Find a need and fill it
Rahul Rupani is a working guy. He started as one of the thousands of motor scooter rickshaw taxis driving around Mumbai the national capital of India. He picked people up and delivered them to hotels and various sites. The biggest money was to and from the airport as the foreign business people and tourists were willing to pay more and Rahul acted as a city PR guy making customers comfortable in English, Hindi and couple of other languages that the travelers brought with them. Nice guy, good service, but Rahul had lots of competition from the other drivers. Rahul noticed that many of the travelers first wanted to go to the US embassy to get their papers completely in order to travel within the country. The wrinkle is: Due to strict security protocols, visitors are not allowed to carry bags, electronics, or personal items into the consulate. So now they were stuck they wanted to protect their possessions in a strange country and knew no one. So Rahul offered to wait outside and keep their baggage in his little taxi while they finished their business. He charged for the time and got tipped, but it meant sitting outside the embassy for hours and not picking up any fares.
As Rahul thought about this dilemma, he remembered a local police officer who owns secure storage space right around the corner from Embassy row and they rented security lockers. So Rahul thought, I will take the bags and put them in the other company’s locker take the key and the visitors will call me when they are done in the Embassy. While they are in the embassy, I can be serving other customers and if I can get a bunch of fares that are going to embassy row. I will always be just a few minutes away when the fares come and need their luggage. One visitor cited: “I was outside the US Consulate this week for my visa appointment when security told me I couldn’t carry my bag inside.” “No lockers. No suggestions. As I stood there, unsure what to do, an auto driver waved me over and said, “Sir, give me your bag. I’ll keep it safe. I do this daily. Just 1,000 Rupee or $12 US.” The service really caught on and he developed the reputation of a reliable friendly problem solver for many. In fact, when embassy staff was asked they would give people Rahul’s phone number to solve their baggage dilemma.
It’s a system built entirely on trust and efficiency — no app, no office, no formal training. Just insight into a pressing problem and the initiative to solve it. His unique business model near the US Consulate went viral on LinkedIn. So today Rahul earns around $9300 US dollars per month without even driving his rickshaw. What seemed at first like an opportunistic offer turned out to be a well-organized service. The auto serves as a drop-off point, while the bags are stored safely off-site. “Legal, secure, zero hassle. The auto is just the funnel,” Rupani wrote. It’s a system built entirely on trust and efficiency — no app, no office, no formal training. Just insight into a pressing problem and the initiative to solve it. “This is entrepreneurship in its rawest and most powerful form,” Rupani concluded. “I didn’t need an MBA. Just a sharp eye and a clear understanding of people.”
Funny Indian observations
What state in India is most famous for Covid injection jokes?
Punjab, of course.
Who answers the support line in India?
Americans
India is a very peaceful country.
Because nobody has any beef over there.
How did the people of India get so good at medicine?
They’ve got much practice thanks to a lot of Sikh people.
June 9th birthdays
1981 – Natalie Portman, 1989 – Mae Whitman, 1986 – Ashley Postell, 1990 – Logan Browning
1961 – Michael j. Fox, 1934 – Jackie Mason, 1934 – Donald Duck, 1893 – Cole Porter