The community-driven business model has never been attempted and proven on a large scale in India. Quora has grown enormously in popularity in the country, and it is likely to have the largest user base. Regardless of the popularity of such products, we have never focused on leveraging the community to establish a business case. By enabling a safe ecosystem for women on the Internet, Sairee Chahal is shattering the myth that community cannot be translated into a business case. If you ask people what Sheroes does, you’ll hear individuals refer to it as a social network, while others refer to it as an employment site for women.
But these are verticals for Sheroes. “We are actually horizontal platform that addresses many problems that a woman faces today,” said Chahal, Founder and CEO Sheroes. Besides offering a helpline number that answers women’s questions on any matter, the firm lets them build, engage, and monetize their potential.
Sheroes has about 70 communities across verticals such as tech, corporate, data science, fashion, and yoga among many others. These groups are managed by the firm itself. But, now Sheroes wants users to create and manage groups. “We recently allowed users to create and manage groups. Much to our surprise, users had created over 700 groups within a few weeks,” added Chahal.
In a long haul, the firm wants groups and community to be managed by users. “We would continue to give support and aligned services to the community. However, going forward, groups would largely be DIY,” asserted Chahal.
Sheroes had acquired the parenting app Babygogo as well as the women-focused healthtech app Maya. They fit into Sheroes’ ecosystem, according to Chahal, and have been assisting the company in accelerating expansion. “We won’t be afraid to make further acquisitions if they make sense,” Chahal added.
Sheroes now has a workforce of about 70 people, with 50 of them devoted solely to technology and product management.
