Register for Startup Navigator here.

Hi, I'm Naman Lahoty :)

I'm a 2x entrepreneur-turned-VC at Stellaris Venture Partners, where I currently work as a Partner. In my previous avatar, I worked as an early employee in startups like Flipkart and Toppr. I then founded 2 startups where I saw multiple ups and downs, and raised early funds from angel and institutional VCs. Over the last 5 years, in my journey as an investor, I have had the opportunity to evaluate 100+ startups in depth, across multiple sectors.

I love to help founders and have been helping my founder friends and friends of friends in their ideation journey, brainstorming with them and giving them candid feedback. I now want to expand my spectrum beyond friends to anybody who is working on a promising idea and has the potential to build a lasting business. I'm looking to connect with budding and aspiring entrepreneurs and help them navigate their ideation and startup journey during the early days.

As part of Startup Navigator, I engage in one-on-one informal conversations with founders and builders who want to discuss their ideas and get feedback. I also help founders who have already started working on an idea to help them think through their initial strategy and increase their fundraise probability. This can even lead to multiple conversations in the subsequent months if need be. If you’re a founder/aspiring entrepreneur looking for some guidance, Startup Navigator might be for you.

<aside> 👇 Here’s a quick summary of what you can expect from the 1-on-1 discussion with me:

• Idea validation - An open and candid view
• Discussion on what could be your initial approach/starting point
• Strengthening your thesis and identifying the gaps in your story
• Feedback on your pitch and pitch deck
• Guidance on fundraise strategy with no hidden agenda

What to expect after you fill out the application:

• As much as I'd love to connect with everyone, I can only review a limited number of applications each month, typically five.
• Applications are selected based on the potential of the idea.
• Please allow 2-3 weeks for thorough evaluation of applications. If your application is chosen among the five, you can expect an email from me within 3-4 weeks.
• While I genuinely appreciate your interest, there may be instances where your application is not selected, and unfortunately, I may not be able to individually reach out in such cases.

One request:

• Let's keep our discussion informal and focused on your ideas without any fundraising agenda. If you want to pitch to me, you can directly mail me at [email protected] </aside>

Some learnings I shared publicly on X (formerly ‘Twitter’):

• Mistakes to avoid when starting up
• Fundraising advice to avoid
• Finding early hires
• Building a great culture
• Thought-provoking lines from Shoe Dog
• Networking

Saving the best for the last 😃

• The most fulfilling moment in my VC career came when I declined a startup, gave the founder tough feedback on fundraising, and was later proven completely wrong.
• The best moment of my 5 years of startup life was not when we raised VC funding or launched the product. It was just after we shut down the company.

Investments

• Zouk
• Dashtoon
• Nestasia
• 91SquareFeet
• GTMBuddy
• CircuitHouse
• BuyerAssist
• Locofast

Media

• Stellar Insights:
  • Managing self-doubt as a founder: a handbook from personal experiences. Read more.
  • Testing Hypothesis through cohort analysis. Read more