Founder Conversations on School Distribution in India
I’m curating 30 conversations with 30 early-stage founders and operators who are trying to work with schools, to understand where school outreach becomes difficult, what kinds of access actually matter, and what a more organised distribution system could look like.
Why I’m doing this
Over the past several years, I have worked with schools across India on innovation, school-community engagement, and brand communication initiatives.
Through workshops, talks, and school collaborations, I have engaged with 1,500+ school leaders.
That school-side exposure has raised an important founder-side question:
What does school outreach actually look like for early-stage businesses?
I’m trying to understand:
- Where founder outreach typically slows down
- What schools respond to in the early stages
- How pilots happen
- Where time, money, and effort get wasted
- What kind of organised outreach system would genuinely help
These are not sales conversations.
They are structured learning conversations that will inform the next phase of work at EdMonks.
Who I’m speaking with
To make the conversations useful, I’m speaking with founders across four business segments.
Segment A — Early-stage B2B EdTech
(8 conversations)
Businesses building products primarily for schools.
Examples:
- ERP / school operations
- Assessments
- Teacher tools
- Academic platforms
- Classroom tech
- Learning systems
Segment B — Non-tech School Service Businesses
(8 conversations)
Businesses serving schools but not necessarily through software.
Examples:
- Academic services
- Teacher training
- Books / curriculum support
- Enrichment programs
- School vendors
- Institutional service providers
Segment C — B2B2C Parent / Student-facing Businesses
(6 conversations)
Businesses that need school access to reach families.
Examples:
- Learning apps
- Tuition / coaching models
- Skill-building products
- Student enrichment programs
- Parent-facing learning products
Segment D — Ecosystem Enablers
(6 conversations)
People already working close to the founder-school interface.
Examples:
- Incubators
- Accelerators
- Startup communities
- Investors
- Education operators
- School-network builders
What the conversation will cover
A typical conversation will explore:
- How you currently reach schools
- What has worked and what has not
- How pilots usually begin
- What slows down decision-making
- What kinds of school access would actually be useful
- Whether structured outreach support would matter
Duration: 20–25 minutes (but these can go longer)
A short note about me
Anupam Kaushik
Founder, EdMonks
Over the years, my work has focused on helping schools think more deeply about innovation, learning, and academic positioning.
Through training and consultancies, I have helped several schools and startups in past and now I am contemplating to build a school outreach platform and these conversations are just to ensure that we can build a better one for Early Stage Businesses/ Startups
Apply for a Founder Conversation
I’m speaking with a carefully selected group of 30 founders and operators.
If your work touches schools, directly or indirectly, you’re welcome to apply.
Selected participants will receive a private scheduling link to choose a convenient conversation slot.