That One Turning Point?

Utham:

He said look, presentation is not going to get you sales so where you need to be is at the coast, so get there. Now I really know the value of a middle class upbringing and getting those foundational value systems in place right that really helps in a lot of decisions because it gives you clarity. As an analyst I started reading up things, audit reports or annual reports and that used to be my time pass activity. Sachin Tendulkar was the big role model to really self-explore and then say push myself
Why I could do a solo journey is also because I'm married to somebody I knew from my school.

Nitisha:

Hi, Utham. Welcome to the Turning Point powered by Matrix Partners India. In this series we want to host our founders and learn about the turning points in their lives. So I think the first question that I would want to start with is that what was that one point in your life which changed your career’s trajectory?

Utham:

Actually lot of points but if I have to really drill on one especially in the context of building Captain Fresh so is one where I was working with the ex-boss which is Nekkanti Sea Foods and I was just about thinking of starting up. And when I was thinking of starting up I was trying to figure out how to get my first customer and first customer happened to be an enterprise customer. And I was being the investment banker that I was and the background that I came from the first thing that I was doing was basically put together a presentation for the enterprise client. And I spent like two weeks on putting the slides together on why they should buy fish from us. And I think the first best advice, the thing that cannot change the way even we put the whole Captain Fresh team together and some of these foundational blocks where they said look, presentation is not going to get you sales so where you need to be is at the coast, so get there. If you don’t get there you don’t get this account. I think that was a very, very good advice because after that amount of time that I have spent in travel and not just within the country across the world I must have visited pretty much 200-300 fish markets across the world, different cities and wherever we are in Captain Fresh a significant amount of that focus and that understanding goes to that travel that I have made and that single advice that kind of reoriented the way I looked at now going after a problem statement that get to the actual place and see what’s happening and then build your solution from there.

Nitisha:

I think being a consultant and then an investor I can so foresee this advice coming in my life and then probably talking about that as my turning point. So now moving on to the Turning Point rapid fire. So, the Turning Point book?

Utham:

The first non-fiction book that I read was actually “You Can Win” by Shiv Khera. Again for somebody for whom Sachin Tendulkar was the big role model to really self-explore and then say push myself and a lot can be done that book was quite instrumental the way I thought especially in my formative years. This is I think when I was maybe like 7th or 8th standard that I read this book.

Nitisha:

The Turning Point person in your life?

Utham:

Lot of them but I would definitely as in now after 4-5 years of building it up if I have to really credit to something that has helped me stay wherever I am and still have that contribution going is the value system. And to that I think I would credit my upbringing and my parents. If you’d asked me maybe 5-6 years ago this may not have been the answer but now, I really know the value of a middle class upbringing and getting those foundational value systems in place right that really helps in a lot of decisions where it gives you clarity. It is to that extent I think my parents I would say are important for people who have really contributed to who I am.

Nitisha:

I think that value system is a very clear winner even when Matrix was investing, that this person will be frugal no matter what. So although you’ve raised like tonnes of money which was that one round which changed it all for Captain Fresh, which was like your biggest achievement?

Utham:

So, I think two separate questions I’ll answer as two separate parts which is that round that really changed for us was actually the Matrix round. That happened to be the first so to say a generalist in the whole world taking a look at a sector like sea food seriously. So, it is not just pivotal for the Indian ecosystem even globally as well no generalist investor had taken a look at seafood. So that kind of opened up for further conversations where we had Accel, we had Tiger, we had an Naspers coming on board. So quite clearly that was a pivotal moment not because I'm doing this event with you folks but yeah, really pivotal moment. I think the biggest achievement as far as funding was concerned was definitely to put together these heavyweights on the cap table and be very clear about it. I think every round it was over for a very clear strategy to put Accel into the mix or a Tiger into the mix and  Naspers, into the mix and clearly it was also planned and thought through that yes, if you see Indian startup ecosystem and if you see the large outcomes that are out there in some form and shape the overlap of these four investors dictates that there is a very strong rate.

Nitisha:

Possibly it also blocks out like all the other companies to come up, the investors and competition.

Utham:

Again that was the other way of thinking that once you get these on then you're basically playing for a monopoly.

Nitisha:

What was the Turning Point habit in your life?

Utham:

Turning Point habit I think I used to be a very strong analyst and as an analyst I started reading up things, audit reports or annual reports and that used to be my time pass activity. I know I'm judging you for this but yeah.

Nitisha:

I'm actually jealous now that I have now that I know what it has done to you.

Utham:

It must be like thousands of annual report that I used to read, I would love to go back to that habit if time permits but yeah, that's something that I like.

Nitisha:

So you continue to do so?

Utham:

Not so much in the past, after that I moved to initiating coverage reports, I graduated when I got the access to initiating coverage reports but I think the last year or so, no, I haven’t really been able to stay in touch with that habit.

Nitisha:

Any turning point in your fitness regime?

Utham:

One of my colleagues actually believed I'm a 45-year-old I need to have shared that with me so that's like ten years off. So, I had to do something about this, I think.

Nitisha:

Glad you didn’t start with guess what’s my age, I could have landed wrong.

Utham:

Maybe still allow me to go there.

Nitisha:

I think that’s what building a company does to you.

Nitisha:

So what did you do for that, what has really helped you like go through so much?

Utham:

I think one is I protect my sleep; I get my 6-7 hours of sleep. And the last 2 or 3 quarters I’ve started to work out so if I don’t sweat in a day, I feel a little incomplete. So I think that's helping me.

Nitisha:

That's like after the last funding round you were like I need some --

Utham:

No, after this even when a person told me I'm a 45 year old while I'm the youngest in the team, youngest by far across the entire serial leadership team so I had to do something.

Nitisha:

Of course. Then it’s working out well, I was just joking.

Utham:

Thank you. I know you made up for it.

Nitisha:

So what was that moment on campus that turned it all for you.

Utham:

Interesting. I was running for the president --

Nitisha:

Undergrad, post-grad?

Utham:

This is undergrad and very, very big role because almost 4000 students in Suratkal so that used to be a big post and you should dream. So I worked for it for almost two years and I lost. So that was a big moment because after I lost I couldn’t stay in campus and I trekked the entire year so I must have explored Western Ghats, some parts of Himalayas, so the explorer in me, explorer and adventurer in me kind of was brought out in that one year because I lost the election.

Nitisha:

You wanted to escape from the campus?

Utham:

Yeah, escape from the campus and I wanted to do be adventurous and then I explored the entire, I think I must have done like hundred and fifty treks in a year or 365 days. And because I planned to be the president I had completed my coursework. So I had nothing to do in the last year and that got the job. So I think I still want to go back to that one year that I spent. I'm somebody who loves nature very simple that way. So, yeah, that's the turning point.

Nitisha:

That's very interesting and I'm just also like recapping and thinking those moments when I could have just like gone and probably do that.

Utham:

I took a loan and I was always on the trek I think. When I walked out of college I had a 50,000 loan on my head.

Nitisha:

50,000?

Utham:

That's a big number.

Nitisha:

So, Utham, I think family is always like the biggest pillar in a founders’ journey, so any ritual with your spouse that you would want to talk about?

Utham:

I think one of the reasons also why I could do a solo journey is also because I'm married to somebody I knew from my school.

Nitisha:

Support was --

Utham:

So it’s almost like we’ve grown up together and expectations kind of it’s like last three years, four years there is never a real discussion wherein the kind of bandwidth that this would take and what I had to do and what I had to give up otherwise etc there’s no real explicit discussion, it’s almost like I mean she knew this guy is like wants to do something and when he gets involved he’ll get involved. And we’ve done it like for last 15 years, so I think entrepreneurship without the support of spouse, family can become extremely excruciating and painful. So, yeah, while I did not plan that it has worked out well.

Nitisha:

So, Utham, if you were to go back and do this all over again so what is the one thing that you would make sure that you again do it the same way that you did it the first time and what’s the one thing that you will change?

Utham:

Actually from where I started lot of things have changed like we today are more international than national, 60 percent outside India. Still I would start in India, still I would be on the B2B side and I think still I would be on seafood. Still I would be in love with fishes because I see value in doing what I'm doing. Maybe I would have done this with a partner, at some points I believe that this platform could have been better if there were more people with the same kind of thinking. That maybe I would have changed.

Nitisha:

One question I have there, actually I have also been curious was it for the lack of trying or like were you sure like you want to go so low when you did?

Utham:

Actually it was not a matter of choice. I think it is lack of trying. At some point I believed that – so there was a framework of thinking that I had that outsized in the world have been by founders except for maybe Google. So I thought it could be a repeat of that.

Nitisha:

Which it still can be.

Utham:

It still could be but just a quality of that journey could have been a lot better. So one is outcome but just enjoying that journey and making it happen.

Nitisha:

Only thing in this journey we’ve commented to a greater part.

Utham:

Yeah, then they could have said that, okay, all solo founders who have made it big it’s hard to let other outcomes.

Nitisha:

Yeah, that's very interesting, Utham. Thank you so much for doing this for us.

Utham:

Thank you so much, Nitisha.

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