ANANTAPUR: Persistence is the key to success. Believing this concept, 31-year-old Gali Krishna Reddy from Yellanuru mandal invested in a start-up, Karrynow, in June to deliver goods to people in rural areas in a bid to check virus spread. Operating from Tadipatri town, he is covering 50 villages in four mandals of Anantapur district. Krishna Reddy has completed his BTech in Vijayawada in 2011. After working in a private company for six years, he began a start-up in 2016, but the venture ended up in losses. Not one to lose hope, he invested in two more start-ups in 2019, which shut due to financial issues.
His father G Venkata Maheswara Reddy visited a nearby town, infected with Covid-19, for purchasing medicines, which led to his death in July 2020. This made Krishna Reddy begin a start-up. In this regard, he conducted a survey in May 2021 in nearby villages of Tadipatri. “During the second Covid-19 wave, people went to various cities and towns and thereby spread the virus. It was exactly to check this that I started Karrynow. We deliver groceries, medicines, food, books, electronics and fertilisers at people’s doorsteps. Currently, we are covering 50 villages,’’ he said.
Members of Karrynow team charge Re 1 as delivery charges. This offer is valid for a lifetime as part of a service motto, he added. The team uses e-cycles for delivering goods. E-cycles can run up to 45 km with battery back-up.
Observing the trend in the rural areas, Krishna Reddy and his team have developed a website and publicised their mobile numbers. Now, people have been ordering what they need by WhatsApp or call them up.
His friend, G Paramesh has been supporting in operating Karrynow. He and other team members visited every house in Yellanuru, RS Kondapuram, Putluru and Yadiki mandals to publicise the delivery system. Paramesh has earlier worked in automobile firm.
Krishna Reddy is hoping to expand business and cover Proddutur, Adoni, Dharmavaram and Nandyal soon. This apart, by expanding the business, they hope to provide employment to 50,000 rural youth in the next three to five years. “We are planning to provide Rural Entrepreneur programme for youth. We are also promoting digital payments in rural areas. We will expand our business to cover Andhra Pradesh, if the State government supports us, Krishna Reddy says, oozing confidence.