How we failed to run our startup: Grocery Gunj

Mohammad Aftab Sheikh

Failure is not something we like to talk about, especially in a society where success stories are celebrated loudly and mistakes are hidden quietly. Today, I choose honesty over pride. This is the story of how we failed to run our startup in Birgunj, Grocery Gunj—not to seek sympathy, but to share lessons that no textbook ever taught me.

The Beginning of a Dream

Grocery Gunj was born from a very simple idea: to make grocery shopping easier for people in Birgunj. I come from Birgunj, a city where families value trust, relationships, and local markets. I believed that if groceries could be delivered to people’s doorsteps with honesty and speed, it would solve a real problem.

At that time, my cousin and I were young, ambitious, and full of confidence. We did not come from business backgrounds and had very little business knowledge. We saw foreign startups similar to Grocery Gunj, learned from YouTube and ChatGPT, and decided to start our own. We truly believed passion was enough. With my big brother as a partner, we started Grocery Gunj with limited capital but unlimited hope.

Building from Zero

We had no website, no mobile app, no resources, no big office, no strong network, no family support, and no big investors. WhatsApp Business and one bike were our main tools. Orders came through messages, and deliveries were done by bike and sometimes even by cycle. We rented a small office, put up posters, and felt proud just seeing our startup name on the wall. To build customers, we chose door-to-door marketing. A small team went from house to house, explained our service, and collected phone numbers. On paper, the plan was very ambitious—thousands of houses in one month. In reality, it was tiring and confusing.

Many households did not understand the idea of online grocery delivery. Some people were illiterate, some were suspicious, and some were simply not interested. Often, children understood us but failed to explain the service properly to their parents. This created confusion instead of trust. Still, we did not stop. Every phone number felt like progress. Every order, even the smallest one, felt like a win.

Early Wins That Felt Bigger Than They Were

For the first 15 days, we got zero orders. When we finally completed our first few orders by delivering them ourselves, we felt unstoppable. Delivering groceries to big apartments and using lifts felt like entering a new world. I clicked photos, smiled proudly, and told myself, “This is just the beginning.”

But we confused activity with growth. Yes, orders started coming, but not regularly. Customers liked the service, but very few became repeat customers. Our margins were thin—only 5–15 percent—barely enough to cover delivery costs, marketing expenses, and rent. At the beginning, we did everything ourselves. We handled design, delivery, customer support, marketing, video creation, supplier talks, social media, and future planning. We were very busy and working hard, but we were not working smart.

Where Things Started Going Wrong

Our first mistake was overestimating demand. We believed people would quickly shift from traditional markets to online ordering. But changing habits takes time, trust, and strong systems. Another major reason was Birgunj’s open border with Raxaul. Many people save even 10 rupees by shopping in Raxaul instead of Birgunj. There was already heavy competition—from Raxaul market, Birgunj market, and local shops—and then we came as an online option. The second mistake was underestimating costs. Door-to-door marketing, staff payments, rent, branding, and delivery expenses slowly drained our money. Cash was going out faster than it was coming in. My big brother invested around 50,000 rupees early on, but expenses were high because the startup was new.

The third mistake was the lack of systems. Without an app or proper software, everything was handled manually. Orders were managed on WhatsApp, records were informal, and mistakes happened often. The fourth mistake was our family situation. We could not give the business 2–4 years to grow. We come from a lower middle-class family, and surviving for a long time without stable income was very difficult. Most importantly, we lacked experience in scaling a business. Our ideas were good and our intentions were honest, but leadership needs more than motivation. It needs discipline, structure, and patience.

The Emotional Side of Failure

Failure is not only financial; it is emotional. There were nights when I questioned myself. Was I overconfident and wasting my time in Birgunj? Did I choose the wrong business for this city? Did I waste my brother’s and investor's money? Did I disappoint the people who believed in us? Were we betraying our family’s trust? Watching expenses increase while revenue stayed low was painful.

Still, we managed sales of around 5 lakh rupees in six months and served more than 300 customers. As a young entrepreneur, accepting that something is not working feels like accepting personal failure. Society praises startups but rarely supports founders when things fall apart. Slowly, I realized that continuing without a clear direction would only increase losses.

Accepting the Truth

Closing or pausing a startup does not mean the idea was useless or the effort was wasted. Grocery Gunj taught us real-world lessons that no classroom ever could. Passion must be supported by planning. Ground reality is more powerful than presentations. Cash flow matters more than vision boards. Systems matter more than motivation. Timing and market readiness are critical.

We did not fail because we were lazy. We failed due to inexperience, low capital, poor location fit, customer buying behavior, lack of support, family pressure, no sustainable plan, an open border market, a small city, and limited time.

What Grocery Gunj Gave Us

Even in failure, Grocery Gunj gave us clarity. We learned how hard it is to build trust at scale. We learned the importance of technology, unit economics, marketing, customer retention, and starting a business from zero. We learned that entrepreneurship is not about starting fast, but about surviving long. We also learned the importance of choosing the right business for the right location and customers. Most importantly, we learned humility.

Where We Are Now

We started Grocery Gunj in January 2024 and ran it for six months. We closed it in August after investing around 2 lakh rupees. Our investor is satisfied, and we are also at peace because we chose to stop instead of wasting more time and money.

Jabed Sheikh, the early investor and CEO of Grocery Gunj, now runs his own clothing shop in Kalaiya, Bara, even though he comes from a science background.

I, Mohammad Aftab Sheikh, completed a diploma in civil engineering. I later redesigned and rebranded Grocery Gunj into Gogunj AI, aiming to build Nepal’s first AI-powered everything app in Kathmandu. I have also taken business classes under Nabil Bank’s Social Entrepreneurship program (Nabil SSE) and currently work as a Marketing Officer at my own college, Birgunj Institute of Technology (BIT).

 A Message to Young Dreamers

 If you are young and dreaming of a startup, do not be afraid of failure—but do not romanticize it either. Learn before you burn money. Start small. Listen to customers more than mentors. And know when to stop. Today, Grocery Gunj is no longer running the way we dreamed, but the entrepreneur inside us is still alive. This failure is not our full stop; it is our comma.

 Sometimes, losing a startup helps you find yourself. We are young entrepreneurs from Nepal who believe that honest failure stories are as important as success stories. Through entrepreneurship, we still believe in building a stronger Nepal, creating jobs, and improving economic conditions.