Anusha Kambhampaty is the founder of the Brellabox company, which is an umbrella rental Business that aims toward both college students and city people. The business intends to rent umbrellas for $1.50 every 12 hours.
The Brellabox service was designed to stop the practice of purchasing low-cost umbrellas to discard them after they were damaged. Since inexpensive umbrellas have a short shelf life, the best option was Brellabox.
I am a graduate of New York University. I created Brellabx as an eco-friendly alternative to poorly constructed umbrellas. The Brellabox vending machine would deliver umbrellas to customers for a period of 12 hours. BrellaBox had many benefits. One benefit was the ability to return broken umbrellas to the vending machine. Our goal was to deploy as many umbrella vending machines as possible for convenience.
As we rented the umbrellas, there was also the opportunity to buy and own the product. We cooperated with schools for test runs; thus, our concept was pre-revenue. It was quick and easy to find a machine since the Brellabox app displayed the locations. We had a trial program in New York City, which was a huge success. We were planning to expand to more campuses, including Penn State and Michigan State.
The umbrellas and equipment were leased or sold to generate revenue for the firm. The umbrellas also had adverts on them, which generated extra cash. The umbrella’s quality is what separates Brellabox from those already developed competitors.
We went to the Shark Tank show with my partner John O’Connor. We were seeking $400,000 investment in exchange for 20% equity in Brellabox. This is worth a valuation of $2 million. Unfortunately, most sharks believed that the idea would not take off. So, I walked out of the show without any deal.
The colleges get an 85/15 split, with the corporation getting the other 85 percent. We also allow advertising sponsorship on umbrellas and machines to maximize our profits. The cost to produce a limited run of 50 units per machine is $1,150. The price reduces to $975 if we purchase 200.
As a brand marketing technique, the goods to fill the machines are provided by the umbrella manufacturers for free. We also have a deal with one institution, and we are in discussion with two others. We are continuing to reduce the box’s footprint and also working on lowering the price. This is in order to make it more appealing to potential clients such as colleges and cities.
To a young Anusha Kambhampaty, you should always keep your budgets and costs in mind when taking on new projects. This will help to prepare yourself for any challenges that you might face. Also, it would be best to learn from your mistakes, which may take time, but they will not go to you forever.
Besides that, you can write your goals down and stick them somewhere you frequently see throughout the day. In this way, you will never forget why you work hard daily.
We have currently developed into a larger pilot program in New York City. Also, we have released the fifth iteration of the Brellabox. We are also pursuing patent protection for our design. Also, we were able to get a contract with Penn State and expand the number of trial locations in New York City. The Brellabox is not so widely available yet, but it is getting there. Brella box works well in colleges, urban parks, commercial districts, and public attractions.
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