It is rightly said that age is just a number. In a world where even adults are finding it difficult to make good money for their living, a 13-year-old Mumbai guy is aiming turnover of Rs 100 crores within next 2 years. At the age when kids go to school, participate in extracurricular activities, play sports, and video games, Tilak Mehta is already a budding entrepreneur.
Tilak has founded a logistics startup, sold the idea to a banker and convinced him to quit the job and join him as the Chief Executive, and also partnered with Dabbawalas to help him with the distribution process.
What made Tilak start PNP
The idea of starting something dedicated to carrying papers and small parcels for assured intra-day delivery struck his mind when last year he saw his father too tired to get some books he required urgently.
“Last year, I wanted a few books from the other end of the city urgently. My father came home tired after a day’s work, and so I could not ask him and there was nowhere to go,” said Tilak in a recent interview.
Tilak talked about his idea with his father Vishal, who was so impressed that he thought this idea needed to be pursued. Tilak went through researching the concept and running a beta for 4 months before launching it.
How this startup works
Papers N Parcels (PNP) uses a dedicated mobile application and already employs 300 Dabbawala partners, through whom it is providing up to 1,200 deliveries daily. Parcels up to 3 kgs, at prices ranging from Rs 36 to 162 are delivered depending on the weight. Any customer can log in to the app and place an order. Same-day delivery is assured for the order placed before 2:30pm and the customer can see real-time updates on the movement of the parcel, including who is handling it.
Additional source of income for Dabbawalas
Most Dabbawalas handle PNP deliveries after finishing their day’s work. “Our association has not officially tied up with PNP and it’s up to every individual Dabbawala to associate with them. I think it will give them additional income,” said Dabbawala Association spokesperson Subhash Talekar. Currently, PNP is paying a fixed amount to Dabbawalas but will shift to a per-delivery basis.
With PNP, Tilak is targeting to capture 20% of the intra-city logistics market and a turnover of Rs. 100 crore by 2020, CEO Ghanashyam Parekh said.
