Vinay Menon (Founder of ivdisplays.

com, a Digital
Marketing Agency and Meratiffin, a Food Delivery Startup)
in Conversation with MentorClub.in
JULY 18, 2018

Insights
1. Being an Entrepreneur is not glamorous. It requires tons of hard work,
patience, and a never-die attitude.
 2. There is no fixed salary or income. If you want to earn an income, take up a
job, but if you are looking for wealth creation, Entrepreneurship is the only
choice.
3. People have different reasons to become an Entrepreneur. My desire to enjoy
the freedom and the ability to do what I love most got me into
entrepreneurship.
4. Initials days are all about incubating the business and finding your sweet-spot.
5. Work-life balance is poor, as there is always something waiting for you.

Personal Details
Name – Vinay Menon
Profession – Entrepreneur
Company – ​ivdisplays​.com (a Digital Marketing Company) and ​Meratiffin​ (a Food
Delivery Startup)
Age – 49 years
Gender – Male
City – Kolkata
Industry – Information Technology
Website – ​www.ivdisplays.com
LinkedIn – ​www.linkedin.com/in/menvinay

Where have you been born and raised?

I was born in a small town in Kerala and later came to Kolkata due to my Dad’s
assignment with a leading Jute manufacturing business.
We were raised in an upper-middle-class environment. I have an elder sister.

What is that one factor that motivated you to choose

entrepreneurship as your career option?
My desire to enjoy the freedom and the ability to do what I love most got me into
entrepreneurship.

What have been your educational qualifications? How would you

define your journey to the platform you have reached today?
Well, I was average in terms of academics. I pursued ​B.Com​. and then did my Post
Graduation in Integrated Marketing & Communication from ​St. Xavier’s, Kolkata​.

Which institutions are best for the entry-level courses?

Education in Commerce opens a lot of areas that one can choose from. Students can
opt for CA, CS, Cost Accounting or Business courses such as BBA and can further
move on to MBA.
There are quite a several Universities such as ​Xavier’s​, ​Manipal University
(Department of Commerce)​, ​Delhi University​ Colleges etc.
Several Commerce students pursue MBA, by appearing for entrance tests such as
XET, ​CAT​, ​GMAT​ etc.

What is the remuneration one should expect while starting out in

your field/carrier?
There is no fixed salary or income when one is an Entrepreneur. You start on this
journey for two reasons. One is that you are passionate about your venture and
second is that you are creating Wealth. You know, wealth is different from income!
Following is the average income potential in my line of work:
Starting out — Around 2 Lakhs INR per annum
5 years’ experience — 3 to 5 Lakhs INR per annum
10 years’ experience — 20 Lakhs to 1 Crore INR per annum

Please describe your work.

I run ​IVDisplays​, a Digital Marketing Agency in Kolkata. I also manage “​Meratiffin​”,
which is a food delivery startup incubated under ​NASSCOM​.
Typically, my day starts around 6 am when I plan my day.
I reach office by 10 am and follow it up with a quick meeting with my team. Then, I
catch up with customers.
My working hours are usually from 6 am to 9 pm.
As a founder, I do everything that propels my venture forward.

What are some of the positives that would encourage someone

to take up this job/career?
1. The biggest benefit of being an Entrepreneur is that I am my own Boss! I have
the full freedom to define my destiny and work on passion. In the process, I
also get to create long-term wealth and contribute to the society at large.
2. You have complete control over all your resources such as Employees,
Capital, Office etc.
3. Because of the nature of the job, I get to build relations with high and mighty.
These contacts help build business further as most of my customers are either
repeat or through reference.

What are some of the challenges one is expected to face in this

profession?
1. This profession demands an extreme level of hard work, focus, passion to
succeed. One must be patient and calm, especially during the incubation stage
of your venture.
2. The other challenges are mostly operational ones like people management,
project delivery issues, quality checks, team alignment, hiring, etc.
3. You do not have a healthy work-life balance, especially in the initial years
when you need to give all your time to your company.
4. Your responsibilities are huge, ranging from paying employees to ensuring
your company keeps moving towards its goals. Even the slightest error can
lead to humungous losses.
What are some of the skills required to be an Entrepreneur?
For an entrepreneur, I would say 4 skills are most desirable
1. Dreamer – You should be able to dream big about your venture.
2. Never give up attitude – You will be pushed to your extreme limits, that is
when you stay put and move forward.
3. Hard work – There is no shortcut to success, the ability to put in loads & loads
of hard work
4. Reader – Read as many books as you can, keep upgrading.

What kind of person would be happy in your career?

I feel someone who is ready to work hard, accept failures, self-motivated, never take
“NO” for an answer, devote long hours, and meet commitment can survive in the
field.
This profession serves best if someone can exhibit leadership traits, has a great
vision and is willing to take responsibility to achieve what it takes to get there.

Given a choice, if not an Entrepreneur what would you see

yourself as?
I would have gone into sports. But somewhere I feel, everything happens for a
reason.

What would be your advice to students or professionals who are

just starting their journey on a path like yours?
I would say if you are sure about the goal, just dive into it. Struggles are the part and
the parcel of it. What’s important is to have faith in oneself and the passion to keep
going.

Contributing Writer - ​Soumik Mitro

Liked this article? Check out ​our conversation with Mr. Kamal Aggarwal
(Co-Founder of SenSight Technologies)

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