TheCconnects: Can you tell our readers a little about your professional journey & how did you come to your current role/position?
Abhishek Kashyap: I am an engineer and have an MBA which is the most common destination in terms of education that exists. However, I was always a people person and that led me to Sales and eventually to Marketing. I joined Akzonobel as Sales Manager and then eventually led the entire business of Wefast now Borzo and then jumped to the startup bandwagon
TheCconnects: Who has influenced you the most in life and why?
Abhishek Kashyap: Different people at different phases of my life. I am a big sports enthusiast, so of course, I simply adore Cristiano Ronaldo’s work ethics and dedication. Nithin Kamath from Zerodha is a perfect startup role model for me and aspiring entrepreneurs.
Having said that, I always believe in timing and people choosing their own path and having their own journey.
TheCconnects: What are the biggest challenges you have faced in your life & how did you overcome them?
Abhishek Kashyap: I have faced roadblocks and blips all my life coming from a sales background. Persistence is always challenging. However, my biggest personal and professional roadblock happened at the same time when I lost my father whilst I launched a fintech startup around the same time. Not only that was a setback in terms of taking that plunge for the first time, but also affected my mental health quite a bit and has been a personality changing experience.
TheCconnects: What lessons have you learned from your professional career?
Abhishek Kashyap: Selling is as important as product development. Know your distribution channels and own them. Marketing /Branding should always tell a story that is either aspirational or relatable.
For startup enthusiasts – If you are not happy with your current job or don’t have the financial might to support your startup for at least one year, you should avoid doing it.
TheCconnects: What do you see as the biggest challenge for brands in the digital space?
Abhishek Kashyap: The challenges are multifold, not able to tell a story, knowing what content exactly to put in digital and offline. Crowded space, but most important customer attention and retention. I think consumers in the digital space have a short attention span and can navigate from one brand to another competing brand really quickly and that stresses the content team. Digital has its obvious advantages, Brands need to work on retention and engagement a lot
TheCconnects: How can your product/solution help to resolve the pain points of your customers?
Abhishek Kashyap: ReKindle is an exclusive community for people who have been married before and now are ready to give love a second chance.
You can’t put a single woman and single mother (both age 30 years) in the same dating pattern. Similarly, people who have experienced divorces or loss of partners can’t be clubbed in a generic dating app for everyone.
After speaking, face to face with almost 100 such people Rekindle was conceived where we want to create a niche /premium dating option backed by community based content for Divorced/Separated and Widows.
TheCconnects: Do you have any advice for those who want to become a Chief Executive Officer?
Abhishek Kashyap: Any CXO needs to have effective communication skills. They need to drive the culture which I believe is the most important thing in any company.
Listen to your people and be transparent. Learn to manage multiple channels like finance, HR, Marketing, etc., and most importantly hire the right people (Obviously easier said than done)
You can connect with Abhishek Kashyap on LinkedIn here
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