Shikhil Sharma, Founder & CEO, Astra Security Suite, was invited to a rendezvous with Perrine Legoullon, Digital Startup BRICS.
In a heart to heart conversation Shikhil answers questions on entrepreneurship, his company, the French tech ticket, and his strategy on acquiring european prospects.
Shikhil, who started his company Astra Security Suite (and CZAR securities) with his batchmate and now co-founder Ananda Krishna, says his vision was to provide business owners peace of mind while they took care of their online security.
He puts it out there that business owners should be worried about every other aspect of their business but security when Astra is securing them.
When asked how he learned about the French Tech Ticket, Shikhil shares a fun anecdote of how he heard about the French tech ticket on the very day applications were closing. He hurried and filled those forms with the mandatory video to try his luck and clearly seemed happy he got through.
Perrine further asks why he chose the French Tech Ticket over The Chile Tech Ticket, which they had applied to as well.
To this, Shikhil says the European market is much aware when it comes to security online, which was his prime reason to choose the French Tech Ticket over the Chile Tech Ticket. The other being lucrative offers by the French government.
When questioned about how the french tech ticket impacted his company.
Shikhil says that it has helped him build Astra’s credibility in the market.
“Whenever I go to a European customer and say I am a French tech ticket winner, it instantly establishes credibility and opens a lot of doors for you,” says Shikhil.
Perrine goes on to ask the possible difference Shikhil might have noticed in the behavior of French prospects compared to their Indian counterparts.
“Well they are quite similar” Says Shikhil, “one good part being that both of them are in it for a long term. Which means to get the first door open, sometimes it’s a longer process.”
On French people and his time in France, Shikhil shares how he came to France with prejudice that the French people might be a little uptight. He thanks his luck that this has not been the case with him, at least. Except for the initial blues, he never felt out of place in France.
In fact, he always found good samaritans who helped him when he lost his way on the subway, or adviced on where to get more business, for instance.
Lastly, calling out to his fellow entrepreneurs, Shikhil asks them to explore the benefits of the French Tech Ticket and similar programs.