How to Build a Business from Scratch: Lessons for Young Entrepreneurs from Dr. Saarthak Bakshi
Building a business from scratch is rarely about having one brilliant idea. It is about identifying a real problem, understanding the people experiencing it, testing possible solutions, managing resources carefully, and continuing to adapt when things do not go according to plan.
For young entrepreneurs especially, the journey can be challenging. An idea may look promising on paper, but turning it into a sustainable business requires execution, financial discipline, customer understanding, and the willingness to learn continuously.
Dr. Saarthak Bakshi’s journey across healthcare entrepreneurship and startup investing offers several practical lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs looking to turn an idea into a viable venture.
From Idea to Opportunity: Start With a Real Problem
One of the first questions an entrepreneur should ask is not, “What business should I start?” but rather, “What problem can I solve?”
A business has a stronger foundation when it addresses a genuine need faced by a clearly identifiable group of customers. Understanding that problem requires more than assumptions. Entrepreneurs need to spend time researching the market, speaking to potential customers, and studying how existing businesses are addressing the same need.
Before investing significant resources, an entrepreneur can:
Conduct detailed market research and understand competitors.
Speak directly with potential customers to identify their needs and pain points.
Test the idea on a smaller scale before committing substantial capital.
Identify gaps in existing solutions and determine whether the proposed product or service genuinely adds value.
Set realistic initial objectives instead of attempting to build everything at once.
This approach allows entrepreneurs to learn from the market before the market forces them to learn the hard way.
Understanding the Customer Is as Important as the Idea
An entrepreneur can have a technically strong product and still struggle if the customer does not see enough value in it.
Customer conversations can reveal things that traditional market research may not. They can show what customers actually need, what they are willing to pay ,for and where existing solutions fall short.
This is why testing should be treated as an ongoing process rather than a one-time activity. A small pilot, early customer feedback or a limited launch can provide valuable information before a business scales.
The objective is not simply to prove that an idea works. It is to discover what needs to change to make the idea work better.
Build the Right Team
As a business grows, the founder cannot do everything alone.
Building a capable team means identifying the skills required to execute the business and assigning responsibilities accordingly. Different stages of a company may require different capabilities, from operations and finance to marketing, technology, sales and customer service.
A strong team allows the founder to focus on larger strategic questions while ensuring that day-to-day execution continues effectively.
For young entrepreneurs, this also means understanding an important distinction: having more people is not the same as having the right people.
The focus should be on building a team whose skills complement the founder's strengths and address the organisation's weaknesses.
Financial Planning: Know Where the Money Goes
An idea can attract attention, but financial discipline determines whether a business can survive long enough to grow.
Entrepreneurs need to understand their operating costs, cash flow, revenue mo,del and financing requirements. Growth without financial planning can create problems just as quickly as it creates opportunities.
Instead of pursuing growth simply for the sake of becoming larger, entrepreneurs should understand whether expansion is financially and operationally sustainable.
Some important questions include:
What does it cost to operate the business every month?
Where is the revenue coming from?
How long can the business operate with its available cash?
What investment will be required to reach the next stage?
Which activities are generating measurable value?
When should the business invest more, and when should it reconsider its approach?
These questions help transform financial management from an administrative exercise into a strategic function.
Growth Should Be Strategic, Not Merely Fast
In the startup ecosystem, rapid growth often receives considerable attention. However, growth by itself does not necessarily mean that a business is becoming healthier.
Entrepreneurs need to evaluate whether their systems, people, finances and customer experience can support expansion.
Regular performance reviews can help identify what is working and what needs improvement. Feedback from customers, employees and other stakeholders can then be incorporated into future decisions.
This makes growth a process of continuous improvement rather than simply increasing the size of the organisation.
Adaptability Is a Business Skill
No business plan survives completely unchanged once it encounters the real market.
Customer behaviour changes. Competitors evolve. Technology develops. Costs increase. New opportunities emerge. Unexpected challenges can alter the direction of a business.
For entrepreneurs, therefore, adaptability is not optional.
The ability to recognise when something is not working, understand ,why and change course can be as important as the original idea itself.
Entrepreneurship is ultimately a learning process. Every customer interaction, failed experiment, operational challenge, and successful decision can provide information that helps shape the next stage of the business.
Lessons from Dr. Saarthak Bakshi's Entrepreneurial Journey
Dr. Saarthak Bakshi is the Founder and CEO of Risaa IVF and co-founder of Neos Angels, where he is involved in angel investing and supporting startups.
Through Neos Angels, he has invested in more than 30 startups across areas including healthtech, edtech, consumer brands and social impact, providing founders with capital as well as strategic guidance.
His academic background includes graduation in Computer Science Technology in 2009, an MBA in 2013, an Advanced Management Program for Healthcare in 2018 and a PhD in Finance in 2019. He also received an Honorary Doctorate in Business Administration in 2022.
His recognitions include Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia, Entrepreneur 35 Under 35, Business Connect 40 Under 40, Business World 40 Under 40, Medgate 40 Under 40, AsiaOne 40 Under 40 and BW Healthcare 40 Under 40.
Beyond his entrepreneurial and investment work, Bakshi has been associated with platforms including the All India Management Association (AIMA), the G20 Young Entrepreneurs Alliance and the Indo-German Young Leaders Forum. He has also participated in TEDx events and international conferences, speaking on subjects including entrepreneurship, healthcare and innovation.
His experience across entrepreneurship, healthcare and startup investing illustrates the importance of combining execution with strategic thinking.
A Practical Roadmap for Young Entrepreneurs
For someone starting a business today, the entrepreneurial journey can be distilled into a few fundamental principles:
1. Solve a real problem.Do not begin with the business model alone. Begin by understanding the problem.
2. Know your customer.Talk to people, observe their behaviour and understand what they actually value.
3. Test before you scale.A small experiment can reveal problems that a large investment may otherwise make expensive to fix.
4. Build the right team.Bring together people with the skills required to execute the business effectively.
5. Understand your finances.Know your costs, cash flow, revenue model and funding requirements.
6. Review your performance.Use data and feedback to understand what is working and what needs to change.
7. Stay adaptable.Markets change, and businesses need to change with them.
The Entrepreneurial Journey Is a Continuous Process
Building a business is not a straight line from idea to success. It is a cycle of identifying, testing, learning, improving and scaling.
The experience of Dr. Saarthak Bakshi across healthcare entrepreneurship and startup investing highlights the importance of combining an understanding of real-world problems with disciplined execution, financial awareness and continuous learning.
For young entrepreneurs, the starting point does not necessarily have to be a revolutionary idea. It can simply be a genuine problem, a customer willing to talk about it and the willingness to build, test and improve a solution.
Ultimately, sustainable businesses are built not only on ideas, but on the discipline to turn those ideas into something people genuinely need.
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