When Abhishek Mitra and Chandrani Chakrabarthi left their jobs in the Californian information technology industry to return to India, they were looking for an opportunity to set up their own business. So just a couple of months after the husband and wife team enrolled on the Indian School of Business MBA in April last year, they decided there was a real opportunity to be had in developing healthy drinks for the Indian market.
“There was lack of healthy food and drink on the campus,” recalls Ms Chakrabarthi, who points out that fruit-based drinks such as smoothies are a relatively new experience in India. The couple worked on their business plan for six months and in December launched Zing, a range of nutritionally fortified drinks based on fruit and wheatgrass.
Although Ms Chakrabarthi and Mr Mitra had always planned to set up their own business, many of their peers at ISB in the class of 2009, and at other top schools around the world, are finding that with traditional jobs in banking and management consultancy in short supply this year, working for small entrepreneurial ventures, or setting up a company, is becoming an increasingly viable option. In particular, the opportunity cost of relinquishing a middle manager's salary in order to start a company is far lower than giving up an investment banker's salary.