Super Startup

Two wards of defence personnel, Ravi Kumar and Varun Jain took it upon themselves to make travel comfortable and easy on the pocket for the men who protect our nation and their families, cofounded online travel portal, “udChalo”. The success of their endeavour manifests in the accolades they have received, the traction they have gained, and the happy experience of their users

“In order to honour our brave men for their hard work, dedication and sacrifices they make to safeguard our nation, udChalo has partnered with major airlines including Indigo Airlines, Air India, SpiceJet, Air Asia, Vistara and Go Air to offer special fares to the Indian Armed Forces Community’’

‘In 2011, post the Kingfisher debacle, we checked the reason and found that one of the factors was low passenger load factor. In simple terms, an airline is able to sustain if the passenger load factor is sufficient. So we thought, let’s bring a new clientele for the airlines so that they can recover their losses from low passenger load’

Sons of Defence personnel and graduates from the Army Institute of Technology (AIT), Ravi Kumar and Varun Jain are proud founders of udChalo, an online travel agency. Within six years of its existence, this novel startup has won the Entrepreneur India Award for the ‘Travel startup of the year 2019’ and recognised by Silicon India as one of the Top 10 OTA’s (online travel agency). Its USP is that it focuses on booking tickets with exclusive fares for the Indian Armed Forces, Paramilitary forces, Ex-servicemen and their Dependents. Giving a 40% to 50% discount on airfares, the dynamic duo has ensured travel with utmost ease and convenience.

They state in chorus why they began this venture. “In order to honour our brave men for their hard work, dedication and sacrifices they make to safeguard our nation, udChalo has partnered with major airlines including Indigo Airlines, Air India, SpiceJet, Air Asia, Vistara and Go Air to offer special fares to the Indian Armed Forces Community.’’

udChalo is the first of its kind, an air ticket-discount service for the armed forces and their families. This online travel website helps you buy unsold flight tickets that offer close to a 40 per cent discount. Recognised as the travel partner for the army, navy, air force personnel, the website offers lucrative deals on flights, serving around 28 lakh Defence Personnel, veterans and their Dependants. udChalo’s booking offices are operated by Veterans / war widows/ Dependents from the Indian Armed Forces community. With a vision to make life simpler for our soldiers, the compa-ny stands true to its motto ‘Service for Services’.

Besides offering the convenience of air travel, they have stepped into hotel bookings, thereby integrating additional services into its portfolio.

Ravi Kumar and Varun Jain spoke at length to Corporate Citizen on their unique journey of serving the soldiers and officers in uniform, by making their personal travel easy and economical.

How did you hit upon the concept of udChalo, which targets a very important community of the country, the defence forces?

Booking counter in Shillong

Ravi Kumar: It began in 2011, post the Kingfisher debacle. We checked the reason for it and found that one of the factors was low passenger load factor. In simple terms, an airline is able to sustain if the passenger load factor is sufficient. So we thought, let us bring a new clientele for the air-lines so that they can recover their losses from low passenger load. However, even before this venture, along with two other colleagues, we had thought of bringing railway passengers for the Indian Railways in a similar manner. That idea did not pick up as the IRCTC decided to pursue the same themselves, but failed

Post the Kingfisher debacle, we started approaching different airlines including Kingfisher. We wanted a few of the co-founders who could contribute to the business and technical areas. One of the CxOs of an airline got on-board. Then, Varun Sir also joined us and by April 2012, we had a good team of five people. We were three mechanical engineers, with the passion to do something for the defence forces that could make their travel easy and cost-effective. All five of us got together and we started approaching different airlines. That was the start of the idea, but initially, the airlines developed cold feet as a large body like IRCTC was unable to implement it. Hence, they did not trust us much.

Varun Jain: The IRCTC actually tanked that concept quite badly and that is why the entire sentiment in the airline became negative. That pushed us to the drawing board, and we decided to aggressively pursue various airlines. It was easier for us to do so as by now, we knew a lot of CxOs and GMs of different airlines. Finally, a couple of airlines showed interest and showed confidence in us. For example, Spice Jet supported us for some time.

‘Varun’s dad was an officer, so he represents 2.5% of the market; his father retired as a colonel. My father comes from the other ranks, he became a JCO. I come from the rest of the market. So that’s why whenever we float an idea, both of us can give a different perspective, and that helps’

How did they support you?

Varun: They said, if you can bring us about two to three customers on a flight, it would be incremental income for us. Simultaneously, we started thinking as to what could be the other opportunities on similar lines, so we actually thought about students and different groups which are not so well off but would like to fly if air tickets come to them at a concessional rate.

Ravi: By 2014, all the founders went back to their jobs. Even I started trying for different jobs. I applied for a Territorial Entry in the Army. I went to SSB Bengaluru where I got rejected. The rejection became a point for me to realise the potential of looking at SSB candidates as potential flyers. They go for an SSB interview, but they don’t know when they might get rejected. So they are unable to book a return train or flight ticket and Tatkal tickets were then not so easy to get either. So I thought, why can’t we explore SSB Bengaluru candidates who don’t have an option to go back home? Their conveyance was being reimbursed by the government for AC 3-tier berths so they would have to pitch in just a bit more. We approached Jet Airways personnel with whom we had a good rapport and gave them the idea of pro-viding concessional tickets to SSB candidates ex-Bengaluru, as they could not afford the full airline fare and could not get a confirmed rail ticket at the last moment. So, they qualified as Jet Airways customers without diluting its market. They, fortunately, agreed to it, and that was the start of the udChalo concept. Jet Airways was the only airline to agree to this model and the only Army establishment which agreed to this was SSB Bengaluru.

We operated there for almost six months and we then thought this was an opportunity to expand and tap defence personnel and their dependants’ community. If you look at the defence structure, almost 98% of the people from the defence forces travel by train because they are entitled to train trav-el. We again approached Jet Airways and asked them to give us the Pan India fare so that we can offer it to the defence forces’ community. We explained our rationale behind it, stating that since 98% of them travel by rail, but a concessional airfare would appeal to them.

Varun: Once we figured out that we wanted to do this for the armed forces, we were positive and much more confident about the success, as both of us come from an army college and from an armed forces background.

So it is a combination of a business model with patriotic strokes...

Varun: I think it blended in together. Of course, the fact was that we were looking for a profitable business model for sure, and one which had a value proposition too. Once we decided to focus on Armed Forces personnel it automatically became a thing of ‘giving back’ too, through our business model. Of course, the college which we come from, the AIT, helped us a lot initially as reaching out to the armed forces community is not that easy for anyone. So we requested our Director from AIT to help us in that foray, which he did. We also have a lot of friends who joined the Army after passing out from AIT, so they too helped us break the ice.

Both your fathers were in the army?

Ravi: In a sense, we are a perfect combination. Varun’s dad was an officer, so he represents 2.5% of the market; his father retired as a colonel. My father comes from the other ranks, he became a JCO. I come from the rest of the market. So that’s why whenever we float an idea, both of us can give a different perspective, and that helps. In that way, we have always been complementary to each other.

Booking counter in Panagarh

How has udChalo grown from 2012?

Varun: In 2014, we would not do more than a couple of tickets a day. So that was basically how small our volume was and we were a team of just three people. By 2017, we reached to a point of double-digit sales in a day. So it did take us a lot of time initially because we had to build the technology. We had to make sure that we understood how to do the marketing and other aspects of the business as both of us don’t come from a background like that. We started pushing to reach out to the armed forces more rigorously. In 2018, we saw the most drastic jump from 2017 as we started booking hundreds of tickets per day.

Ravi: In the armed forces the officers are entitled to travel by Air India and the rest of the time, they are entitled to travel by railways. There was already an existing regulation but nobody ever looked at it; which clearly says that a non-officer can buy an air ticket and get the reimbursement into the bank account. Somehow we got hold of that document and that was the biggest challenge because, for Other Ranks it was unaffordable. But once we laid our hands on this regulation, we went back to the units, and we convinced that okay, at least buy an air ticket from us, which is already discounted, and if you look at Pune-Delhi air fare for example, is Rs.3500 and the railway ticket is Rs.2500, so you are just paying Rs.1000 more. That was one of the turning points when we saw a lot of volume coming to us, all because we dug up a regulation which was favouring soldiers.

Varun: Information about their rights, the facilities they are entitled to, is not easily and publicly available to the armed forces personnel.

‘We have an omni channel sales method where we have an online platform called udchalo.com. We have 72 places within the local military areas where we have established our booking offices even in places like Uri and Baramulla. This gives it a personal touch, which the armed forces people prefer. Secondly, it helped us during the time of no internet connectivity in the J&K and the Northeast areas’

What is your turnover in a year, in terms of money and tickets?

Varun: Today, we do close to at least about 4000 tickets a day-that’s where we have reached so far.

Ravi: We have an omni channel sales method where we have an online platform called udchalo.com. We have 72 places within the local military areas where we have established our booking offices even in places like Uri and Baramulla. This gives it a personal touch, which the armed forces people prefer. Secondly, it helped us during the time of no internet connectivity in the J&K and the Northeast areas.

Are most of your employees ex-defence personnel?

Varun: Yes, because we have 72 booking offices which are all placed in the cantonment areas. So either they are veterans who are retired from that locality, or their wards or widows. We also employ soldiers from the Pune and Mohali Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centres of the armed forces. We put them in charge of what we call ‘Contact Centres’. They work on our platform, which does not require much limb movement. They are able to take calls from customers and make ticket reservations or do cancellations.

Ravi: Recently, we have begun employing wives of armed forces personnel. Due to the postings of army officers at far-flung areas, chances of their spouses getting employment are very weak. We have started the concept of work from home. For that particular cantonment where we don’t have any booking office, they can choose to work from home, book the tickets for people residing in that army cantonment, for which they get the commission. That is something which we have recently launched with the help of AWWA (Army Wives’ Welfare Association).

All the doors in the udChalo
corporate office in Pune have
the names of Legendary
Armed Forces Leaders

What is your employee strength, including those who look after the ticketing centres?

Varun: We are close to 200 people on our payroll today. The majority of them come from the armed forces and are operating kiosks and offices in different parts of the country. Our employee strength in our Pune corporate headquarters is nine and in Mohali, we have six.

Any appreciation or feedback you have received which you still cherish?

Ravi: There are so many of them, actually. Recently, I visited one of our booking offices in Colaba, Mumbai, when it had just been launched. A per-son came and asked me, what kind of shop is being opened here? I said a ticket counter for air tickets. I had not mentioned about udChalo to him. He shot back saying, “Why are you opening a shop, we use udChalo.” I was overwhelmed. This is the kind of impression which has already been created in the minds of our customers.

Varun: One of the key reasons why we have been successful and are appreciated in our community is because the community has given us back and supported in large numbers. Whenever we have gone anywhere and asked for permissions to open a booking office or requested them to conduct lectures or information sessions with the troops, we’ve always got a positive response. The very fact that there is an organisation which actually is catering exclusively to the armed forces and helping them travel with ease, is the reason why we are welcomed with open arms by the commanding officers of that area or personnel who man those posts. They also lend hospitality to us, as in many places it is difficult to find hotels. Such tours to interior places across the country have helped our business grow, more than the conventional marketing strategy of advertising. Goodwill and word of mouth have been the reasons for us reaching where we are today.

‘We are trying to achieve what is called ‘sarhad se ghartak’. We have armed forces personnel who are staying at the borders, and their families living in small cities, towns and villages. We want to make sure the entire journey from the place of work to their homes and back is streamlined and smooth sailing’

Any innovation and expansion plans?

Ravi: Because of our innovative product, a few of the airlines have got convinced to bring a new product called defence fare.

Varun: We have also started hotels, cabs and bus booking on our platform. What we are trying to achieve is called ‘sarhad se ghartak’. We have armed forces personnel who are staying at the borders, and their families living in small cities, towns and villages. As far as the travel solution is concerned, we want to make sure the entire journey from the place of work to their homes and back is streamlined and smooth sailing. And for that we need to have integrated services such as trains and buses along with the flights to make them reach their home without inconvenient halts. So the last mile connectivity is an important factor of travel behaviour. That’s what we are working on. By the first quarter of 2020, we would have the entire concept of travel with ease to your home, all stitched up. On the hotels front, we have two tie-ups; one is with Oyo to provide an affordable housing solution for the large portion of the armed forces and the second one with some hotel chains which have agreed to provide special offers for armed forces personnel. We are following the same pattern of airlines’ travel concessions. We have been instrumental in convincing the airlines to provide a 50% discount to the Armed Forces Personnel and their families.

‘You have to have a unique value proposition-either it can be a new idea or product, or an innovation in a current one and most importantly, being clear about your customer segment’

Your advice for youngsters who want to have startups?

Varun: Persistence is the key and Ravi is a prime example of it. From 2012 to 2017, we didn’t have anything that we could call a decent business. Those five years were very tough years for us. Ravi started with two or three friends who all went away; he was the only one who kept holding the fort, saying I know we have a good value proposition and a successful business idea. Persistence and having a never-give-up attitude are pre-requisite qualities for an entrepreneur.

Ravi: Also, you have to have a unique value proposition-either it can be a new idea or product, or an innovation in a current one and most importantly, being clear about your customer segment.

What is your opinion about young corporate professionals?

Varun: When I was 20, I was more attuned to risk-taking, but in terms of ability to do things, I was probably a little less professional. I would still be learning the ropes about what it means to be a good professional in a working environment and those are things which are part of your growing up as an individual. Those who come out of college today are much better prepared than I was then.

Ravi: During the 80s and early 90s, we used to click pictures and patiently wait for two to three days to get the photographs. Our perseverance and patience were in-built, but now we like to take shortcuts. So we have become a better risk takers than earlier. Now even parents support them, thanks to Startup India campaigns.

Varun: The key lies in having a better leadership perspective. We have to move from being a task-oriented leadership, where we mechanically give tasks to the young members, to learn to appreciate and respect that they are here to create value. We have to show them as to why a particular activity will make them a better professional and add value to their personal growth, even if they are asked to do something that may not be part of their day to day work.

What do you think about Make in India and the economy?

Ravi: We had decided that whatever we build, will be recession-proof. To that extent we have succeeded, as our clientele is the armed forces personnel, who are salaried people and due to nature of their job, they have to travel.

Varun: Make in India is an unarguably amazing initiative. The fact that the government wants to promote industry and manufacturing is a clear path towards the $5 trillion economy that we are working towards. For that, the infrastructure needs to be available to provide job opportunities for that many people so that the economy can grow at that scale. The state of the economy today is a bit of a concern but it might be a phase that we can potentially overcome provided that we, the government and the industrial setup and corporates take the right measures. There is a slowdown but after that, we are going to go faster. This time it will be a transformation for our country and industries, so we have to be ready for the next big wave.

Ravi: If we look at Make in India, there are two sides to any business. The consumer side and the producer side. We are already 1/7th of the world’s population and if you take a five-hour flight and consider all the countries that we can fly in five hours then we are almost half of the world’s population. The other side is the producer side. We are dependent on the neighboring countries for most of the production, that is why you see the Made in China products. So this campaign of Make in India will definitely and swiftly help move production from the neighbouring country to ours. That is the agenda of the government, and I am pretty sure we will achieve it, because we have the consumer base, we just need the production side of the business.

What keeps a marriage going?

Varun: Marriage is the most important re-lationship in your life. You have to first and foremost accept that; for me, that is definitely the cornerstone of starting and making sure that a relationship works. What also matters s to think of the spouse first rather than thinking of yourself first. As long as you do that in every action, it automatically makes the marriage work. When both partners do the same, the relationship becomes really easy. I have been married for 10 years and we have a one-year-old daughter. It has been a happy and a fruitful journey together and my wife has always supported me.

Ravi: I agree with Varun. In a nutshell, a good marital relationship is all about mutual respect. Both the spouses need to give each other the chance to grow. I’ve been married for four and a half years.

Are both your spouses working?

Varun: Both of our spouses are not only working but are much more educated than us and doing much better. My wife is a Radiologist and Ravi’s wife is a cancer biologist.

What is the philosophy of life that you live by?

Ravi: I always believe that trade can be learnt, but trade cannot be taught. I have a regular lifestyle, do my yoga and keep my life simple. Earlier, it used to be complicated because of the work stress, but now I’m in good command of my life.

Varun: I have been working for 16 years and the one thing that I have picked up professionally is to keep looking to see what impact I’ve made on people who I’ve helped, people around me and who are working with me. So it is not much about what I have been able to accomplish but what others around me are able to accomplish. That always makes me happy at the end of the day. That’s what drives me to come daily to work. As for my life’s philosophy, it is to lead a happy life; to do things that keep me happy and energised. I believe in not getting weighed down by stress, to keep looking ahead in life rather than brooding over what’s happened yesterday.

‘Good EXPERIENCE’

“I had a good experience dealing with ud-Chalo. I booked a return ticket from the website and was provided with all available defence concession rates. The flight search was quite easy, the booking process was also hassle free and above all, they have alternate options to pay with the wallet, net banking, debit cards, etc. Within a few minutes, I received a confirmation e-mail with my flight details. I always prefer booking my flights through udChalo. I recently booked a hotel for my upcoming trip from this website as they have hotels available in all categories from budget to 5 stars (hope they will soon start providing a list of hotels with defence concession too). I want to congratulate the udChalo team for their work and their prompt customer service.”