Treasure Unearthed!!

After the successful stint at VMSS and the plethora of information we got from there, a lot of doors opened for us. We started learning new things, the most important one being : Getting appointments from Government officials. Things really started to look up when finally we bagged an appointment with Mr. D. R. Patel, Additional Commissioner Of Police (Crime and Traffic), Vadodara. We were supposed to meet Mr. D. R. Patel on 22^nd August, 2013 at 12:00 noon.

Meeting Mr. D. R. Patel was a great experience. We explained our idea to him and got a good feedback from him. He further gave us a few suggestions about how and what we should do next. We sat there taking notes and just taking in every bit of information we got.

Smit with Mr. D. R. Patel (Additional Commissioner Of Police(Traffic and Crime, Vadodara)

Mr. D. R. Patel then directed us to Mr. Sajan Parmar, A.C.P. Traffic Branch, Vadodara. We explained our idea to him as well and that is when we struck “GOLD”. We got to know about many traffic bylaws and how the Government allots on-street parking slots from time to time, what factors are considered and much more. All this information was new to us and Mr. S. V. Parmar was really patient in explaining everything to us. We also came to know about the timely notifications the Government gives out about on-street parking.

Bhargav with Mr. S. V. Parmar (A.C.P. Traffic Branch, Vadodara)

We are really grateful to Mr. D. R. Patel and Mr. Sajan Parmar for their precious time and all the suggestions,feedback and help they provided us with.

We would also like to show our gratitude to Mr. H. G. Patel, Additional Commissioner Of Police, Ahmedabad for his help and insights on Park: On The Go!

The Dawn!

The next few days after winning Startup 2020 and Rakesh Sir announcing at the event that he was interested in funding the project seemed like a roller-coaster ride. There was so much happening around us. The recognition from our respective colleges, the media coverage, the accolades, everything seemed so surreal. We had to keep pinching ourselves to remind ourselves that all this was REAL and not just a dream!

That is when Rakesh Sir got in touch with us again about the meeting that was bound to change us and the way we viewed things in an unprecedented way. So, a date and time was agreed upon: 13^th August 2013, 10:00 a.m. And team Engipreneurs started from Vadodara at sharp 6:20 a.m aboard Shanti Express. We reached the Space-O Technologies office in time and then started the meeting. It started with Rakesh Sir introducing the team to Mr. Atit Purani, co-founder and CTO Space-O Technologies, and Mr. Bhaval Patel, Delivery Head at Space-O Technologies. Then started a discussion wherein first of all we briefed Atit sir and Bhaval sir about our business idea. And then a myriad of topics were covered. We asked the veterans about what they expected from us and all our doubts were put to  rest by the satisfactory answers we got from them. The two main things they expected from us were:

1. Dedication
2. Commitment to the cause

We were told to work independently however well it suited us and turn to them whenever we needed any guidance or for any help. Proper planning was the key to get things right and we will learn more from failure than success were some of the tips we got. We were asked to make schedules and stick to them. The veterans explained to us how it was the need of the hour that somebody from the industry tried to think out-of-the-box and bridge the gap between what educational institutes provide and what the industry demands by promoting such startup business ideas and how they hoped others would follow the trend they were setting. They emphasised on innovative thinking or what they called “out-of-the-box-thinking” because only that will make us stand out amongst a crowd.
Then we shifted to the specifics of how we are going to go about bringing to life, Park: On The Go! We were told to start with Data Mining in the discovery phase and a few other suggestions about where we could lay our hands on the data we were looking for. And then we were left to ourselves to make a proper plan of how we were going to proceed with things. After almost 3 hours of brain-storming we came up with a plan with a proper timeline for the month of August. We zeroed-in on a particular area in Vadodara from where we’ll start the pilot project with. We narrated our plans to them, made a few changes and finally, after a hard day’s work we had something substantial in hand.
The meeting was concluded with a discussion on “Values” with Atit sir and Bhaval sir. And like Atit Sir said, “Focus on the Process and not the Product. Once the Process is good, the Product is bound to be good.” we are truly enjoying this process of learning and hope that the fruits it bears us are equally enjoyable!