Duo Wins The 'Best Startup Pitch Contest' At IIM-A; Gets INR 1 Crore In Funding For Fashion App Idea

The 'Best Startup Pitch Contest'- an event organized by IIM Ahmedabad to encourage students to explore entrepreneurship as a career option was concluded successfully on 25 April 2022.   

Two students from the Post Graduate Programme for Executives (PGPX)- Parul Vashist and Varun Jhaveri, were awarded prize money of INR 1 Crore on behalf of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad Endowment Fund.   

Also read: IIM Ahmedabad Placement 2022: TAS, Emaar Emerges As Top Recruiters In Cluster 2  

Explaining his views on the success of students, Mr. Sandeep Singhal, the chairman of the board of directors at IIM-A endowment fund said, "It is a very promising decade for innovative and unique ideas, and I am confident that the contest has helped build a momentum for entrepreneurship on IIMA campus".

The Contest & The Winners

According to a statement released by the institute, this is the first-ever contest organized by a B-school in which the gratification amount has been as high as 1 Crore. After the massive success of the first edition, this contest is now set to become an annual property of the institute.   

The winning duo, Parul Vashist and Varun Jhaveri won the contest for designing a prototype AI-powered fashion shopping solution.   

Here's to our budding entrepreneurs working towards the next fashion revolution! Congratulations Parul Vashist (@vashist_parul) & Varun Jhaveri (@Varun_Jhaveri) for winning the 1Cr prize money for the IIMA Endowment Fund Best Startup Pitch Contest. pic.twitter.com/2DGSXGZmsb

— IIM Ahmedabad (@IIMAhmedabad) April 26, 2022

Reports suggest that a total of 35 teams participated in the contest in search of funding for their business ideas, but only 6 of them were shortlisted for the final deck presentation. They presented their ideas to a panel of high-profile experts who acted as the jury for the contest.   

Also read: Vanya Mishra's Journey: From Miss India To Entrepreneur To IIM Ahmedabad  

It included Prof. Saral Mukherjee, Dean, Alumni, and External Relations; VT Bharadwaj, Partner at A91 Partners; Deep Kalra, Founder and CEO of MakeMyTrip; and Chhavi Moodgal, the CEO of IIM Endowment Fund.   

While Vashist and Jhaveri were from the PGPX batch, students from the PGP, PGP-FABM as well as ePGP were also part of the six-team final contest 

More Details Of The IIM A Startup Pitch

In order to focus more on the importance of business ideas outside of the IIMs and build credibility, IIM-A students were allowed to collaborate with students from other institutes while participating in the contest.   

As a result, along with Parul and Varun, the winning team had members from institutes like IIT and Duke University. Together, they built business concepts, listed out the markets that can be addressed, measured the competitive advantage factor, and elaborated on how funds can be best utilized over a period of three years.   

Along with the prize money, the winners will also receive mentorship from IIM-A alumni who are market leaders in the private equity and venture capital domain.

Commenting on the success of the 'Best Startup Pitch Contest', Chhavi Moodgal, the CEO of the IIM-A endowment fund said, "IIMA Endowment Fund is proud to support the exciting arena of entrepreneurship for IIM-A students in this vibrant environment for Startups with over 250 unicorns expected in India by 2025."  

"I hope that this contest becomes a catalyst for path-breaking startup ideas in the years to come,” she added.   

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