Today on toptalks : In 2008, Rajdip Gupta founded Route Mobile. Just four years later, a company was poised to acquire it for Rs 60 crore. The deal seemed almost finalized until Rajdip received an email detailing his “exit plan.” Unwilling to walk away from his creation so soon, Rajdip reconsidered and decided to back out. Fast forward a few years, and that same company approached him again, this time seeking to be acquired by Route Mobile. Rajdip’s decision to stick with his startup paid off in the long run—Route Mobile is now a publicly traded company with a market capitalization of approximately Rs 11,170 crore in 2024.

Rajdip’s journey with Route Mobile is a testament to perseverance, vision, and the importance of finding the right product-market fit. He believes that with the right approach, businesses can scale successfully even without external funding. “When I started working on my idea in 2003, the startup ecosystem in India was non-existent. The market was still reeling from the dot-com bubble burst in 2000,” Rajdip recalls. “But we looked ahead and identified a gap in the mobile handset market, which became the foundation for Route Mobile.”

India’s digital transformation over the past two decades has been extraordinary. With over 900 million internet users and being the second-largest smartphone market in the world, the opportunities for digital platforms like Route Mobile have grown exponentially. In 2004, India had just 33.7 million mobile customers—a number that surged to around 1.1 billion by the end of 2023. Rajdip’s foresight and timing allowed Route Mobile to thrive as businesses and enterprises fine-tuned their digital strategies.

Rajdip’s entrepreneurial journey began after he left a well-paying job in the UK to return to India, driven by a desire to create something of his own. His decision wasn’t easy, especially with two young children and an understandably cautious family. “I asked my family to give me a year to test my idea. If it worked, I’d continue; if not, I was confident I could find another job,” Rajdip explains. With just $2,000 (around Rs 1 lakh), Rajdip bootstrapped Route Mobile from scratch, even developing the initial platform himself on a second-hand PC at home. He also took the bold step of becoming the first customer of his product, testing and refining it before launching it to the market.

Route Mobile grew steadily from there. Rajdip always envisioned it as a global company, which led him to adopt a mergers and acquisitions (M&A) strategy to fuel international expansion. The company’s first acquisition was 365squared, a Malta-based SMS firewall solutions company. Several more acquisitions followed, extending Route Mobile’s reach into markets like Latin America. Rajdip’s focus on staying ahead of technology trends and his ability to adapt has been crucial to the company’s success. “We interact with customers daily, whether through mobile banking OTPs or WhatsApp notifications. Our group processes over 10-15 billion transactions each month,” he shares.

The rapid growth and scale of Route Mobile eventually set the stage for a public listing. Although the company’s initial attempt to list in 2018 faced a lukewarm response from investors, Rajdip didn’t give up. He restarted the IPO process during the pandemic, and in September 2020, Route Mobile successfully listed on the Indian stock exchanges at a 105% premium over the issue price. More than the financial success, Rajdip was deeply moved by the wealth-creation event that the IPO represented for his employees, including office attendants, some of whom found themselves with life-changing amounts in their bank accounts.

At the heart of Route Mobile’s success is its unwavering commitment to customers. “We exist because of our customers,” Rajdip says. “I attribute 100% of our success to our customers and our people.” Today, Route Mobile employs 1,500 people across 22 countries and has been profitable from day one. The company’s first customer, based in Dubai, was so satisfied with the product that they chose to pay for it instead of taking a free trial. Over the years, Route Mobile has built partnerships with major players like Meta and Google, and it now works with 1,000 operators, 300 of whom are direct partners, across Asia, Africa, and Latin America. In several markets, any communication by companies like Emirates, Google, or Amazon is powered by Route Mobile.

Looking to the future, Rajdip emphasizes the importance of innovation alongside customer loyalty. “Stickiness is good, but innovation is equally important,” he notes. This focus on staying ahead has led Route Mobile to continuously sharpen its competitive edge through acquisitions and new offerings. Rajdip advises other technology founders to always stay alert to emerging trends and changes in the market.

While Rajdip is deeply committed to scaling Route Mobile, he’s also passionate about nurturing the next generation of entrepreneurs. “Entrepreneurship is about creating more entrepreneurs,” he says. Rajdip has invested in ventures like Biryani By Kilo and established an incubation center in Virar, where 25 startups founded by entrepreneurs from tier 2 and 3 cities are building their ideas with a Rs 10 lakh grant from him.

Balancing work and life is a challenge for any entrepreneur, but Rajdip has found time to pursue his passion for cricket. Recalling how he was once denied a spot on his college cricket team due to a lack of spike shoes, he now owns several cricket grounds in Mumbai and co-owns the Chennai Singams team in the Indian Street Premier League. Cricket has become a metaphor for life for Rajdip, reminding him that setbacks are part of the game, but there’s always a second chance. “If you miss one opportunity in life, there is a second chance waiting for you. Don’t get disappointed,” Rajdip concludes—words that reflect his lived experience and enduring optimism.