Start India EN

EQUIVENTIA

CAPITAL PARTNERS

Start India

The gateway for Italian SMEs in India

The idea is to bring Italian startups and SMEs to India, thanks to our many years of experience in that country and the close and long-standing collaboration we have with highly experienced local managers who live and work in Chennai.

We specify that this is not a simple office space to rent, as there are already many, but an innovative and complete business model, which allows any SME to approach this important market in a safe and viable way.

In fact, through 3 different types of Service Contract (BASIC, ADVANCED and PRO), drafted in a simple and clear way, according to Italian law and signed in Italy with Equiventia, a company can land on the Indian market very quickly having a valid infrastructure, important offices and selected local staff, all supervised by dedicated and very experienced managers in various industrial sectors of great development in India.

The costs, which are also entirely financeable, are fixed and comprehensive of all the desired operational aspects, are modular and accessible to any SME or Startup that has limited financial resources to dedicate to a commercial activity additional to its own already underway.

Start India is ideal for opening the Indian market but also for consolidating it if you are already present, or even for strengthening existing relationships on site for the supply or procurement of raw materials, or better managing production or processing relationships with local companies. Start India has already entered into preferential collaboration agreements with selected local logistics and distribution companies, banks, insurance companies, legal and corporate professionals and with all the operational partners that may be necessary as the business takes off. It is also the right vehicle for getting in touch with Indian companies and investors, to encourage collaboration and also stimulate financial interventions to support Italian companies.

We believe that this is a unique initiative, because it not only hosts companies, but operationally launches them on the market, creating opportunities that would otherwise be very difficult to obtain if sought on your own, unless you make large investments in human resources, time and money, with objective difficulties in communication and remote management, without then having any certainty of the results. The point of reference instead always remains Equiventia Italia, which will act as a direct and constant interface with each company, following it step by step and coordinating the work in India. In selecting the participating companies, we will also try to avoid overlaps in terms of activity or product/technology but rather, encouraging synergy between them towards suppliers, customers and in the case of joint participation in local events.

Below you will find all the basic information to learn about Start India and evaluate its potential and advantages for your company.

India

5 reasons to be there

It is essential to have a presence in India today for 5 main reasons:

Potential growth path
Market size and demand growth
Availability and low cost of labor factor
Innovation and skilled resources in scientific and technological sectors.
Availability of raw materials

A large market with infinite potential

A unique opportunity for Italian companies

India, with its explosive demographic strength and a rapidly expanding domestic market, is set to take on a leading role in the world economy, positioning itself as an export and investment destination as well as a base for re-export to neighboring countries.

Since 2014, the Government led by Prime Minister Modi, currently in his third term, has implemented a program of reforms inspired by a “Self-reliant” country model and aimed at encouraging an ever-increasing attraction of foreign direct investments. The cornerstone of this medium-long term objective are the “Make in India” and “Assemble in India for the world” programs, aimed at transforming India into a global manufacturing hub, through the relaunch of the manufacturing sector and the increase of the country’s competitiveness, as part of a comprehensive restructuring of the value chains.

Between India and Italy, visits and political relations at the highest level have multiplied and strengthened in recent years, providing an adequate framework for the development of a solid and wide-ranging economic partnership, with a particular focus on five key sectors identified in the 2020-2024 Action Plan, adopted during the Summit between the two Prime Ministers at the end of 2020: green economy, agri-food industry, infrastructure, digital and manufacturing/lifestyle.

In 2024, machinery and equipment continued to represent the first item of Italian exports to India, with a share of around 40%, while chemical products were in second place (11.3%); as regards Indian exports to Italy, the predominant goods are those falling into the categories of metallurgy products; chemical products and textiles-clothing-leather accessories.

There are more than 700 Italian companies in India, with forms of presence that vary between 100%-owned subsidiaries, Joint Ventures (a solution preferred by SMEs and mandatory in sectors with maximum caps on foreign investments) or commercial representative offices.

Chennai

A rapidly expanding metropolis

Until 1996, the city was known as Madras and boasts a rich cultural and artistic heritage. It is the district capital of Chennai and the state capital of Tamil Nadu.

Called the Detroit of Asia due to its large automotive industry, Chennai is one of the fastest growing cities in the world and the only Indian city to be ranked among the "10 fastest growing cities in the world". It is ranked 4th in the number of Fortune 500 companies in India, second only to Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata. It is also home to 24 Indian companies with a net worth of over $1 billion. As of 2022, the city had approximately 34,260 companies identified across its 15 zones, of which 5,196 companies had a paid-up capital of over $5 million. Chennai has a diversified economic base anchored by the automotive, software services, hardware manufacturing, healthcare and financial services sectors. According to the Confederation of Indian Industry, Chennai is estimated to grow to a $100 billion economy, 2.5 times its current size, by 2025. Chennai has a population of 10.1 million (2020).

Equiventia Services in India

A modular and complete range for any need

The Italian company that intends to operate in India wants to:

Conduct market research to verify real business opportunities;
Establish a presence in an area rich in opportunities;
Carefully plan capital and human resource investments;
Directly control your Core Business;
Effectively plan and manage project costs and times;
Resign at any time without legal and tax burdens.

Equiventia guarantees a precise and complete service, providing the entrepreneur with all the information necessary to start their business in India in a simple and safe way.

Equiventia is able to prepare a detailed work plan on request that can be implemented gradually and tailored to the company, regardless of its size or sector of activity.

The advantages available to the entrepreneur who intends to start his business in India with Equiventia are the following:

Modern and ready-to-use offices, equipped with all the services and comforts necessary for the establishment of any commercial and representative activity: telephone lines, internet, air conditioning, equipped meeting room.
Trained and multilingual staff is available to provide any type of administrative, accounting, logistics and representation service.
Ready-to-use services available for an immediate start of logistics and goods distribution activities to any destination (thanks to the partnership with leading logistics companies in Italy and India).

Additional services are also available, such as:

Existing structures, easily expandable or modular according to needs;
Administration, representation and logistics services;
Legal, corporate and legislative know-how;
Consolidated relationships with local authorities and high-level state bodies;
Preferential relationships with leading local representation and logistics companies.

All these services are available to Italian companies that intend to operate in India using a complete and quality service, keeping costs under control and above all enjoying the most complete operational autonomy with a direct presence in the market of interest.

The Service Contract

Immediate, simple, modular and flexible

In order to use Equiventia services in India, it is sufficient to sign a Service Contract, drafted in such a way as to be as simple and clear as possible.

The language used is Italian, the law to which it refers is the Italian one and the competent court in case of disputes is that of Padua, in Italy. Therefore, a single reference, present in Italy and always available for any need.

In this way, all those annoying problems related to the interpretation of the law of a foreign state are avoided and above all it is possible to easily control the development of the work.

The Service Contract, in 3 different types of cost and services included, clearly and unequivocally lists the services to which the subscriber is entitled both in exclusive use and in mixed use with other users.

This list can be modified and adapted according to the specific requests of the customer, and the relative cost is recalculated accordingly.

A flat rate payment of a fixed annual fee is foreseen which includes all Equiventia costs in Italy and India.

In this way, the customer knows with absolute precision how much to budget in their company balance sheet for the "India" operation and is certain that there will be no further unforeseen economic requests, unless explicitly requested by the customer.

Equiventia has prepared a detailed "price list" where the additional services that require additional expenditure are listed.

All this without ever losing sight of the main advantage of this initiative: the flexible modularity of the services with controlled costs.

The Service Contract has a variable duration, with annual renewals and can be cancelled by the customer at any time, without penalties and without having any type of obligation towards Equiventia. The Customer can therefore reserve all the time necessary for the implementation of their business in India, evaluating the market, the industrial and commercial potential, the opportunities for local collaboration.

If the results are lower than expected, the Customer will have total freedom to choose whether to continue with the investment or not, always knowing precisely the risks, costs, advantages and disadvantages.

The full Start India Profile, with costs and operating terms, can be downloaded here.