Leaders

For women, breaking the mold is rarely easy, let alone rewriting the rules, disrupting the ordinary, and forging new frontiers with bold vision and fearless execution. Unafraid to challenge the status quo, especially in a world where women often face additional barriers, Monali Mathur, Co-Founder and CEO of Rentit4me, has done just that. Hailing from Jaipur, Monali laid a strong foundation at Amity University, where she earned a gold medal and scholarship during her MBA, before transitioning into the corporate world with Ernst and Young (EY). However, her entrepreneurial spirit pushed her to think bigger, leading her to co-found Rentit4me, a firstof- its-kind platform that addresses a massive gap in India’s rental market. From representing the company in Shark Tank India to transforming Rentit4me into a pioneering force in the rental market, Monali continues to break barriers, proving that no dream is too big when backed by determination, strategy, and an unyielding belief in oneself.

In an exclusive interview with Women Entrepreneurs Review magazine, Monali talks more about her company, its unique operational model, and much more. Let’s delve into it.

How did Amity University shape your professional growth?

The experiences, learnings, and mindset I developed at Amity University continue to help me navigate my professional journey, making me more adaptable and resilient in the face of new challenges. It helped me garner a fighter spirit, the ability to keep pushing forward, face challenges head-on, and learn from failures without losing momentum. While the corporate world is a completely different ball game, Amity prepared me to step into it with confidence.

Can you walk us through your career path as a business consultant?

I began my career as a business consultant at EY, starting at the junior-most level. However, with the support of my mentors and the incredible opportunities I received, I was able to grow quickly. Even early on, I had the chance to interact with top government stakeholders, present to CXOs, and engage with high-ranking officials, which gave me immense exposure. Looking back, my time at EY was instrumental in shaping my confidence, strategic thinking, and ability to navigate complex business landscapes.

What inspired you to co-found Rentit4me, and what was the core idea behind the venture?

I was looking to rent something and realized there was no single, trustworthy platform for rentals, unlike Amazon for buying or OLX for selling. Finding a reliable rental option required extensive research, and that’s when I saw a major gap in the market. Digging deeper, we analyzed search trends and found that around 75 percent of people on Google were looking to rent rather than buy. However, there was no go-to rental marketplace. This insight made us realize we were sitting on a huge untapped opportunity. With this vision, we started developing a tech-driven platform to streamline rentals across various categories. In 2023, we launched our website and app, refining our model based on user feedback. By early 2024, we scaled up with digital marketing, and the response reinforced our belief that Rentit4me was solving a real problem in the market.

What roles do you play as a co-founder and CEO of Rentit4me?

My primary responsibility is overseeing overall operations while also managing finances to some extent. I stay involved in the entire customer journey, ensuring a seamless experience, from their first interaction with our platform to order fulfillment and post-service feedback. I evaluate potential collaborations, onboard vendor partners, and work on expanding our business reach. Logistics and order fulfillment are also key areas I oversee, ensuring that processes are running efficiently and resolving any bottlenecks.

Further, I work closely on the tech and product side, ensuring that our platform aligns with our operational workflows. From defining SOPs to translating them into tech-enabled processes, I make sure technology enhances efficiency.

What challenges do you face as an entrepreneur in the Indian startup ecosystem, and how do you navigate them?

Being an entrepreneur in the Indian startup ecosystem comes with its own unique set of challenges, especially when you are creating a completely new category. Through Rentit4me, we are building a rental marketplace across 25+ categories, something that doesn’t yet exist in a structured form. Unlike other businesses that can analyze competitors and learn from their strategies, we don’t have a direct benchmark to follow. To navigate this, we have onboarded expert advisors from various domains, and we continuously seek insights from industry leaders to refine our approach.

Another major challenge has been customer awareness. In the early stages, when budgets for ads are limited and SEO takes time to show results, reaching and educating potential users is difficult. Fortunately, our appearance on Shark Tank India gave us massive visibility, leading to signups from over 700 cities and active users across 150+ locations. Like most startups, funding is also a crucial hurdle. However, our strong growth numbers and repeat customer rate of 30 percent have helped us gain investor trust and secure support for the next stages of expansion.

Advice for aspiring women leaders:

Balancing work and family is one of the biggest challenges for women entrepreneurs, but it’s important to let go of the guilt and recognize that pursuing your dreams also empowers your children. Remember, while the journey may be demanding, the rewards of personal fulfillment and setting an inspiring example for the next generation make it all worthwhile.

Monali Mathur, Co-Founder & CEO, Rentit4me

Monali Mathur, Co-Founder and CEO of Rentit4me is a gold medalist and batch topper from Amity University. She has had a decade-long career at Ernst and Young, where she held leadership roles in strategy and transaction advisory.