An inspiration for Women in business: Valuation of YourStory: $ 40 Million, approx 1,50,000+ stories are cover, 10 million organic traffic and 5 million newsletter subscribers
“Zindagi mei jo nahi milta, wahi daudata hai”
Shradha Sharma is a lady entrepreneur who covers untold stories of entrepreneurs but this time you all will gonna know her story. Having so many obstacle in her life but how’s she turn all the chapter in her life will be cover in this creation.
- A girl who came from bihar and not having good economy family background. Writing her own fairytale by covering those stories which media generally don’t cover. With watering eyes once she said, Ï will make YourStory a big media platform. She proved it and crosses all the boundaries of success. Her business “YourStory” becames the India’s largest media platform which take unconventional moment of covering stories of entrepreneurs which generally public at large neither seen nor heard.
- YourStory Media is the platform to celebrate entrepreneurs for what they are and empowering Indian startups. They have approx 10 million monthly views. They display banner ads and publish sponsored stories. They organize or become partner in big scale startups events in various startup industries
- Her Career: She was a brand advisor at The Times of India and after that she was an Assistant Vice President at the business channel CNBC-TV18. In 2008, she took a very big step in her life to quit her job and started a new idea, “YourStory” media which covers untold stories of entrepreneurs.
First turning point at very early in life
When she was invited at Josh Talk, where she share an incident of her class 3rd :She participated in a dance competition. She does not have proper attires to wear in the competition. She carry a white-salwar kurta of her elder sister. One of her school teacher scold her for her poor upbringing. Why because of shradha this girl “Daughter of District Magistrate” lose the competition. This incident make her strong even while completing her schooling out of all her teachers, she was thankful for that teacher who make her inferior and feet bad.She work hard and top the school, got the admission at St. Stephen College Guess what? What was happen after her outstanding performance? Automatically everyone has changed their opinion about her.
What we don’t get easily makes us run!
One of tragedic moment happen in her life in Delhi. After scoring good marks, she got admission in St. Stephen College in delhi where she participate in debate competition and thoughts she can do very well and get selected but she did not get. For her rejection she started criticizing herself because she came from bihar where education system and surrounding is completely different as compared to Delhi.
Her teacher told her “Whatever you did not get, whatever of you deprived off, whatever is your weakness, whatever thinks you lack, your constraint, and whatever think you as a bihari kid didn’t get will be your biggest strength.
What was her initial investment for YourStory?
Only two samosas :). Actually people’s belief in her was the investment.
With the help of two IIT students in mumbai she develop a website where she used to writes blog on young entrepreneur. That’s how she founds her new portal YourStory Media.
How she Monetize this business?
Her idea was so beautiful to narrate the story of entrepreneurs from the heart. Stories were getting love and validation but no money she was earning for atleast one year. In 2014, one of the founder asked her, you are doing good but how are you making money? She said at present I am not earning anything. He said I will connect you with a person who will help you. That’s how she got first funding of Rs. 1 Lakh from Bakshish dutta to run an Ad campaign to get enroll people for “Suns Startup Essentials Program.”
Now, it is become the India's largest startup media platform. She was featured by Fortune India 40 under 40 entrepreneur. She won Forbes Power Trailblazers award. After that year saw her break into LinkedIn top 500 influencers globally.
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