GV Ravishankar
- Growth
“The most impact seems to come from understanding two important concepts - one is compounding and the other is how the magnitude of correctness beats frequency of correctness!”
Backstory
Traditional South Indian family, predictable career path: Top your school, do engineering and end up with a software job in Bangalore. The desire to know how my code translated to business value took me to IIM Ahmedabad next.
I was a classic ‘maggu’ – never missed a class, didn’t show up at parties and soaked in all that the school had to offer, and ended up at McKinsey. Two years in, when the diminishing marginal utility of making slides and airline miles became clear, a head hunter call led me to Sequoia India. They were really going to pay me to evaluate new ideas – something I was loving doing on my weekends already?
I tell younger investors – few careers offer the privilege of doing what you love and getting rewarded well for it! Sixteen-plus years into partnering with founders, and it is still the most enriching experience I can hope to get. There is something magical about being a part of their journey from the early days.
On the lookout for
At Peak XV, we aspire to be the founder’s best partner – we want to be able to speak the truth, have tough conversations when needed, and be the pillar of support when things don’t go well – something even the most successful companies go through.
I like to work with founders that are solving genuine pain points. Something they felt personally or seen up close. Entrepreneurship is hard and there will be many dark moments. It’s the grit that comes from the passion to solve the pain point and the conviction in your solution that will help you stay the course!
I like founders with clarity of thought and focus. It’s easy to get tempted to build everything but you are likely to travel farther as a spear vs a sphere for the same energy expended. I am delighted when I see founders on a steep learning curve and a growth mindset.
Lastly and importantly, we all know there is a founder market fit, but I also believe in the founder-investor fit. I prefer to work with reasonable people. If you and I can’t have a relationship of high trust, we will never find a way to build something magical together. Trust and integrity are foundational values!
Get in touch with GVPersonal Side
Dad / Introvert / Gym rat / Squash / Bibliophile / Filter coffee addict
Press & Media
Current Companies
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Absolute Foods intersects technology, science, and agriculture to go beyond organic food - focusing on produce that is 100% natural and Non-GMO.Partnered In
2019
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BYJU's is a supplementary learning company offering a disruptive product in the K-12 and test prep segment.Partnered In
2015
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EkAnek Networks is building the rails of the next wave of eCommerce 2.0 through its platform FOXY, an artist-led online shopping platform for beauty, grooming, and personal care products.Partnered In
2020
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Eruditus Executive Education delivers high-quality blended programs in partnership with globally reputed academic institutions like INSEAD, HBS, Wharton, MIT, Cambridge, Berkeley Haas, and Columbia Business School.Partnered In
2018
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Faces is a color cosmetics brand that offers an exclusive line of makeup and skincare products.Partnered In
2017
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Finova Capital is an RBI-registered NBFC that provides business loans to financially excluded micro and small enterprises.Partnered In
2017
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Five Star Business Finance is a non-bank financial company (NBFC) providing loans to the under-banked population and SMBs.Partnered In
2017
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Foodics, an end-to-end cloud-based point of sale & restaurant management solution that gives business owners a holistic overview of their company and its operationsPartnered In
2022
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Go Colors sells branded women's apparel.Partnered In
2014
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HomeLane is a brand of home interiors for homeowners across India.Partnered In
2015
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Huspy's mission is to simplify the home buying process and make it an enjoyable moment for everyone.Partnered In
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Indigo Paints provides branded decorative paints.Partnered In
2014
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K12 Techno Services is a K-12 school management company running schools across Hyderabad, Bangalore and Mumbai.Partnered In
2010
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Lean is building an integration layer on top of the banking infrastructure in the Middle East, enabling new technologies to leverage our applications.Partnered In
2022
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A platform of digital first health clinics for men (manmatters.com) and women (bebodywise.com)Partnered In
2019
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Prataap Snacks manufactures and markets snacks under the popular Yellow Diamond brand name.Partnered In
2011
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Rebel Foods is the world's largest internet restaurant company.Partnered In
2011
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Rupeek is India’s leading asset-backed, digital lending fintech platform.Partnered In
2016
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Tabby creates financial freedom in the way people shop, earn and save by reshaping their relationship with money.Partnered In
2022
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Yubi is a unified lending infrastructure and online marketplace for all things debt.Partnered In
2021