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Great Brand Is The Result Of A Great Product:"WhyNot Innovations"
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| Ashok Yarangal (Left) and Roshan Salian(right) |
I become attentive the moment Gordon Ramsay appears
on my television screen. The Legendary Celebrity Chef’s restaurants have been
awarded 16 Michelin stars in total. The secret behind his success is not only
his cooking style and great food but his authentic way of managing the
restaurants. Ramsay act as a trouble shooter and his ability to deal with
failing restaurants is quite evident in his television series also. He provides
solutions to the restaurants from food to the management and help in their
establishment and sustainability. I always wonder if we can have someone in
India who can provide solutions to restaurants. Won’t it be great? Having
restaurants ranging from start-ups to the established brands, India should need
someone who can deal with their challenges and helps in the sustainability of
the restaurant business.
I have been experiencing varied services from a lot
of restaurants from the time I stepped onto the city. It may range from fine
dining, casual dining, café or a pub. However, I have noticed that there are
some restaurants that can’t exist for more than couple of months or a year. I
always thought food might be the reason of their unsuccessful business until I
met Ashok and Roshan, one of the pioneers in food industry.
Ask
who are they: WhyNot Innovations was founded by two
Bangalore based Business and IT professionals -Ashok and Roshan in 2014. It is
a service provider company having an objective to optimize restaurants using
their amazing product. During our conversation, I learnt that Ashok is an
innovative and result-oriented business professional having an experience of
over two decades in the enterprise sales and development industry. He also had
the experience of leading Global Sales and Delivery for America, Europe, Middle
East and India.
On the other hand, the tech-savvy Roshan uses
software to solve complex problems and hence pitch onto the business. He has
played leadership roles in most of the leading companies such as SAP Labs and
Bristlecone. Both Ashok and Roshan were colleagues and knew each other for
almost 15 years. From past two years they are rejoicing their new relationship-
Business partners.
The
Germ of the idea: Sitting beside a river bank
somewhere in Switzerland sipping their beer, the duo caught with an idea of
pursuing their dream- to do something on their own. They undergo brainstorming,
sharing thoughts and constantly keep on checking with multiple ideas. “Why Not”?
Both exclaimed. The twosome successively uttered-“Why Not”- start something of
our own? “Why Not”- providing a solution to the restaurants which help in
focussing them on the retention of their customers? “Why Not”-make a powerful
tool than the competitors that exceeds the customer’s expectations. This was
when “WhyNot Innovative” was born. As both of them are hearty eaters and
possess expertise of enterprise software hence no idea would be greater than
clubbing both the sectors, they thought and trust me, it has worked fantastic.
Upon observing the restaurants for quite sometime they realized that
restaurants can be optimized and their business can be sustained. They want to
offer solutions to the food chains rather than just the critics.
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| Everything was evolving on these two words- "Why Not" |
Understanding
the market: Retaining regular customers is one of
the important ways to sustain one’s business. Since, both of them have an IT
background the duo thought of incorporating the same in the restaurants. “No
more the restaurants will use technology only to punch the bill but also to
make the restaurants more systematic and to have a sustainable business through
their application”, the founders delivered.
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| One of the products- Reservation Diary |
Putting
the product into execution: Restaurants
invest a lot of money to attract their customers either by its décor, discounts
or delicious food but how many of them have actually given a thought of
retaining their regular customers? WhyNot Innovations want to reach the
restaurants which in turn help their customers to have a delightful experience
whenever they choose their restaurants. Hence, WhyNot Innovations have come up
with an application which restaurants can use it to keep a track of their customers-
knowing them, their food and locality preferences along with Phone or Online
reservation and understanding their
walking and wait-list priorities too.
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| The Snapshot of the product |
The
key features of the application: The product or
the application designed in order to help the restaurants to manage their
business which in turn also help the customers to have the perfect service. The
key features are Real-time Analytic, Walk-In, Waitlist & Reservation
Management, Channel Management, Multi Channel Feedback & Survey Management,
Campaign Management, Home Delivery & Take Away Management, Campaign
Management and Guest Management.
How all of us will feel if the receptionist over the
phone greets us by our name? We will be delighted to know that they know us,
our food and sitting preferences too. The customers can set a belief that the
restaurant will offer great service accordingly. On a Friday night, won’t it be
good if we get our table ready instead of waiting outside in a long queue? This
can only be possible if the restaurants can keep a track of their customers
which means providing value to them in a true sense. All these scenarios are
possible for WhyNot Innovations through their application.
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The restaurant management using the product: just a click. (Source:Google Images) |
“Upon asking few of the restaurants about their
regular customers, they confidently answered that they do have but they went
clueless when asked about the percentage”, Rohan informed. He also added that
their solution to restaurants will make them able to recognize their existing
or new customers. The data captured about a customer will help the restaurants
to know the type of spender the customer is, when was his last visit and how
many times he visited? These few questions and also some more details can be
captured by using the application which not only a way of providing
comprehensive and intelligent data for the management but also helps for better
ROI.
Funding
and the early challenges: The Company is
bootstrapped even though it requires funds to sustain in the market. Earlier
days, they felt challenging on making a client understand about the application
as few of the clients appreciated the same however didn’t show any positive
signs investing on it. Once clients started understanding and using the product
gradually they came to know its power and started admiring it. “Once our product gets sold, we get
motivated. Every time we meet new people we explore better ways of making
people understand about our product”, Roshan told in enthusiasm. He also added
that the moment they were paid for their product they realized that they were
heading towards the right path.
Incredible
Clients to work with: It is amazing to know
that within a span of less than two years, the company has incredible clients.
Talking about few of their Clients are: Sanchos-one of the best Mexican dining
room in Bangalore, The Biere Club-Bangalore’s first craft brewery,
MRG-Bangalore based chain of boutique hotels, RMZ and Punjab Grill-one of the
best North- Indian restaurants in the city.
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| Amazing Clients |
Believe it or
not, the company did neither use social media nor online marketing for
promoting their product. They believed in the potential of their product. Initially, they started with a monthly
subscription to a yearly subscription now. Currently, WhyNot Innovations have
more than 50+ customers in Bangalore.
The
dynamic team: Today WhyNot Innovations have a team
of nine professionals which drive the complete sales and marketing department.
The professionals were there from past two years. “We have seen zero attrition
and I am grateful to have such employees who keep me motivated. Our employees
are a booster”, Ashok conveyed.
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| A Great Team Finds A Way To Win (Source:Google Images) |
Future
Goals: The Company will not only focus the
restaurants but also would proceed to work on the business to customer model in
parallel. WhyNot Innovations would like to spread their wings internationally-
Dubai could be their next business destination along with operating Pan India.
Let
your service speak in the market: The duo is an
appropriate example of business partners, hard and smart workers and of course
great inspirers. Isn’t it? “You start feeling low when you see your competitors
but the moment you get a feedback about your product you are back in the game”,
they smiled and signed off.