ASCo

Our labour of love of past 14 years in impact investing and social enterprise landscape bringing the ray of hope back .

Happy new year!

Anuj Sharma on LinkedIn: #socialentrepreneurship #startup #investing Disrupting the status quo ! We at ALSiSAR IMPACT are proud to share our most relevant and impactful work to date. We risked everything we had no matter...

ASCo (and restructured form 'ALSiSAR Impact') turns 10 | Thanks for the support & love

When we started this journey back on Dec 10, 2008, we never thought we would reach so far in the then nascent sector. There were hindrances and obstacles at each stage but our passion and mission driven approach kept us going.

In this decade-long run of ASCo, we provided varied catalyst services to impact investing, leading global foundations, DFIs and amazing social enterprises across geographies, right from transaction advisory, legal, financial and regulatory work to structuring and social impact assessment, to enable and grow the sector multifield. We did, by far, the largest and most detailed transaction advisory work in Indian subcontinent by any firm in the social impact sector and played a pivotal role in moving the much-needed capital in the sector especially in the early stage entities.

Looking back in time, our decision to focus on impact investing and social enterprise landscape has been worthwhile and now the mainstreaming of the sector gives a compelling and exciting case to further the mission.

And now we seem starting afresh, with renewed vigour and focus but with the same intent of being the catalyst to the Social Impact Sector. This was not possible without the support of varied Impact investors, foundations and social enterprises and our amazing Team. Thank you all !!

It was a privilege to associate with Capri global for their latest strategic initiative to further their social commitment . Capri global Social Impact assessment 2018 was an extensive review covering 5 Indian states that involved ~ 10 team members from ASCo. Results were quite impressive showcasing the depth and reach of their diverse sectoral support, super quick turnaround time that is vital for SMEs, social impact creation and enabling /nurturing entrepreneurship. SME lending is so vital for nation development especially when formal bankers had failed in responding to the need and urgency. Institutions like Capri are a way forward and something to inspire from.

www.capriglobal.in

Session for Women entrepreneurs !

Good to see Impact guru (IG), India’s no.1 Impact crowdfunding platform raising $2 mn from investors in the latest round in a testimony to their great work. Piyush Jain and his team are not just passionate but are determined to make this endeavour the best in this geography with multifold social impact . They have a smart team that is the best in the segment . The opportunity IG is creating has a immense potential that could be seen with their sizeable fund raise for social causes, visibility they create ... and its only the start !!
We at ASCo were happy to associate with IG in their journey.

ImpactGuru.com has raised series A funding of $2 mn - Times of India India Business News: Chennai: Non-profit crowdfunding platform ImpactGuru.

Well, no idea is small and when it is nurtured well, no one can stop you to make it big !!! Sreeram Raavi you are the rock star ! You made us sweat... that happens not too often at ASCo. And the cause was worth the efforts. And working on entrepreneur side while you are defending is not that easy while there are best of the people from other side. The onslaught was brutal and so was we at ASCo to keep the deal on track...Kathryn Durando we saw you emerging out of this experience stronger and wiser .
Sreeram hailing from humble family left his white collar job in Tech sector to start a life changing transformation to fishery foreseeing the potential of rural costal Andhra. Nothing was easy when he started but he kept the belief, invested everything he had (time/money) and kept going. He is an inspiration not just for Vijaywada or Andhra but to countless social entrepreneurs who think global but are mad about local economy in not so happening agri/ fishery upliftment first. What Eruvaka has developed is now loved world over including Ecuador and other geographies globally. Omnivore partners true to their spirited support to agri sector Indian wide, identified Sreeram’s potential early and nurtured this brilliant entrepreneur. Omnivore is amazing - they converted agri in a sexy investment worthy segment and rightly so. Nutreco acknowledgement was great for eruvaka ! And in the process we found a great friend in the form of Sreeram 🙂

Netherlands’ Nutreco leads Series B in Eruvaka Agriculture focussed impact investor Omnivore which has earlier invested in the startup in 2013 also participated in this round.

A visit to DimensionNxg , with whom ASCo has been working from Yr2016, was worth science fiction coming true yesterday and meeting rockstars Abhijit and Gaurav (co-founders)......imagine IronMan with JARVIS ....

Dimension NXG ( www.dimensionnxg.com) provides customized end to end augmented reality (AR) solution to enterprises in automobile, aerospace, defense, manufacturing, energy, healthcare, architecture, Marketing, etc.
Ajnalens let you create, customize and grow your very own AI sidekick, have on you on your future endeavours. You can design how your AI looks they way you want it

There are only handful of Companies worldwide that are working on AR. But with the most frugal and watertight resource budget Dimension Nxg has created a world class technology worth applauding and supporting!!
For similar product check Microsoft holoLens https://youtu.be/aYdB2xBNFek

NeoGrowth released their Social Impact report 2017. ASCo was proud to have done the Social Impact Assessment for them. It was ASCo women team that did most of the work spread across 5 cities in India.
http://news.neogrowth.in/?p=399
Full report :http://blog.neogrowth.in/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Social_Impact_Report_2017.pdf

NeoGrowth releases its Social Impact Report for FY 2017 – News Neogrowth NeoGrowth releases its Social Impact Report for FY 2017 Published on September 28, 2017September 28, 2017 by wp_news NeoGrowth’ s 2017 Social Impact Report explores and reaffirms our core vision of being an enabler in the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) ecosystem. This year, we explored NeoGrowth’...

India's northeastern state Manipur (sharing border with Burma) Entrepreneurs interaction with ASCo . Hopefully we will be catalyst to get first impact investment in the state this year. Sector entrepreneurs working who met included - agribusiness, livelihood , F&B, healthcare, IoT, Logistics and general incubation support. Sad that there was no women participation but will make good next time. Mainstream entrepreneur support system is zilch here but have promised them support in whatever manner possible. They need critical support on ground with regard to structuring, quasi legal support, networking, investment , incubation, financial etc
Manipur is shaping up nicely in recent time. with direct trade route to Burma, Thailand and Laos, it has both international and domestic significance . Literacy rate is high and people in general are just awesome ! During the day met three Manipuri people who have returned from US and Europe to work in their homeland.

ASCo at GFRID conference UN head quarters , New York

The 81-year-old woman inspiring a nation to recycle http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-40191270

The 81-year-old woman inspiring a nation to recycle - BBC News A retired teacher who set up an all-woman rubbish collection team in her village in Lebanon is offering one solution to the country's rubbish crisis.

Can India, a nation home to the world's largest vegetarian population, afford to waste 30% of the fresh fruits and vegetables it produces? Can Indian farmers' income from fresh produce be increased from the current level of 25% of the consumer end price to 50%? These were some of the thoughts that led Pravesh Sharma, ex IAS officer to establish Sabziwala in June 2016. Mr.Sharma has a rich experience in Agri segment working in India & oversees. He has also served on a 5 year UN assignment with International fund for agriculture Development (IFAD). Sabziwala is trying to redefine agri-marketing in a manner never attempted before. Unlike dozens of other online marketplaces that offer home delivery of fresh produce to consumers by bypassing existing retail channels, Sabziwala uses existing outlets, vegetable vendors and grocery shops to sell its branded vegetables. We at ASCo are proud to be providing CFO advisory to Sabziwala and being an enabler in its quest to grow to the next level.

http://www.sabziwala.com/

Sabziwala inclusive and integrated supply model, which delivers quality fresh produce directly sourced from farmers to consumers through existing retail infrastructure in urban areas.