Companies that use technology to improve farm production and distribution are attracting investor interest.
However, finding funds for his startup, CropIn, was tough. “Most investors didn’t think agriculture could become a viable business model, especially if it revolved around technology. There weren’t any parallel models,” says Kumar. His team also found it difficult to get customers for their first product, SmartFarm, a farm management solution. So, to build credibility, they approached big and small agri-businesses to use and then validate their product, which they then marketed with endorsements. Things started looking up in 2014-15, in part also because of “the digital transformation, smartphone boom and favourable ecosystem that developed for entrepreneurs”, notes Kumar.
This story is from the December 30, 2018 edition of Business Today.
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This story is from the December 30, 2018 edition of Business Today.
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