In this episode, Sreeraman "SMG" Mohan Girija shares how Fynd became the retail technology backbone powering 2,300+ brands, 20,000 stores, and 20 million consumers across India. From nearly dying as a touchscreen kiosk company in 2015 to being acquired by Reliance Industries in 2019, SMG reveals the pivotal lessons about building at the transaction layer, optimizing for customers over engineering bandwidth, and why conversational commerce powered by LLMs will kill traditional e-commerce homepages. He also opens up about the brutal first year of cultural integration post-acquisition, scaling a 100-person design organization, and why Fynd is now exporting India-hardened retail infrastructure to global markets like GCC, UK, and Canada.

He shared this candid journey with host Akshay Datt, exploring everything from hiring for empathy over skills to why beautiful products often fail without proper business fundamentals. If you're building in retail tech, SaaS, or preparing for AI-native commerce, this conversation is essential viewing.

Key Highlights:

👉How Sreeraman Mohan Girija pivoted Fynd from hardware failure to becoming India's largest unified commerce platform powering Reliance Retail

👉Inside the ₹295 crore Reliance acquisition: selling 87.6% equity while retaining operational independence and achieving 60x revenue growth post-deal

👉Why conversational commerce and LLMs will fundamentally reshape shopping UX, killing traditional e-commerce homepages by 2030

👉The design philosophy behind scaling from 1 to 100 designers: hiring for empathy, optimizing only for end customers, and preventing "engineer's MVP" syndrome

👉Fynd's complete retail tech stack: from AI-powered catalog generation and AR try-ons to omnichannel POS systems and marketplace integrations across Amazon, Flipkart, and emerging ONDC networks

👉Strategic lessons on B2B SaaS pricing innovation, the cold start problem in marketplaces, and why sitting on the transaction layer is non-negotiable for retail technology companies

Don't forget to subscribe to the Founder Thesis Podcast for more deep-dive conversations with India's most ambitious builders. Follow Akshay Datt on LinkedIn and X for behind-the-scenes insights and updates on upcoming episodes.

#RetailSaaS #IndiaEcommerce #QuickCommerce #ONDCIndia #StartupAcquisition #MADeals #FashionTech #IndiaUnifiedCommerce #RetailInfrastructure #POSSystems #WarehouseManagement #StartupPivot #FounderThesisPodcast #AkshayDatt #IndiaStartupEcosystem #B2BSaaS #EnterpriseRetail #AICommerce #LLMShopping #FutureOfRetail #RetailAutomation #DesignLeadership #ProductManagement #ScalingStartups

Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the speaker, not necessarily the channel

Sreevathsa Prabhakar is the serial entrepreneur behind Servify, the B2B insurtech platform that powers extended warranty programs for Apple, Samsung, HP, and 70+ global brands.

In this candid conversation with host Akshay Datt, he reveals how Servify achieves 90% AI automation in claims processing, generates 70% revenue internationally, and maintains 18% EBITDA margins in the competitive device protection market. From being locked in a Dharavi home as a BPL service engineer to receiving a welcome sign at Apple Park, Sree's 25-year journey offers rare insights into operational excellence, platform leverage, and building lasting enterprise partnerships.

Key Highlights

👉How Sreevathsa Prabhakar built Servify into a profitable insurtech platform managing ₹2000 crores with just 15 operations people through 90% AI automation

👉Servify's asset-light business model breakdown: retailer margins, OEM royalties, insurance partnerships, and the path to 18% EBITDA at scale

👉Why 70% of Servify's revenue comes from international markets and the geographic arbitrage strategy for Indian B2B startups going global

👉The 16-year Apple partnership strategy, from running India's first AppleCare center to powering device protection across multiple countries

👉Real insurtech innovation: how Servify disrupted insurance by capping loss ratios, eliminating fraud through technology, and making claims self-service

#InsurtechIndia #ExtendedWarranty #DeviceProtection #AppleCare #SamsungCare #StartupIPO #BootstrapExit #AIAutomation #FintechPlatform #B2BInsurtech #AfterSalesService #ApplePartnership #GlobalExpansion #ProfitableStartup #FundingWinter #OperationalExcellence #PlatformBusiness #IndianStartups

Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the speaker, not necessarily the channel

Dr. Ritu Verma, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Ankur Capital, breaks down her decade-long journey from experimental physics at the University of Pennsylvania to building one of India's most respected deep tech VC funds.

With portfolio companies like Captain Fresh heading toward a billion-dollar IPO, Offgrid Energy Labs pioneering zinc battery technology, and String Bio revolutionizing precision fermentation, Ritu shares the contrarian strategies that generated 30% IRR returns. From raising Fund I with a random Colorado angel investor to securing commitments from British International Investment and the US DFC for Fund III, this conversation covers the scrappy realities of VC fundraising in India, the multiplication formula most founders miss during term sheet negotiations, and why mediocrity in early hires destroys startups.

Ritu also unpacks India's transformation from IP-averse to filing 100,000 patents annually with 50% domestic share, the codification thesis powering B2B marketplace unicorns, and how Indian defense is becoming the guinea pig customer for deep tech. She shared these hard-won insights in this candid conversation with host Akshay Datt, offering a masterclass in patient capital, portfolio construction, and ecosystem building through initiatives like ThinkAg and the Deep Science Forum.

What You'll Learn:

👉The multiplication formula for VC returns that most founders negotiate wrong during fundraising (Returns = Valuation × Ownership %)

👉Why Ankur Capital's ₹50 crore Fund I failed structurally and what emerging fund managers must avoid

👉How codification strategy turned fragmented fish and fruit supply chains into billion-dollar B2B marketplaces

👉The mediocrity trap: Why hiring safe corporate executives in early stages kills startups faster than product failures

👉India's deep tech moment: From getting kicked out of IITs for asking about IP in 2008 to 50% domestic patent share in 2025

👉Captain Fresh's 5-year seed-to-IPO journey and what it signals for real economy tech companies versus consumer apps

If you found value in this deep dive into deep science VC and early-stage investing in India, subscribe to The Founder Thesis Podcast for more unfiltered conversations with founders and investors shaping India's startup ecosystem. Follow host Akshay Datt on LinkedIn and X for episode highlights, startup insights, and exclusive content.

#RituVerma #AnkurCapital #DeepTechVC #DeepScienceIndia #CaptainFreshIPO #IndiaStartups #VCFundraising #EarlyStageInvesting #AgritechIndia #BatteryTechnology #ZincBatteries #OffgridEnergyLabs #StringBio #B2BMarketplaces #SupplyChainTech #IndiaPatents #IPRevolution #StartupFundingIndia #VentureCapitalIndia #TheFounderThesis #AkshayDatt #SyntheticBiology #PrecisionFermentation #DefenseTechIndia #SemiconductorIndia #ThinkAg #DeepScienceForum #IndiaUnicorns #StartupIPO #PortfolioConstruction #VCReturns #FounderAdvice #HiringStrategy #TechnoCommercialRisk #PatientCapital #ImpactInvesting #CleanTechIndia #EnergyStorageIndia #RDIFund #BritishInternationalInvestment #AngelInvesting #FundManagement #StartupEcosystem #IndiaInnovation #globalexpansion

Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the speaker, not necessarily the channel