What is your definition of an entrepreneur?
To me, an entrepreneur is somebody who exhibits the agency to have control over their own professional destiny.
How do you motivate yourself?
I'm motivated by where we are today and where we can get to tomorrow. It's extremely motivating to see that we have millions of users using our product and that we're hopefully changing some people's lives for the better. But even more motivating is knowing that we can continue to learn from our customers, continue to scale, and ultimately have an even bigger impact on India and hopefully the world.
Why did you choose the type of business you are presently in?
I always had an entrepreneurial, risk-taking mind. But I never imagined I'd be running a site that helps young adults in India meet each other. It's fate!
When did you first decide you wanted to work for yourself?
In my first job out of school, it didn't take long for me to realize that while I enjoyed the company and my coworkers, the work itself didn't feel meaningful to me. It was hard to really get a grasp on what impact my work was having outside of my little cubicle. That's when I knew I wanted to try to work for myself.
From the current records, we found that Step Out is a hit among its users, how do you find this?
I find it to be awesome! We try really hard to create a community where our users have fun new experiences and feel safe doing it.
If you had to choose a mentor, whom will you choose?
Mentorship is one of the cornerstones of the Startup world. I have a number of companies whom I mentor and I still very frequently get mentorship from my own personal mentors. There aren't many widely available curricula for starting a web company. Therefore, the best way to learn is from people who have already done it before.
Finally, do you have anything to share with our readers?
In addition to identifying and engaging great mentors, another contributor to success is persistance and dedication. The notion of an "overnight success" is over hyped. It just doesn't happen often and if you're starting a company, you should temper your expectations. It's most likely going to take a lot of time, trial and error, and tons of hard work. But if you keep at it, you'll give yourself a chance for success.
Wanna Know More:
India's Best Social Networking Site : Coolest Experience, Funnier People
Adam Sachs and his co-founders Dan Osit and Kevin Owocki launched StepOut.com
(formerly known as Ignighter.com) in early 2008 in an attempt to create something they
very much WISH existed in their own lives. ;)
(formerly known as Ignighter.com) in early 2008 in an attempt to create something they
very much WISH existed in their own lives. ;)
- Founders: Adam Sachs (29), Dan Osit, (30); Kevin Owocki, (28)
- Company: StepOut (formally Ignighter)
- Year founded: 2008
- Location: Mumbai, India and New York
- StepOut Statistics (August 2012)
- Monthly Active Users: 4 million users (Approximately)
- Monthly New Users: 125000-150000
- Monthly Activities: 7 Million chats messages exchanged
- Male:Female Ratio: 80:20
- Monthly Male:Female Ratio: 75:25
- Demography: 60% users from Top 6 cities in India (4 Metros + Hyderabad and Bangalore)
- Approximately 1 Million unique visitors to the site each month
- Over 30 Million monthly page views
According to founders, they were making a website envisioning the
demographics as themselves. “When they started the company, they were 24-,
25-year-olds.
Why India?
After a year of success in the States, the founders noticed a puzzling trend that
has completely reshaped the company's business strategy: They were becoming
incredibly popular in India! So they took the next logical step and started paying
more attention to the Indian Market. By August 2011, StepOut had crossed a million
Indian users (the number has been increasing since)
What is StepOut all about?
StepOut is a platform of around 3,805,308 people who interact, have fun and are
a part of the StepOut community meet new people day in & out. While 95% users in
the age bracket of (____18-30_) are from Indian sub continent, the Women ratio on
the site is around 20% of the total.
In 2011, Ignighter closed a $3 million Series A round of funding led by Point Judith
Capital, a Rhode Island-based venture capital firm. Other investors include Founder
Collective, GSA Ventures Partners, and a venture firm called GTI, which stands
for "Gateway To India." Through a combination of subscriptions and ad revenue, the
company brought in about $500,00 in 2010, and Sachs expects to nearly double that
figure in 2011.
Who is Adam Sachs? (CEO, StepOut)
Adam Sachs is the 29 year old Co-Founder and CEO of StepOut.com (formerly known as
Ignighter.com), a social dating website based in Mumbai and NYC, India. StepOut's mission
is to provide a safer, less awkward, more fun approach to online dating. The team went on to
participate in TechStars Boulder in 2008, and the company has since become one of the fastest growing websites in Asia. StepOut has recently been named one of the "15 Most Brilliant New Ideas" by Business Insider. Adam and his co-founders were named to Inc.'s list of 30 Top Entrepreneurs Under 30. Prior to StepOut, Adam has worked for Sony Pictures Entertainment in both their Marketing and Ad Sales departments. Adam holds a BS in Radio/Television/Film and History from Northwestern University.
Sachs spends his days consulting with marketing and branding experts who are familiar with
Indian culture. Rajan Anandan, head of Google India, for example, serves as an advisor to the company, helping the founders navigate the Indian cultural—and business—landscape.
has completely reshaped the company's business strategy: They were becoming
incredibly popular in India! So they took the next logical step and started paying
more attention to the Indian Market. By August 2011, StepOut had crossed a million
Indian users (the number has been increasing since)
What is StepOut all about?
StepOut is a platform of around 3,805,308 people who interact, have fun and are
a part of the StepOut community meet new people day in & out. While 95% users in
the age bracket of (____18-30_) are from Indian sub continent, the Women ratio on
the site is around 20% of the total.
In 2011, Ignighter closed a $3 million Series A round of funding led by Point Judith
Capital, a Rhode Island-based venture capital firm. Other investors include Founder
Collective, GSA Ventures Partners, and a venture firm called GTI, which stands
for "Gateway To India." Through a combination of subscriptions and ad revenue, the
company brought in about $500,00 in 2010, and Sachs expects to nearly double that
figure in 2011.
Who is Adam Sachs? (CEO, StepOut)
Adam Sachs is the 29 year old Co-Founder and CEO of StepOut.com (formerly known as
Ignighter.com), a social dating website based in Mumbai and NYC, India. StepOut's mission
is to provide a safer, less awkward, more fun approach to online dating. The team went on to
participate in TechStars Boulder in 2008, and the company has since become one of the fastest growing websites in Asia. StepOut has recently been named one of the "15 Most Brilliant New Ideas" by Business Insider. Adam and his co-founders were named to Inc.'s list of 30 Top Entrepreneurs Under 30. Prior to StepOut, Adam has worked for Sony Pictures Entertainment in both their Marketing and Ad Sales departments. Adam holds a BS in Radio/Television/Film and History from Northwestern University.
Sachs spends his days consulting with marketing and branding experts who are familiar with
Indian culture. Rajan Anandan, head of Google India, for example, serves as an advisor to the company, helping the founders navigate the Indian cultural—and business—landscape.
LinkedIn: Adam Sachs
Twitter: @arsachs
Who is Dan Osit?
Dan Osit is the President and Cofounder of Stepout. He along with his team mates cofounded
Stepout (FKA as Ignighter) in 2008 with the dream of revolutionizing the way Americans use the internet to meet new people.
Dan created a wave in India, focusing on Internet as a medium to meet new people.
Dan has led all product development and marketing at StepOut and he is an expert product
manager and online marketer. Prior to StepOut, he was also the co-founder of Glenpoint
Captial Partners - a proprietary equity trading fund, where he served as a senior equity trader. He graduated from Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois in 2004.
In 2010, StepOut began to see immense user growth in India. Dan and his team decided to
make the Indian market their focal point. Since then StepOut is considered to be India's
largest platform for meeting new people.
Linkedin: Dan Osit
Twitter: @danosit
Twitter: @arsachs
Who is Dan Osit?
Dan Osit is the President and Cofounder of Stepout. He along with his team mates cofounded
Stepout (FKA as Ignighter) in 2008 with the dream of revolutionizing the way Americans use the internet to meet new people.
Dan created a wave in India, focusing on Internet as a medium to meet new people.
Dan has led all product development and marketing at StepOut and he is an expert product
manager and online marketer. Prior to StepOut, he was also the co-founder of Glenpoint
Captial Partners - a proprietary equity trading fund, where he served as a senior equity trader. He graduated from Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois in 2004.
In 2010, StepOut began to see immense user growth in India. Dan and his team decided to
make the Indian market their focal point. Since then StepOut is considered to be India's
largest platform for meeting new people.
Linkedin: Dan Osit
Twitter: @danosit
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