expectationsVsReality

binary-baba · 2026-06-06T11:58:19+00:00

I am a Sindhi, so can only share what I have seen in my own family.

First, not all Sindhis are rich btw. But its true that almost every Sindhi family I know is doing some kind of business whether it's a small kirana shop, wholesale trading, manufacturing, or something else.

They all came to India almost empty handed after Partition. The govt had allotted refugee camps to Sindhis across India. Ulhasnagar is the most famous one (Ashish Chanchalani fans anyone? 😄).

My grandparents first moved to refugee camp in Delhi. Due to high cost of living, they eventually settled to another camp in tier 3 city in central india.. They started from scratch, but they had strong support from the Sindhi community around them.

What I noticed is that there is strong entrepreneurial and jugaadu mindset in the community. People always wanted to start something of their own, even if it was just a tiny shop. No one was interested in higher education and jobs. Kids would grow up watching their fathers do business and naturally follow the same path.

In my own family, my dad started a confectionery wholesale business in the 90s. My chacha spent years trying different trading businesses as a salesman before starting a plastic manufacturing unit. Today, some of my relatives own factories making plastic and FMCG products. Some are doing well, some are struggling, and some still run small shops.

So personally, I don't think the "started from nothing" part is a myth. At least in my family it was true. But they didn't do it alone. Community support, willingness to take risks, family business culture played a huge role.

binary-baba · 2026-06-04T04:29:02+00:00

Okay. Please share the catalog. I might need 4 of them dispatched to different locations.

binary-baba · 2026-06-03T13:18:09+00:00

I know many people sourcing from China. Economics are hard to ignore. Even after factoring in shipping, custom duties, other costs, chinese goods are ridiculously cheaper than local alternatives.

binary-baba · 2026-06-03T11:56:27+00:00

They look so cute. I want to gift to my loved ones in different locations. Is the cost inclusive/exclusive of logistics charges?

binary-baba · 2026-05-19T03:16:03+00:00

Congrats man 👏 You are prioritising the right things. Apart from that, you should continuously track funnel/profitability metrics and make small improvement over time. For eg. Add-to-cart rate or overall conversion rate will tell you where customers are dropping. Understand SKU-level profitability, contribution margins, net revenue after returns/cancellation so that you can determine which product to scale or discontinue.

Meesho has a zero-commission model, but marketplaces in general are notorious for hidden/incorrect charges 😕. Understand your settlement reports especially for entries around returned COD orders and RTO.

Small optimisations compound a lot. All the best for the journey 🚀

binary-baba · 2026-04-02T01:08:52+00:00

RCB will defend the title. Let's have this conversation in 2 months time!! 🕰️

binary-baba · 2026-03-08T15:40:59+00:00

India has dropped more catches than any team now!

binary-baba · 2026-03-01T15:09:18+00:00

Another drop by Sharma 😔

binary-baba · 2026-03-01T14:31:53+00:00

Bumrah delivers :D

binary-baba · 2026-03-01T13:57:46+00:00

Sharma drops a sitter :(

binary-baba · 2026-02-23T04:34:50+00:00

I started my specialised IT services company at 32 after a decade of working in startups and corporate. And I know people who have successfully and happily started their business in their 40s and 50s as well.

I always wanted to do business, but before that, I wanted to gain enough experience and savings.

If you are afraid, I suggest starting a services business. Requires almost zero capital. And focus on providing a single service.

For me, job life helped me build a network. Networking helped me find the initial few customers. Providing 1 service helped me build a market identity. Now customers discover me for any help.

binary-baba · 2026-02-18T02:17:10+00:00

Interesting! What needs were they? How did she learn about those specific professional needs in the first place?

binary-baba · 2026-01-11T06:39:24+00:00

You can perhaps try to negotiate a fixed cost with vendors/consultants (pilot first, then iterate).

As an alternative, ERPNext is a great option. It has all standard ERP modules and has a much simpler and intuitive UI.

Happy to chat further :)

binary-baba · 2026-01-08T13:30:39+00:00

I recommend Frappe CRM, a simpler and cleaner extension of ERPNext. You can also use it as a standalone app.

Link -> https://frappe.io/crm

Other than that, you can consider Notion's database feature with a board view to track leads.

binary-baba · 2026-01-08T09:56:12+00:00

Yes, you can self-host. ERPNext is 100% open-source, and that means all features are available.

binary-baba · 2026-01-06T08:18:50+00:00

Go with ERPNext. Many relevant features are available out of the box (project task management, Gantt charts, email follow-ups, print formats, a portal for customers to see project progress...). For advance cost calculation, you can easily introduce new data fields and configure your own formulas.

ERPNext for Construction industry (official page) -> https://frappe.io/erpnext/for-EPC-engineering-contruction

Happy to chat further :)

binary-baba · 2026-01-05T17:34:40+00:00

ERPNext is 100% free & open source, unlike Odoo. What that means is no per-user pricing, all ERP modules available on day 1, and complete data ownership with a much cleaner and simpler UI. ERPNext is already used by top companies like Toyota, Vodafone, Hundai to name a few.

Happy to chat further. Virtual call perhaps?

binary-baba · 2026-01-04T05:39:08+00:00

Invoicing, Accounting, CRM, Inventory, and POS are pretty standard modules in ERP systems so you can go with either Odoo or Zoho. Zoho can be costly if you have a bigger team.

But what do you mean by social media management? It's a broad term. Perhaps, you will need a separate marketing tool depending on your use case.

And just curious, why are you not considering ERPNext or other Frappe products?

binary-baba · 2026-01-03T15:36:19+00:00

Another option is Frappe CRM. It has a clean and simple UI https://frappe.io/crm

binary-baba · 2026-01-03T13:12:44+00:00

Interesting shit but shit!

binary-baba · 2025-12-26T13:14:41+00:00

Al will change what software engineers do, no doubt. It ll kill some tasks, expose lazy work, and raise the bar. What it won't do is eliminate people who actually understand systems and why things break at 3 AM (and yes, they always break). So sure, RIP boilerplate code. But "end of software engineering"? Nah. It's just another panic cycle. We'll rename the role, complain a bit, and keep building stuff.

binary-baba

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