing idea that solves a problem is a motivating factor for many. VCs who are experts in related fields can provide the support a low resource startup needs. Especially when it comes to students and new entrepreneurs, their capabilities and knowledge are often limited. Finding an investor who hands over cash is not enough, they need direct guidance over matters that'll contribute to the sustainability of their startup.

Afsana Zerin (Seven Sages) talked about the issues women entrepreneurs face in the community. They often feel like female investors and VCs are more approachable. And even though we have a large number of female entrepreneurs, most investors are male. This is a problem that should solve itself and that starts with a change in the mentality. Everyone agreed that these problems should be brought up in front of industry leaders and government officials who can impose solutions.

The discussion ended after touching on multiple pressing issues that the startup community of our country is currently dealing with. Active participation of the panelists resulted in a lively conversation. Better Stories was the strategic partner of the event.