Start Guru Profile of the Week – Yogesh Kumar – Empowering Women with Jobs

An electrical engineer turned entrepreneur – Yogesh Kumar is proving to be the lighting beacon for women.

For many women out there, getting a stable source of income is a task, especially without much education and qualification. However, Yogesh thinks that this shouldn’t be a hindrance in their life.

This is how he created Even Cargo. Yogesh’s startup trains and employs women from underprivileged backgrounds to work in logistics and ferry packages on scooters across Delhi. Yogesh started out in May 2016 and since then, he has trained about 100 women aged between 19 and 24. Most of these women have only completed high school-level education and are from families with an average annual income of less than Rs. 1 lakh.

Kumar started his career at a German multinational company, having completed his education at Mumbai’s Tata Institute of Social Sciences. Before Even Cargo, Yogesh also attempted to raise awareness about gender equality through various ventures. It was only after conducting several workshops that he realised that one of the biggest reasons for gender inequality in India was the lack of economic means among women and a low rate of female participation in the labour force.

After toggling around the idea of a cab service, he finally came to the idea of a delivery business on scooters.

A bootstrapped venture, Kumar used funds he won at the Singapore International Foundation’s 2015 Young Social Entrepreneurs competition as seed funding to establish Even Cargo.

As of now the startup only does daytime delivery and works with companies that deal in women’s apparel and accessories to limit male contact, there are future plans to expand. Yogesh believes that this is a way to build confidence among the women and reassure their conservative families.

With hopes of expanding the venture, Kumar is looking out for more women to join Even Cargo and make this initiative a bigger one. If you would like to know more about Even Cargo or take advantage of their services, click here.

India is in dire need of social entrepreneurs like Yogesh Kumar to alleviate many such issues that exist in our society. We wish him all the best in succeeding in what he set out to do!