Gated communities are complex entities, each with its own rules, budget, security, and management. Add to the mix, the number of stakeholders - residents, administrators, staff, daily help, visitors & security guards – and you can get multiple friction points: between pet lovers and other residents, security guards and visitors, Resident Welfare Association (RWA) members, and residents.
And yet, societies resisted change. Even as delivery executives and ride–hailing services clogged the gate with eCommerce taking off, things stayed the same.
In 2016, Vijay Arisetty, a former IAF pilot, set out to solve this problem with Shreyans Daga and Abhishek Kumar. They devised an app to link visitors, security guards, and residents.
And so MyGate was born- creating a new category.
MyGate soon replaced the outdated pen-paper-landline system. Now used by over 25,000 gated communities across the country, MyGate validates close to 1.2 billion visitor entries per year.
Everyday Innovation
“There was a bottleneck at the gate, and MyGate eased it,” says Abhishek Kumar, co-founder & COO.
More features were introduced subsequently, and by the middle of 2019, MyGate had grown into a comprehensive society management platform, bringing together security, finances, amenity booking, ticketing, facility management, etc all under one roof.
Each of these features contains the special innovation that the company has always been known for.
Every year, MyGate’s ERP platform facilitates:
- $350 million in maintenance payments
- 6 million resolved complaint tickets
- 2 million amenity bookings
Among MyGate’s remarkable offerings, is its integration with e-commerce companies like Zomato, Blinkit, Swiggy, etc. MyGate receives the identification of the delivery personnel directly from the e-commerce partner, preventing any staged entries into a community.
Taking Off in Grand Scale
Back in early 2020, although promising, MyGate was still a relatively small startup. Its true test as a comprehensive platform would only come with the onset of the pandemic. MyGate swiftly introduced several features to help societies combat COVID–19, such as zero–contact parcel management, temperature, vaccination status of visitors, etc. The company partnered with several organisations to deliver essentials, medicines, and even the news via the app.
Recently, MyGate has established partnerships with Urban Company and Acko, bringing home services and asset protection solutions to the platform, thereby adding more value to the residents of communities. These innovations naturally meant rapid growth for MyGate.
Challenges Along the Way
MyGate’s success story is incomplete without acknowledgment of the obstacles it has overcome. For example, the core solution of MyGate is premised on security guards logging visitor entries – a blue-collar demographic that is not considered to be tech-savvy. “Despite an initial lack of expertise with tech – thanks to intensive training and an incredibly simple user interface, we braved through,” recalls Abhishek.
As MyGate started to expand geographically, finding reliable teams that worked remotely was crucial. Additionally, clientele in new cities required a thorough understanding of their unique socio-economic dispositions, and catering to them accordingly. Excellent decision-making by the founders solved this, too.
Over to Newer Horizons
With innovation and scale on its side, MyGate is taking on newer ambitions. As a custodian of the gate, the platform has wide applicability - from residential to commercial buildings. MyGate is also looking to go overseas, starting with the UAE this year. The founders are also keen on parts of Asia, Africa, and more.
A Disruptor that’s Here to Stay
MyGate is now the world’s largest and most comprehensive community management platform and holds the biggest market share. It is also well-loved by its users, with a 4.7 rating on the app store. MyGate has set its goal to grow responsibly and breakeven in the current financial year.
Abhishek attributes MyGate’s success to its people. “Building human relationships is key. Business goals will naturally follow,” Abhishek confides. He believes in the power of communication at every level, and valuing every employee’s voice. With its commitment to transparency and investing in people, MyGate aims to continue to thrive over the long run.
