Apply HN: SecondInnings – Provide Second Chance to Senior Citizens(For India)

[bpraful]

Probably its too early for me as I just started exactly 2 weeks back, but any feedback is welcome and much appreciated. Problem:- An average Indian 60+ year young man would have made numerous sacrifices and/or compromises for their family. But now that their kids are settled and perhaps have kids of their own, these folks have much free time to spare. This is the time when the feeling "I wish I had an opportunity to do XXXX" comes in. Our Solution:- Second Innings is especially for these folks who would like to do stuff what they might have missed earlier. We offer our platform (a combination of website and mobile apps). To begin with, we have classified these unsatisfied aspirations into 5 major categories:- a) Art - Such as learning singing, dancing, painting, sculpting etc b) Travel - Be it for religious reasons or simply for the thrill of it c) Learn & Teach - a language, a topic (e.g a computer language), or teach something from their vast experience d) Hangout - Just hangout with like minded individuals e) Charity - Donate or volunteer for a cause

How will it make money:- Commission basis from various service providers

Target Market:- Senior / retired citizens (60 to 70 age group) who can use the internet or smartphone with little assistance. About me:- I am Praful and am the solo founder at the moment. This is my second startup and earlier I have co-founded an Edtech startup. I hold a Masters degree in engineering and I am also the developer. I spoke to over 250 senior citizens, mostly in Mumbai and Hyderabad to build the wish list.

Timeline:- Beta website will be done by May 2016 and the Android app will also be ready by then.

[bestattack]

Heh, did you watch "The Intern"? Thanks to that movie, I actually think this is a really awesome idea.

But, obvious two-sided marketplace. I think you are likely to hit bottlenecks on both sides. Are the signups willing to pay, and how much? I think that's the key to the whole thing. I also think you need to focus on a narrow niche. My grandma recently did this "Road Scholar" program, which might be similar in nature (all-inclusive trips targeted at sr citizens with a scholarly/educational component).

[bpraful]

Thanks for your comment. No I did not watch "The Intern" but I will now ;) Most of the signups are willing to pay, the target market is middle and upper middle class seniors who have decent savings and can afford a reasonable amount for quality service to fulfill their aspirations. Since the nature of aspirations are diverse the amount can be anything from INR 500 per month for a drawing class to say INR 250,000 for a Europe tour (thats roughly $10 to $4000 range) You made an excellent suggestion regarding focus on a narrow niche. I would definitely consider it. Probably start with 1 or 2 top requested services and then add on more later. I have not heard about Road Scholar pgm, will google and find more about it, sounds interesting. Thanks for sharing. Wow, feels so great to get feedback from HN community.