Disrupting Retail with the "Shark"What happens when the original shark comes to India? Well, sharks look for great ideas and what happens when they find one!

What happens when the original shark comes to India? Well, sharks look for great ideas and what happens when they find one?

The New Shop, a chain of high-speed retail stores by ProductX Ventures announced their strategic partnership with Kevin Harrington, an original "Shark" on the Emmy Winning TV Show Shark Tank. Kevin Harrington is not a new name in the business world. The American millionaire is known for his extensive experience in business, retail and distribution along with expertise in building and scaling consumer products.

Harrington was first featured in Entrepreneur magazine's cover in 1985. Known for cracking deals in 30 seconds, he is perhaps one of the most popular and sharp "sharks" from the American business context. This is Harrington's first investment in the Indian market which, according to him, is a "consumer market he has never been able to conquer."

Consumer-Driven Business

The foundation of this partnership is built on the roots of bringing to world a "consumer-driven business," as Harrington puts it with value-added products.

Harrington's formula for investment is simple. It is a "test before you invest."Partnership with ProductX Ventures Pvt. Ltd., which was established in 2017, is Harrington's unique endeavour to tap into the Indian market. The retail venture, The New Shop, co-founded by Aastha Almast, Mani Dev Gyawali and Charak Almast, currently owns and operates in over 35 stores within the Delhi-NCR region. With the undisclosed funding from Harrington, the retail business enterprise aims to increase the number of its stores to 200 over the next 3 months and eventually scale up to 100,000 stores in the next 5 years by partnering with unique FMCG companies spread within the country.

Harrington had a lot to say about the partnership and the venture, "Indian homegrown brands, as well as international brands, are waking up to the spending power of the aspirational Indian consumer. Through The New Shop's massive distribution reach, such brands can become accessible to consumers already looking to buy differentiated, innovative products. Making my first India investment in The New Shop is a strategic decision, as it will further enable us to leverage the company's growing consumer base to popularize Shark Tank products in India.

Kevin Harrington Unplugged

Ritu Marya, Editor-in-Chief of Entrepreneur India and Asia-Pacific, was able to have an interaction with Harrington on what made him invest in The New Shop and what he thinks about the Indian market for tapping business opportunities.

Watch Harrington's conversation with Marya in Entrepreneur Unplugged, a series which aims to bring in the most frank yet meaningful conversations from the people spearheading the business world with cutting-edge technology, innovative business ideas and passionate entrepreneurial spirits!