Nirav Shah quit his high-flying banking career in Singapore and pivoted to entrepreneurship to take on a distressed manufacturing business in India. Running several businesses has taught him lessons in perseverance, resilience and fortitude.
Today, the Indian national, 41, is the co-founder of KPro.ai, a Bengaluru-based sports technology start-up that has launched in the UAE and will start operations over the next three to six months.
Founded in 2023, KPro.ai is a deep tech sports company that builds mobile-first visual AI models to drive participation across sports and fitness. The app assesses biokinetic motion to deliver data-driven insights on children’s capabilities in general fitness and specific sports.
“With enough data in the future, this opens up predictive analytics. Our app can help prevent injuries and identify potential sports a child could be good at. We work with academies and schools to incorporate our technology into their programmes,” Mr Shah says.
“Our portfolio includes virtual AI coaches for sports such as cricket and golf, smart court solutions for racquet sports that enable live insights, and fan engagement tools that encourage movement and participation at sporting events.”
Mr Shah, who lives in the south Indian city of Bengaluru, plans to move to Dubai this year. He completed his undergraduate studies between Canada and Singapore. After finishing his studies at Singapore Management University, Mr Shah started his career with BNP Paribas, where he worked for three and a half years.
Since his family established ventures in steel manufacturing, shipping and automotive parts, he decided to move back to India in 2012 to turn around a “distressed” manufacturing business. Mr Shah recalls it being a “trial by fire” after leaving his high-paying banking job in Singapore.
In 2018, he started his first tech company that dealt in supply chain digitisation in the food industry. However, the business did not take off because of the prolonged Covid lockdown in India. But, he learnt an important lesson about how to grow a business from the ground up in the tech space.
Did money feature in your childhood? What did you learn from it?
Coming from a business family, money was always a dinner table conversation for us. I learnt very early on that the journey of an entrepreneur is volatile and never a straight line, unlike the corporate world. So, my relationship with wealth has always been that it’s a by-product of creating value. If you're creating value in your business, for people and for your customers, wealth will come.
And then, of course, my career in finance gave me a very technical insight into how money should be managed, invested and grown.
How did you first earn? What did your first job pay?
This was during my first year in university in Vancouver, Canada. I had a fascination with cell phones, so I would hang out at the cell phone store on campus. I needed extra money, so I used to hand out flyers for the store and was paid around $50 a week.
Any early financial jolts?
After quitting my banking job, I went straight into manufacturing cooling systems for the power sector. Sources of capital were extremely limited in India. From a banking salary, I was earning the equivalent of Dh1,000 a month in manufacturing because that is all the business could offer in those first few years. Everything else had to be reinvested. That was challenging.
How do you grow your wealth?
It's a mix. Part of my wealth is generated from a personal portfolio, which is managed across different asset classes, such as real estate, fixed income and equity. Professional money managers manage a larger portfolio, which is more risk-averse and focused more on fixed income and less on equities.
Are you a spender or a saver?
I am a mix of both. I enjoy spending. As millennials, we've started valuing experiences more than things, so I end up spending on experiences and travel a lot more. But I need to save to be able to spend. So, the interest on savings and yields on investments are what pay for my spending.
Have you been wise with money?
Yes, I believe so. However, I've learnt my lessons. One of the early lessons I learnt was to never lend money to friends. I made the mistake of lending money to a close friend many years ago and lost it all. Now, I'm careful. You take the lesson because everybody's relationship with money is different. We're all coloured by childhood experiences and what we see around us. It is very important to understand one’s relationship with money and respect it.
What has been your best investment?
From a portfolio and money perspective, it's been in the defence sector. Just after Covid, there were outsized returns in the sector, so I was lucky to have invested there.
Any cherished purchases?
I had a fascination with watches as a child. With every major moment, I save some money and buy a watch. One of my most cherished purchases was my first Rolex that I bought with my first banking bonus. At the time, it was special to me because it made feel independent. It was a mark of something that I had bought on my own. It reminds me of that every time I wear it.
Any financial advice for your younger self?
Don't go after the money. Go after the purpose, and the money follows.
What luxuries are important to you?
Travelling well is very important because it adds to your experience. The freedom of time is the most important luxury. The reason why a lot of entrepreneurs like me do what we do is because we have autonomy over our time. It’s a big luxury being able to command what I do with my time every day.
