In it to win it!

Making living in expensive cosmopoliton and metro cities affordable is this trio of excellence. It is said that behind every man there is a woman and Nikhil believes in it. Sneha says, “Living with culture, code and ethics automatically gives success.”

With one of them practicing medicine and the other two engineers, this trio realised that there’s more to them than just their profession. With extensive market research they embarked on the journey of Zolo a co-living space.

Sneha Choudhry, Chief Business Officer says, “There must be a distinction between the professional and personal life. I managed to adopt it and now I’m a super focused lady. It’s always not about the couple goals we think. We had first put the thought of achieving something and that’s how we three initiated with the idea of co-living spaces in Bengaluru - the Silicon Valley. And, it was not just a step away. It took time for the research, observation, analysis and implementation. We now manage to stand in a good position with over  20,000 beds in 10 capital cities and is nearing 50,000.”

From friends to explorers, entrepreneurs and now a family they have evolved with time.

Nikhil Sikri, Cheif Executive Officer and Sneha’s husband says, “Our family isn’t just the three of us rather all our employees working with us are part of it. The bond is not just amidst the three of us, it’s amidst the entire team. We maintain strong relations with the employees which helps both the sides. As we get involved with the employees in live interactions with customers, bonuses for employees and few more iniatives our rapport with them has strengthened.

Research, market opportunities and empathy helped them to understand the needs of the settlers, migrants and students.

Nikhil says their success mantra is the team. “A properly functional team with a motive of development in each other’s terms is really important. In the initial days we faced some loss and were at a verge of losing everything we achieved. The employees from all the branches worked with half salaries. It is their commitment towards their work and the organisation that helped us through this hurdle. This was an immensely heartfelt moment and is also our success mantra.”

Sneha adds, “Being a woman, sometimes it is hard for me to manage this alone. May be this is because not many women are into co-living. That is the time I get help from my entire family meaning my husband and employees as well. We both manage the personal life, family gatherings, social life and professional life equally. In both the professional and personal front, we promise to stay together during both the good and bad times.”

Akhil, IIT from Delhi the co-founder and chief technology officer, believes in ones skills. “Regardless the degree, skills always matter. The three of us are the perfect examples. With no MBA in hand but skills imbedded in our brains we have achieved our goals. Without involving any personal issues in the office, we deal with every matter in a professional way”.

He adds, "I strongly believe in constant evolution of skills, be it life or work. Degrees at best give you a platform, but where you go from there depends on how every day you become a 'better you'. As a co-founder, I have been able to pick up on not only my tech skills, but also product, marketing and design. All of this is due to the constant endeavour to grow.".