How to build a business when you’re studying full-time
MBA student Vishnu Chundi is applying what he learns in the classroom to his fintech startup
Risk everything to become an entrepreneur or play it safe by taking a well-paid corporate role? That’s the dilemma for many business school students eyeing their next move after graduation, but not for Vishnu Chundi. He joined London business School (LBS) in August 2015 to gain a full-time MBA – and to use the two years to launch his own venture.
Chundi wants to work on his startup AssetVault – which allows consumers to catalogue, protect and unlock the value of their physical and digital assets – after graduating rather than work for someone else.
"Even though most new ventures fail, I wanted to give my business idea a real go,” he says. But he admits that balancing study with the rigours of launching a business has been tough. On the upside, Chundi can immediately apply lessons from the MBA, such as marketing, the customer journey and brand awareness, to his new venture.
The challenge comes from trying to finance both the MBA and the startup. Chundi believes greater support from business schools would encourage other students, either during or after their studies, to take the plunge. “There has to be more incentives for students to go down the entrepreneurship route,” he says. “At the moment it’s not a level playing field and the current system of huge upfront investment (tuition and living) forces you into a return-on-investment mindset that tempts you to accept a well-paid corporate job,” he says.
“The LBS Incubator Programme, where it all started, E100 angel investor scheme and entrepreneurship visa support for students are fantastic initiatives. They help many alumni to pursue their goals after graduation. However, the School can do more to encourage students during their studies such as offering bursaries for their startups, loan rebates and perhaps delayed start dates for repaying student loans. The top 10 business schools have programmes to help student entrepreneurs.”
As Co-President of the Entrepreneurship Club, Chundi wants to encourage more alumni to support initiatives for LBS student entrepreneurs. “I’d love to see LBS helping future MBA students,” he says. “People think they'll come here, do two years and then become entrepreneurs; it’s difficult and that’s putting it mildly. There needs to be an initiative to increase the pipeline of students who want to launch their own companies.”
Chundi accepts that starting a business is extremely tough. But the idea that anyone would swap their dream of becoming an entrepreneur for a steady job is alien to him. “Ambitious and courageous are two LBS values that I find very inspiring,” he says. “I feel that this is the best time to take the plunge as there will be more responsibilities in future and it will be harder to manage family and other costs. There will never be a time when I feel fully ready.”
