Interview with Avirup Mondal | Co-Founder at GrowthMart

We spoke to Avirup Mondal, co-founder at GrowthMart in an interview with MostPopularStories. 

Avirup co-founded GrowthMart, a platform to create, manage, and promote quality freelancers in India. Back in college, he also co-founded ‘Square Meals’, a social enterprise that provides meaningful employment to orphaned youth; and represented IIT Kharagpur at HULT Prize, South-East Asia Regional Finals. 

1. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey as an Entrepreneur. 

I am a recent graduate from IIT Kharagpur and an accidental entrepreneur with interests in marketing and product. 

When I was studying at IIT Kharagpur, I had a lot of free time (to be honest) and a drive to solve real-life problems. I did not know what entrepreneurship was all about but I had the drive to find opportunities to solve in my vicinity. I worked on multiple start-up ideas back in college and failed in most of them. But, all those failures taught me valuable life lessons. 

Before working on my next venture, I decided to intern with few early-stage start-ups. I had a great experience working directly with the founders of few fast-growing start-ups in India and Dubai. They taught me the nitty-gritty of transforming ideas into reality. That’s how my entrepreneurial journey began.

2. Why did you choose entrepreneurship over a job?

I am a person who learns best by doing stuff, and working on my own start-up is kind of free learning for me where I get to learn from real-life situations. 

I want to spend my 20s in solving real-life problems and build something people want. 

‘Entrepreneurship is not a 9–5 job and 90% of the start-ups fail, but you are assured to get a crash course on self-awareness’! 

‘That’s the mindset I had when I chose Entrepreneurship over a job’. 

3. What is your vision behind this startup?

GrowthMart aims to create, promote and manage 15 Million+ freelancers in India by building a platform to network, learn and earn. 

4. What are the services that you offer your customers? How are they unique from your competitors?

We are building a community platform where freelancers can unlock wealth in two ways either by taking up a freelancing gig or by posting a freelancing gig in our community. 

Also, it is one of a kind community where freelancers can get peer feedback on their work, avail exclusive mentorship programs and attend events to upskill themselves. 

Alongside, we are building a product suite for freelancers to make their life much easier ( These products are in the beta phase at the moment). 

5. What difficulties did you face so far and the difficulties that you are currently facing?

Being a non-tech and a first-time founder, there are numerous difficulties that I face on a daily basis, but I guess it’s a part of the journey. 

Building a product that people love and at the same time building a sustainable business model is a challenge. For me, the most difficult part was building a reliable team and keep myself motivated in the initial days. 

6. How do you handle the pressure and manage stress?

To handle pressure and manage stress, I meditate and have developed a 30 mins daily workout routine. A cup of black coffee in the evening also helps a lot 🙂 

7. In your opinion, what is the key to success?

All entrepreneurs who are successful are people who are enjoying the journey. They use pain as their fuel. As an Entrepreneur, one might face failure on a daily basis. One should be resilient and persistent, by developing a habit of looking for problems as opportunities to solve and create value. That’s the success mantra for anyone who wants to get on this rollercoaster ride. 

8. What advice would you give to someone starting out as an aspiring
entrepreneur?

Learn to sell something at an early age and get exposed to the real world. Try and fail fast and make your experiences your life lessons. Read a lot of books and connect with a lot of founders, the best way to learn is by learning from people who have been through the path you want to follow. 

Connect here,

Website: https://growthmart.co

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/avirup-mondal

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