 "Carrying the health baton, on the field and off it")
Outsourcing business processes, legal processes and knowledge processes is passe; physical training process outsourcing is here.
Till recently, outsourcing sports curriculum and training in schools was unimaginable. However, Bangalore-based start-up EduSports is doing just that.
Through the years, many schools have shifted focus from physical education. And, this has taken a toll - a high number of students suffer from obesity-related issues. Traditionally, if a student isn't good at sports, he/she would not participate in any such activity. Almost always, this led to the child concerned being left out of the mainstream.
This is where Saumil Majmudar, along with Meer Waqiruddin Khaleeq, Parminder Gill and Jyoti Majmudar, saw an opportunity. A rigorous, well-structured sports programme for children would ensure no one was left out.
Each EduSports unit is profitable. It took the company about three years to break-even. Chief executive Majmudar says a service business records break-even from the second day.
"But if you are profitable too early, questions are raised on whether you have the platform to maintain and invest in systems and whether you have the monitoring tools and the framework. When a company is scaling up, offering high quality on a consistent basis is a challenge," he says. "Technology is the underlying platform and it helps assess and track each child … curriculum & technology, and systems & processes have to be in place"
The use of technology has helped the company scale up. EduSports says it would have half a million children under its ambit by 2015-16 and a million by 2018-19.
The company recorded revenues of Rs 60 lakh in 2009-10, Rs 4.5 crore in 2010-11, and Rs 8.3 crore in 2011-12, a growth of over 14 times since 2009-10.
The journey so far
EduSports was launched in 2009, as India's first school sports and physical education company. Today, it works with 240 schools and about 1,75,000 children across 82 cities in the country, as well as three schools in Saudi Arabia. The company has successfully brought about a change in the way sports or physical education is perceived.
Focusing on "delivering value to schools", the company plans to have more product lines - outdoor experience, workbooks, life-skill programmes and talent development. Payments for the courses would be made through schools.
"It fits very well - its fitness, education and adventure," says Seedfund's Bharati Jacob, a board member in EduSports. SeedFund, an early-stage fund, has invested about $1.5 million in EduSports, in two tranches. It has been investing in start-ups across the country for the last six years. Earlier, Jacob had worked with Majmudar on another venture, QSupport, one of India's first remote tech support provider. That business did not take off, and "was probably ahead of its time". SeedFund is looking at an exit horizon of five to seven years and returns of 20-30 times.
Through the last eight years, Saumil has experimented with various models and service offerings in the sports business. From 2003 to 2008, funds were secured from friends, family and partnerships. In 2010, EduSports raised venture capital funding.
In 1995, Saumil began his career with Wipro Global R&D. In 1998, he started Learn@Home, a personalised computer training business; in 1999, this led to QSupport, one of the first remote technology support businesses based in India. At QSupport, he built a team, raised seed, angel and venture capital funding, got customers in the US, tried to manage the board and hired a chief executive, among other things.
In 2003, he founded SportzVillage, "partly out of passion and partly out of a belief in the sports business opportunity in India's growing economy". Today, SportzVillage has morphed into SportzConsult (sports marketing) and EduSports (sports education).
Fighting fit
EduSports's strength is its structured programme for each class -up to the eighth standard. Its programmes for all classes are different. It also trains teachers and provides lesson plans. On EduSports's programmes, a school teacher says, "All are involved." "The physical training period was always there; the only issue was making it more structured," the teacher adds. With EduSports in the picture, one knows how to go about things. Now, trained staff members deliver the programme and ensure inclusion.
"It doesn't focus on different things, sticks to the curriculum and aims to make children fit," says Francis Jacob, director (education) at Gujarat-based Learning Star International School. For subjects such as chemistry or English, there's a proper structure and lesson plan in the National Council of Educational Research and Training textbooks. This is missing in sports, Jacob laments. "As it (EduSports) is so focused, it aims to identify skill sets scientifically. It has helped make sports a serious business in school. It takes care of each child's needs," he adds.
EXPERT TAKE Kiran More
EduSports is good for children. It manages all sports professionally. It is a sports-related business, As curriculum is important for schools, EduSports ensures sports get due importance. It provides a very good foundation. For schools, it has a curriculum akin to a full-fledged subject's. The company is into all sports. Therefore, it provides a great foundation. The level of school sports has declined. Today, basics are not good. For example, running techniques, even among six to eight-year-olds, are lacklustre. At an early age, children should learn how to run properly. Then, one can try any sports. Changing the system is the issue. This would take a long time. Basics should be strengthened at the school-level. Schools have to adapt. A lot of companies, such as EduSports, have come up and these have been making a difference for a long time.
Till recently, outsourcing sports curriculum and training in schools was unimaginable. However, Bangalore-based start-up EduSports is doing just that.
Through the years, many schools have shifted focus from physical education. And, this has taken a toll - a high number of students suffer from obesity-related issues. Traditionally, if a student isn't good at sports, he/she would not participate in any such activity. Almost always, this led to the child concerned being left out of the mainstream.
This is where Saumil Majmudar, along with Meer Waqiruddin Khaleeq, Parminder Gill and Jyoti Majmudar, saw an opportunity. A rigorous, well-structured sports programme for children would ensure no one was left out.
Each EduSports unit is profitable. It took the company about three years to break-even. Chief executive Majmudar says a service business records break-even from the second day.
"But if you are profitable too early, questions are raised on whether you have the platform to maintain and invest in systems and whether you have the monitoring tools and the framework. When a company is scaling up, offering high quality on a consistent basis is a challenge," he says. "Technology is the underlying platform and it helps assess and track each child … curriculum & technology, and systems & processes have to be in place"
The use of technology has helped the company scale up. EduSports says it would have half a million children under its ambit by 2015-16 and a million by 2018-19.
The company recorded revenues of Rs 60 lakh in 2009-10, Rs 4.5 crore in 2010-11, and Rs 8.3 crore in 2011-12, a growth of over 14 times since 2009-10.
The journey so far
EduSports was launched in 2009, as India's first school sports and physical education company. Today, it works with 240 schools and about 1,75,000 children across 82 cities in the country, as well as three schools in Saudi Arabia. The company has successfully brought about a change in the way sports or physical education is perceived.
Focusing on "delivering value to schools", the company plans to have more product lines - outdoor experience, workbooks, life-skill programmes and talent development. Payments for the courses would be made through schools.
"It fits very well - its fitness, education and adventure," says Seedfund's Bharati Jacob, a board member in EduSports. SeedFund, an early-stage fund, has invested about $1.5 million in EduSports, in two tranches. It has been investing in start-ups across the country for the last six years. Earlier, Jacob had worked with Majmudar on another venture, QSupport, one of India's first remote tech support provider. That business did not take off, and "was probably ahead of its time". SeedFund is looking at an exit horizon of five to seven years and returns of 20-30 times.
Through the last eight years, Saumil has experimented with various models and service offerings in the sports business. From 2003 to 2008, funds were secured from friends, family and partnerships. In 2010, EduSports raised venture capital funding.
In 1995, Saumil began his career with Wipro Global R&D. In 1998, he started Learn@Home, a personalised computer training business; in 1999, this led to QSupport, one of the first remote technology support businesses based in India. At QSupport, he built a team, raised seed, angel and venture capital funding, got customers in the US, tried to manage the board and hired a chief executive, among other things.
In 2003, he founded SportzVillage, "partly out of passion and partly out of a belief in the sports business opportunity in India's growing economy". Today, SportzVillage has morphed into SportzConsult (sports marketing) and EduSports (sports education).
Fighting fit
EduSports's strength is its structured programme for each class -up to the eighth standard. Its programmes for all classes are different. It also trains teachers and provides lesson plans. On EduSports's programmes, a school teacher says, "All are involved." "The physical training period was always there; the only issue was making it more structured," the teacher adds. With EduSports in the picture, one knows how to go about things. Now, trained staff members deliver the programme and ensure inclusion.
"It doesn't focus on different things, sticks to the curriculum and aims to make children fit," says Francis Jacob, director (education) at Gujarat-based Learning Star International School. For subjects such as chemistry or English, there's a proper structure and lesson plan in the National Council of Educational Research and Training textbooks. This is missing in sports, Jacob laments. "As it (EduSports) is so focused, it aims to identify skill sets scientifically. It has helped make sports a serious business in school. It takes care of each child's needs," he adds.
EXPERT TAKE Kiran More
EduSports is good for children. It manages all sports professionally. It is a sports-related business, As curriculum is important for schools, EduSports ensures sports get due importance. It provides a very good foundation. For schools, it has a curriculum akin to a full-fledged subject's. The company is into all sports. Therefore, it provides a great foundation. The level of school sports has declined. Today, basics are not good. For example, running techniques, even among six to eight-year-olds, are lacklustre. At an early age, children should learn how to run properly. Then, one can try any sports. Changing the system is the issue. This would take a long time. Basics should be strengthened at the school-level. Schools have to adapt. A lot of companies, such as EduSports, have come up and these have been making a difference for a long time.
Kiran More
Founder of Kiran More-Alembic cricket academy and former Indian cricketer