Meet Akshay Ruparelia – the man who at age 17 created his U.K. based real estate business: Doorsteps. Typically the term “disruption” is a term that carries negative connotations, but in a business context, disruption is actually a very good thing if done well. When Ruparelia was young his family went through the grueling experience of selling a house – apparently the commission and agent costs were so high they scarred Ruparelia for life – because this experience is what would inspire him to create Doorsteps. What makes Doorsteps unique? Its the price tag. Ruparelia says that he wanted to make the whole process more affordable, so he began his business by charging each customer a flat fee of £99. In the beginning, the going was tedious as it took many rounds of knocking on doors to draw customers in. But, it paid off, largely due to Ruparelia’s strong focus on providing excellent customer service, and knowing his market well.
Read more about what inspired him, his role models, and his leadership methods here:
https://www.forbes.com/uk/advisor/personal-finance/2020/08/21/quickfire-questions-akshay-ruparelia/
Nice post! Akshay’s story is inspiring, especially considering the hardships he endured. It’s also a good example of “no pain, no sale”. Akshay’s purpose behind creating an affordable real-estate business is both meaningful and powerful.
It was smart for him to begin his venture by going door to door to assess the market before initiating his business. I believe he also was wise to pick an industry that has many expensive alternatives and fewer cheap ones. I hope his business is successful, and that no more families go through what Akshay’s did.