1Mby1M Udemy Courses with Sramana Mitra: Domain Knowledge

At 1Mby1M, we believe in learning from case studies of successful entrepreneurs. These case studies involve discussions on opportunities and challenges specific to the domain such as Generative AI, E-Commerce, Digital Health, Cyber Security, and FinTech. 

Chinese e-Commerce Market Continues Heady Growth; Alibaba Dominant

According to China Internet Network of Information Center, China’s Internet population grew 3.7% over the year to 618 million users as of December last year. That translates to 45.8% Internet penetration in the country. Mobile Internet usage statistics are also impressive with the number of users growing 19.1% to more than 500 million. The center also reported a 6% growth in Chinese online shoppers to 302 million.

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Flipkart Leads India’s e-Commerce Market, Acquires Myntra

Forrester estimates the Indian e-commerce market to be worth $13 billion last year. The Indian e-commerce market was dominated by travel which accounts for 70% of consumer e-commerce transactions. But retail is catching up as well. Forrester’s report estimates online retail sales to be worth $1.6 billion last year. Analysts estimate the online retail market to grow to $3.1 billion during this year and to grow seven times in the next five years.

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Bootstrapping with a Paycheck: DefinitiveDeals Founder Mattias Larson (Part 1)

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page.

We’re seeing a clear trend towards bootstrapping digital startups while holding onto a full-time job. Mattias Larson has a simple but powerful story to tell.

Sramana Mitra: Mattias, tell us about you. Where did your journey begin and in what kind of background?

Mattias Larson: I was born in the northern part of Sweden – actually, not that far away from the Arctic Circle – in a small town with a population of maybe 40,000. I grew up there and I went to college in a nearby town. I graduated with a master’s degree in Computer Science and International Marketing.

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Rakuten – the Alibaba of Japan

According to a recent report released by Forrester, e-commerce sales in the markets of China, Japan, South Korea, India, and Australia will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 16.6% to $858 billion in 2018. The report predicts that growth rate in the developed markets of Japan will be comparatively slower at 10%. Japan’s online retail sales accounted for revenue of $59 billion in 2013. That number is projected to grow to $96 billion in 2018.

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Building a New Online Fashion Brand: Combatant Gentlemen CEO Vishaal Melwani (Part 1)

I am a big believer in new, highly focused online fashion brands that can be built with a purely digital strategy. Combatant Gentlemen is a case in point. The company bootstrapped to $700K in revenue, followed it up with a $2.2 million financing round, and is on track to deliver $15 million in revenue this year. The market is large, and hence the opportunity to scale exists.

Sramana Mitra: Vishaal, let’s start at the beginning of your story. Where are you from? Where did you grow up and in what kind of background?

Vishaal Melwani: I am a third-generation tailor. I grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada, believe it or not. My dad was a second-generation tailor. My parents came to America in 1976 from Hong Kong. The goal was to basically have the American dream and focus in on what they knew. >>>

Groupon Sinks to 52-Week Low Figures

Online daily deals site Groupon (Nasdaq: GRPN) does not seem to be recovering at all. Earlier this week, they announced quarterly results that managed to exceed market projections. But despite their performance, a weak industry outlook and rising company costs sent the stock tumbling to 52-week low figures. According to a report by IBISWorld, the daily deals industry in 2013 was pegged to be worth $3.3 billion in revenues, recording a 15% growth over the year. But growth is expected to slow down significantly this year, when the industry is projected to grow a comparatively meager 3.5% to $3.4 billion. The research report estimates growth to remain at 4% levels till 2018 when the industry will be worth $4 billion in revenues.

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Amazon Continues On Without Profits

According to market reports, online retail giant Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) accounts for nearly 2% of global retail sales. However, while they may continue to rake in revenues, Amazon is still struggling with turning profitable. Amazon envisions profitability only by the end of the decade. Till then, they are operating on narrow margins while investing in services to garner higher market share.

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Why Did eBay Repatriate $9 Billion Foreign Cash?

Earlier this week, online retailer eBay (Nasdaq: EBAY) announced their quarterly results. Their results exceeded market expectations, but the big surprise was the announcement of repatriating $9 billion in cash and paying $3 billion in taxes on these funds. eBay wants to use these funds to drive further growth.

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Ultra-Light Startup to $20 Million in Revenue: WatchUWant CEO OJ Whatley (Part 1)

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page.

OJ Whatley did $6 million in revenue in 2006 from his home, with ‘me, myself, and I.’ Further elaborating on the ultra-light startup trend, we bring you his story of approaching $20 million with 20 employees.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the beginning of your story. Where are you from? Where did you grow up and in what kind of background?

OJ Whatley: I was raised in Chicago. My father was a commodities trader. That’s where I got in my blood the idea of buying low and selling high – the idea of speculation and entrepreneurship.

Sramana Mitra: Entrepreneurship and speculation are not the same things.

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Thought Leaders in Cloud Computing: Codero CEO, Emil Sayegh (Part 1)

Cloud hosting, as companies scale, is moving from public cloud to hybrid cloud. More in this discussion.

Sramana Mitra: Emil, tell us about Codero and yourself so that our audience can get to know you a bit.

Emil Sayegh: I’m Emil Sayegh. I’m the CEO and President of Codero. By way of a quick introduction, Codero has been around, as a company, since 1992 in various names. It started as a small corner computer reselling shop in San Diego. Quickly, the Internet came about. They got into shared hosting, domain name registration, and web design. The company grew and evolved into dedicated hosting and managed hosting, and later cloud. In 2006, Catalyst Investors out of New York came and purchased them. >>>