INSIGHTS #18: Rahul Garg on building Moglix — a B2B Marketplace for MRO

We continue with our discussion on building for India in the #INSIGHTPodcast series and in this episode, focus on building an eCommerce company for Industrial India. To talk about this important topic, We have Rahul, Co-founder of Moglix, a B2B marketplace for MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Operating Supplies). Before starting Moglix, He has held various leadership positions at Google in Asia Pacific and is a graduate of ISB and IIT Kanpur.
On this podcast, we discuss building a B2B marketplace for the Indian Industry:
Choosing the problem — How do you think about the problem to go after? How do you evaluate B2B market opportunities?
Importance of market size and, conversely in especially large markets figuring out what is the value proposition and the market-segment you can address with this value proposition
The chicken and egg problem — what comes first in a marketplace — solving for what comes first on your platform — identifying the size of buyers and sellers and determining the build-out of your marketplace
Contrasting between B2B and B2C — buying behavior and differences in customers
The difference in the decision-making process of B2B and B2C customers and ticket size changes and the way the product must be built out
Cash flow — B2B runs on credit while a B2C is on cash being paid upfront; rethink cash cycles for your business
Winning in the space — How Moglix is building a well-loved and resilient business
Building a tech-first marketplace to handle scale in the future
Surviving the initial few years and emerging as a leader in the space
Hiring the right talent for the team, and hiring for B2B
B2B businesses are not glamorous —  finding the right talent means finding people with a passion for the business and the problem you are trying to solve
Hire a diverse group of people who bring complementary skill sets to your team — juggle responsibilities till you find the right hire for the role
In the next few podcasts, we will dive deeper into startups in the Indian Business Sector. If there is any feedback on this podcast or questions for the next set of episodes, please do share as a comment below or tweet us at @Accel_India