In 2003, Siddharth Shah, a son of the soil from Kolhapur, spotted an opportunity in mobile retailing across the hinterlands of Maharashtra. Two decades later, SS Mobile has grown into India's fifth-largest mobile retail chain and the biggest in the state
Siddharth Shah, Founder, SS Mobile
Image: Anirudha Karmarkar
2006, Kolhapur. The fledgling dream of a young college boy was about to get snuffed. A little over three years into retailing phones in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, Siddharth Shah’s maiden venture posted heavy losses. Hailing from a family of doctors and super-achievers—not to mention his sister who was an international chess player—the rookie founder was under intense pressure on the personal and professional fronts. If the 22-year-old presumed that his love for math would have a positive rub-off on his entrepreneurial innings, he was sorely mistaken.
The numbers didn’t add up. SS Mobile—named after the founder—had accumulated a loss of ₹5 lakh, Shah needed money to pump into his leaking business, and there was a clamour within the family to exit the venture. “Mobile retailing can’t make money. Why don’t you shut it down?” urged some well-wishers. “You can join your grandfather’s granite and marble trading business,” was another unsolicited advice, which appeared to be a consolation prize for the entrepreneur who always dreamt of making it big with his venture. “Will it make sense to invest in a bleeding business?” questioned a bunch of sceptics.
The embattled founder, though, stayed firm with his conviction. “But I have slashed the losses by half,” he pleaded, trying to make a strong case. The loss, he explained, was largely due to the vagaries of the mobile retailing business where the price of a few handsets crashed, and the absence of a well-oiled warranty and guarantee mechanism took a toll. “There is a bright future. I need another chance,” he pleaded passionately, persuaded his parents, and borrowed ₹6 lakh from them.
Eight years later, in 2014, Shah was again in need of money, and another chance. This time, the business dynamics, though, had changed dramatically. SS Mobile was now a ₹50-crore revenue company, making money, and had survived a turbulent patch between 2012 and 2014 when recurring retail thefts, high employee attrition and a glaring absence of tech infrastructure rocked the venture. By 2015, Shah had fixed operational irritants, opened 10 stores, and expanded the multi-brand mobile retailing company outside Kolhapur into the neighbouring areas of Konkan, Sangli, and Satara. Now, Shah wanted to step up the pace of expansion and needed capital to fuel his aggressive rollout—he reached out to his parents again for money.
(This story appears in the 09 August, 2024 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)