Akshay Ruparelia is an impressive 19 year old entrepreneur who has spent alot of time studying for his A-levels. He has accomplished a lot in his academic career but the real interesting thing about Akshay is he has done this studying while setting up a multi million dollar real estate company. At 19 he set up Doorsteps.co.uk which aims to revolutionize what he refers to as the “archaic and backwards” UK housing market by offering up to a 97% discount on home-selling. His passion began when he was young and had moved houses. He was disgusted by the absurdly high commission which real estate agents were charging for a very simple task.
His website cuts overheads massively, allows buyers to take more control of the process and involvement, including hosting viewings, and save money on what a typical agent would charge. Akshay charges £99 upfront and there is no commission on the sale of any properties made via the site. This idea came to Akshay before he was able to drive and he would get rides from his sisters boyfriend to visit properties. He plans to attend Oxford and before he was even a college student his company was valued at £12 million pounds.
This is very interesting and I continue to see more and more entrepreneurs becoming more transparent with transaction fees & commissions within the financial and real estate industry. Most people were probably tired of the fees and commissions eating up their wallet and enjoy the simplicity behind Doorsteps pricing philosophy. I also enjoy the fact that Akshay was able to do all this while still in school, very inspirational.
An awesome example of differentiation through price and innovation. Doorstep is also a great example of dormant industries that are ripe for disruptive innovation. Great blog post!