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How did you become acquainted with SFs?
It started with Steve Jobs. I’m not joking. I watched his 2005 Stanford commencement on YouTube — “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life” — and it hit me hard. From that day, Stanford GSB was the goal. I took the GMAT three times to reach the 99th percentile, was rejected twice, and got in on the third attempt.
At Stanford, my focus was entrepreneurship, and I took Professor Irv Grousbeck’s class. Before graduating in 2011, I was seriously considering a search fund. I spoke with about 20 investors in India and could not convince a single one — many thought a search fund was a Ponzi scheme. One asked me to recommend a book proving it was legitimate. All I had were my class notes. Around the same time the CEO of PUMA offered me a job in Germany, so I put the idea aside and joined corporate Germany.
What took you so long?
I was happy in corporate Germany. Nice colleagues, company cars, campuses where you play sports at lunchtime. Childcare and subsidized canteens! Except for your spiritual self, everything is taken care of. And I kept climbing the ladder, growing new businesses and learning at every step. I forgot about search funds in between.
But I never forgot about entrepreneurship. On the side, I helped startup founders in different countries and built small businesses for relatives. Jumping in myself was another matter. I had a lot of fear and a lot of comfort, and that is a strong combination. I knew I wouldn’t break it overnight.
So I did not rush. I spent the last two years preparing for this transition, because once I commit, it is my next decade. I went to every search fund conference I could, met investors, became friends with searchers, and spent time with the Silicon Valley startup community. Both excited me — but a search fund has less risk and, for an operator like me, a much greater chance of success. In the end my question was simple: could I wake up excited every day and give everything I have for the next decade? For a search fund, the answer is a resounding yes.
How did you get past your fear?
It was a long journey. Graham Weaver taught me that fear usually disguises itself as being sensible. It sounds like “not now.” He also talks about living an asymmetric life — limited downside, large upside. When I looked at my situation honestly, the downside was small and the upside was huge. Then I had some life-changing conversations with my father. He showed me that I have already earned the freedom to say no to anything I do not want, and that life is there to be enjoyed, every second of it. The fear did not disappear. It just stopped making the decisions.
Why are you searching in Germany?
I am a German citizen, for a start. More importantly, Germany is running out of successors. KfW’s latest survey shows that, for the first time on record, more Mittelstand owners plan to close their company than hand it over. By the end of 2029, about 569,000 owners plan to shut down against 545,000 who plan a handover — roughly 114,000 closures a year. Twenty years ago one owner in five was 55 or older; today it is 57%, and owners planning a handover within two years are, on average, over 66. Almost half of those planning to close say the reason is simple: nobody in the family wants to take over. These are healthy companies. They just need someone to carry them forward.
For me this is not only about building a company. If I succeed, it becomes my legacy in my new country. Every Mittelstand company that stays open keeps jobs, skills and a piece of local history alive. Germany has given me a great deal. This is a chance to give something back.
You spent more than two decades building businesses for Henkel, Levi’s, PUMA, eBay and Freudenberg. What does that track record bring to the company you buy?
I have spent my whole career doing one job well: taking something that already works, finding the next market, channel or category for it, and growing it without breaking the margin. At PUMA, growth came from new geographies, mainly Russia and China. At eBay, it was about moving the business toward more profitable categories. At Freudenberg it was eCommerce, built with cutting-edge digital marketing tools. So when an owner asks whether I have ever run something, I can answer with real results. Most Mittelstand companies already have very good products or services. What they often need is fresh energy to take them somewhere new. That is exactly where my experience fits.
Tell me about your fundraising.
I was bad at fundraising when I started. Selling myself did not come naturally, and I was not fully prepared. Through my Stanford network I was introduced to some of the best investors in the space, but my first two or three meetings went badly because I was unsure of myself. So I stopped everything, read every book I could find, spoke with more than 30 searchers, built a proper plan and started again. The second time went much better, and I was just a few commitments short of closing the round when life intervened. I paused the raise and went to India to be with my father in the last phase of his life. I came back in March with a fresh perspective, and by April Indus Capital was oversubscribed. I was more confident, better prepared and fully convinced, and investors could feel it. I ended up with my dream cap table, with one exception: a German investor who did not invest but still supports me in every way he can. Looking back, I am grateful for every part of it, even the bad start. It was my first cycle of failing fast, pivoting, getting results and enjoying the process.
Today Indus Capital is backed by Relay Investments, Innesto Partners, Moonbase Global, Kinderhook Partners, ONEtoONE Asset Management, Cabiedes & Partners, Pitlane Capital, Ruiz Family Office, Ruka Capital, Secways, Turtle Capital and Pinvest Ventures.
What would you tell a first-time searcher about approaching investors?
I often compare the searcher–investor relationship to an Indian arranged marriage. In India we say a marriage lasts seven lifetimes, and families check 36 points of compatibility to see whether the match will work. It is not scientific, but the instinct is right. Make your own compatibility list for investors and be clear about what each one brings into the marriage. The real question is whether you will enjoy working with them for the next ten years. If you do not feel the connection, walk away.
On the practical side, sort investors into two buckets: safe investors and dream investors. Start with the safe ones. That is where you can make mistakes and fine-tune your story. Once you have refined your pitch and around 60 to 70% of the round is committed, go to your dream investors. Always arrange a warm introduction before you speak to anyone. And above all, learn to tell your own story with conviction. Investors can smell confidence, and in my experience, it is the best predictor of how strong your cap table will be.
How will you find the right company?
Roughly 70% direct outreach, 30% intermediaries. I use databases, a CRM and AI tools to make every outreach personal. When I write to an owner, I explain why I think their business is so good, and I usually add an insight they may not have noticed themselves. That insight is the hook, and so far it is working. I reach owners through every channel I can: emails, letters, LinkedIn, phone calls, trade fairs and, yes, even faxes. Much of the process is automated, and I get help from every direction — AI agents, interns, industry experts, friends of friends. But I write the letters myself.
And one habit from day one: after the first serious conversation, I send a non-binding indication with a price range. More than a third of German owners expect a price that the chambers consider excessive. Better that we both find that out in month one than in month nine.
Search is a long, lonely job. How will you stay sharp for two years?
I built the system before I needed it. My week has a fixed rhythm, I work with a coach, and I have a small group of searchers I speak with regularly — people who are going through exactly the same ups and downs. Outside work I protect five things deliberately: family, friends, fitness, faith and fun. Family comes first. Working from home during the search means I can take my daughter to school, have lunch with my wife and be there in the evenings, and I do not take that for granted. Fitness is my reset button — I run, ride my road bike and train for triathlons, because a hard session clears my head better than anything else. Faith keeps me grounded when the pipeline does not. And for fun, I play chess and collect fountain pens.
What would you like a business owner reading this to know?
First, that I know what I am asking for. Your company is your life’s work, and probably a large part of your family’s story.
Second, that your people will be safe with me. Your name stays on the door, and your team stays together, and your customers keep dealing with people they trust.
Third, that you will not be handing your company to one person alone. I am backed by a very experienced group of investors, and through them I have access to world-class industry experts. Together, we can take what you have built further.
And above all, that I can be flexible in a way most buyers cannot. Whether you want a clean exit, want to retain a stake, want to stay on for a transition period, or want to hand over step by step, we can shape the deal around what you actually need. The right structure is one where you, your family and your company all come out ahead.
If this sounds like the succession you have in mind, I would be glad to talk — no obligation. Write to me at sandip@alumni.gsb.stanford.edu.
