Zomato founder and CEO Deepinder Goyal is the new face of Shark Tank India Season 3.
He recently got a lot of commendation for being sharp with minor details. In a recent episode of Shark Tank India, he spotted a huge mistake on a company’s banner with only 9-digit mobile numbers instead of 10 digits.
This analysis of Deepinder Goyal made people compare him to Judge Ashneer Grover, who was also known for his strict feedback in the first two seasons.
The food delivery segment in India has been witnessing a rapid jump, especially during the pandemic period. Getting any desired meal at any hour or late-night food delivery has become a common occurrence.
There are only a few brands in India that actually control this food industry and Zomato is one of them.
Let’s look into the journey of Zomato Founder’s Life
Early Life:
Deepinder is an IIT alumnus of Delhi born in Muktsar, Punjab on 26th January 1983. He comes from a middle-class background family.
Deepinder openly shares about his early struggles like many of us faced challenges in school and even admitted that he tried to cheat during his school days.
These experiments led him essential learning moment that shaped his understanding of correct or incorrect.
After his graduation, he keen interest in the food segment and always wanted to foster his interest by working out for a venture that would help people with their meals through the convenience of an app.
But being a middle-class family background financial pressure from his family and his struggle towards finding something creative became more challenging.
Deepinder’s honesty and readiness to learn set him on a path of progress and self-discovery.
He sometimes felt down, but instead of stopping by sad feelings, he pushed them to keep trying to get better.
The competition was hard at the Chandigarh Institute for IIT preparation, yet Deepinder Goyal thrived his intelligence shining through.
The Entrepreneurial spark started at the time of IIT Delhi.
Entrepreneurial Journey
After graduation, Deepinder Goyal joined Bain and Company as a Senior Associate Consultant in 2006. In this term, he founded FoodieBay.com which he later renamed as Zomato.
At his organization, Bain and Company noticed something irritating long queues for food. This evoked an idea in his head – what if there was a more easier way and less time taken to order and eat?
Deepinder’s notion made a new propel to the entire food tech industry.
Teaming up with a friend, when Zomato was operational people started giving positive responses and started showing their interest which further led him to add more restaurants to the list.
On 11th August 2006 Edge invested in Deepinder’s startup, $1 million, and after this food delivery and order took a tempest later on several other investors started investing in Zomato.
Zomato was entitled to Unicorn Startup status in 2018 which ended later in 2020 by closing a $660 million primary financing round at a post-money valuation of $3.9 million.
Gradually, Deepinder Goyal started to imbue newer and modern ideas into enlarging his venture by enlarging its reach and initiating its application name Zomato in iOS, Android, and Windows.
Zomato first took the rapid growth in cities like Chennai, Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad and later on, collaborated with Citibank which was named “Citibank Zomato Restaurant Guide”.
As Zomato began to maximize its operations with each passing year, Zomato needed more funds, but owing to its success, Zomato was never hindered.
Challenges of Zomato
During the coronavirus pandemic, Zomato’s food delivery business almost abated but the founder didn’t give up.
Deepinder came up with new ideas like delivering groceries and ordering food with a no-touch policy. This helps him survive and even grow stronger.
Early phase of Zomato there were problems with funding and convincing people to use the service the founder never stopped trying and the startup finally became a success.
An important phase in Goyal’s business journey was when Zomato was listed as a public company in 2021, bringing a lot of attention and investment.
The Growth of Zomato under Goyal Leadership
Under Deepinder’s leadership, Zomato has garnered multiple awards mostly for user choice displaying customer satisfaction.
Deepinder has achieved a rise from the lowest moments of hopelessness and distress to transforming an entire dynamic food segment.
The company operates in over 24 countries and has a presence in over 10,000 cities. Countries include UAE, Sri Lanka, Qatar, United Kingdom, Philippines, South Africa USA, and New Zealand.
The reported revenue of Zomato Media Pvt Ltd stands for Rs 28.48 billion up by 71.4% from Rs 16.61 billion in Q2 FY20232.
Personal & Professional Achievement of Deepinder Goyal
Personal Achievements:
- ET Startup of the Year Award: 2011
- Business Today Young Business Leader Award: 2012
- Distinguished Alumni Award from IIT Delhi: 2018
- GQ Men of the Year Award: 2019
- Fortune India 40 Under 40 List: 2020
- A judge in Shark Tank India Season 3: 2024
Professional Achievements
- Founded Zomato: 2008
- Online order: 2011
- UAE setup: 2014
- Acquired Runner, a Food Delivery Startup: 2015
- Achievement of India’s 1st Unicorn Startup: 2017
- Grocery Delivery Service:2019
- IPO Listing (Indian Stock Exchange): 2021
- Expanded in 23 Countries: 2023
5-acre Land in Delhi for 79 Crore
According to the Economic Times report, Deepinder has bought 5-acre land in Delhi’s Dera Mandi village for Rs. 79 crores in two different transactions.
A real estate data analytics firm CRE Matrix documents Deepinder bought the first 2.5 acres of land for Rs. 29 crore in March 2023 and the second deal of 2.5 acres of land bought for Rs 50 crore in September 2023.
Deepinder’s Car Collection
Deepinder has a great love for luxury cars. Here is a list of cars he owes
- Porsche 911 Turbo S: It is a premium and luxurious sports car that many people are crazy about it. The car costs around Rs. 3.35 crore in India.
- Lamborghini Urus: The car is titled as the world’s fastest SUV. The car costs around Rs. 4.18 crore in India.
- Ferrari Roma: This is a fantastic luxury sports segment car in India and many people are crazy about it. The car has been designed by Flavio Manzoni and is powered by a twin-turbo V8. The car is a 2-seater sports car with automatic transmission. The car costs around Rs. 3.76 crores in India.
- Porsche Carrera S: Only a few people in India have both the Porsche 911 Turbo S and the Porsche Carrera S and Deepinder owes both of them. The car costs around Rs. 2.01 crore in India.
Conclusion:
A middle-class family boy showing his grit and vision to build a successful company Zomato.
His journey teaches that success requires passion, persistence, and flexibility- and inspiration for aspiring entrepreneurs.