Kushagra worked for Westpac Banking Corporation, one of the biggest banks in Australia, for over three years before deciding to study a part-time EMBA at AGSM. In an eight-year business leadership career, he worked for the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing & Fraud branches of Westpac.
But he was offered a scholarship to study full-time and he left his finance job to join the full-time MBA program at AGSM.
He is set to graduate in 2014 but isn’t letting that slow down his entrepreneurial venture. He was inspired to launch the start-up after taking an Entrepreneurship and Strategy class at business school and is hoping to secure angel investing to expand the business across the whole of Australia.
What is the company size?
It’s a small start-up company which comprises only a few team members so far: A Developer, Marketer, and someone that handles sales.
We plan to be hire a few interns early next year and it may be for full-time positions; if we are able to secure funding from initial investors that we are engaged in discussion with.
Which sector does it operate in?
It operates in the Online Information Sharing Industry. I believe it’s similar to GroupOn - but with a twist!
What does the business do and what are their core/flagship products
Specials for Today provides information about all the special deals around you, at given time, anywhere, which you have access to right away. It could be coffee or muffin deals, lunch specials, dinner specials, pub specials and many more.
It’s a eBay of special deals; an online special's sharing platform, where businesses such as food retailers, book-shops, gyms, banks and travel agents can post their deals.
Examples include new menus, combos, and clearance on a daily bases on a larger scale, to students and staff on university campuses. For example, there are 50,000 students and 10,000 staff at UNSW with only 200 shops in and around campus.
We are trying to replicate this model at other university campuses.
Who is the CEO/ founder?
Me, Kushagra Bhatia, AGSM Candidate of 2014, exchange at London Business School.
How was the company founded?
This new venture is a product of the class ‘Entrepreneurship and Strategy"’, which I was very fortunate to attend under the guidance of Jeffery Tobias, who is an active angel investor in Sydney.
Currently the business is up and running and I am pitching to various angel investors to secure funding.
Which regions are covered?
In our first phase, we are focusing on Sydney, Australia. In the second phase, by the middle of next year, we would be expanding to universities in other cities in Australia and finally in phase three by end of next year, we will be open to everyone.
Number of current MBAs at the company?
At this point I am the only MBA in this start-up as the skill-sets we need are diverse. We have a person from a computer science background and marketing background to fill the needs we have.
Meanwhile, for various tasks, various MBA students have been involved from time to time - from designing a logo, to writing a survey and writing a script for a video.
Why do you think MBAs are a great demographic to hire?
MBA's are great demographics to hire for any company as they come from various backgrounds and countries to study business. During the course of an MBA program they sharing knowledge, work experiences and culture - which make them a desirable product.
Furthermore, they join the network of alumni who are there to help and support the newcomers.
Who to contact if interested in working for Specials for Today?
Anyone interested to join the team can contact me directly at kushagra.bhatia@specialsfortoday.com.au or visit our website here: http://specialsfortoday.com.au/contactus.php
Tell us something interesting about the company in your own words!
We believe in helping each other! Our start-up is formulated by youths, for youths. In every sense, it’s a dynamic, vibrant, playful place to work.
Specials for Today is dedicated to help students save money and help staff to save time by providing real-time information about specials to buy. We help businesses to promote their sales and reduce waste through daily clearance broadcasts. In nut shell, let’s help each other!
We saw a problem that students were spending more for their lunch, coffee, haircut and books than they wanted to. On the other hand, small business were keen to get out specials and clearance every day, but were very limited in their reach.
We saw the opportunity and the need, and acted quickly!
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