Founder@ Interview
Interview with Heeral Pattni
“You don’t have to know how, you just have to know why. It’s okay if you don’t have all the steps figured out; you’ll learn so much of it along the way. So start with what is driving you, believe in it, and you won’t look back..” – Heeral Pattni
Today we feature Heeral Pattni , the founder at Amica. We hear their story in their own words, their successes, their challenges and their insights.
Let’s start by getting to know you. Can you please tell us a little bit about you and what you do?
My name is Heeral Pattni and I am a 23-year-old entrepreneur from London. I have created, designed, and developed a brand new friendship app for women travelling solo, called Amica.
A great introduction and start to this interview. Can you please tell us, how did you start, from what age, and what made you decide to change direction and start?
Last year, when I was 22, I was at a point in my life when I was desperate to travel solo, but while the thought of being somewhere new by myself felt exciting and freeing, it also seemed pretty intimidating.
This was probably because, at the time, fear of loneliness was a major obstacle in me taking that solo trip.
So, I tried to find something that would let me experience the independence that solo travellers rave about, with the opportunity to create connections when that loneliness would inevitably kick in. And when I couldn’t find any apps or solid networks that satisfied this, I set out to create one myself.
Thank you for that insight. So can you tell us…What does your business do and where is your company based?
Amica is a travel brand by women, for women, and the app is a radical new way for solo women travellers to meet and connect safely, with video verification for all members.
We are based in the UK, with team members in Australia and Bali, but our community is global Our overarching goal is to empower women to create connections with like-minded individuals on their terms.
The way that we’ve aimed to support women in finding their feet wherever they are in the world, is through providing the opportunity to create friendships based entirely on mutual interests.
The whole purpose of Amica is to find new friends to share one-off experiences with.
When registering, the app prompts you to input a number of preferences within categories such as Activities, Culture, Food and Drink, so that you can find someone in the area to try out that new Thai restaurant with, or someone who you can chat to for ages about the same artist you both love while you stroll through their exhibition.
What’s the story behind your success? What led to your aha moment? how did you get to where you are now?
There have been a lot of moments where I’m encouraged to keep going. Usually, when we see all the work behind the scenes paying off, or when we speak to members of the community and they tell us how useful this app would have been when they were travelling and that they can’t wait to use it in the future; that’s really motivating.
The community has been a huge help in helping us realise our vision, as, without them, we wouldn’t be Amica at all.
Thank you for sharing that. What’s been your life’s biggest lesson so far?
Covid was of course the biggest unprecedented obstacle that we have faced. But a great opportunity to build The Travel Plug which was a platform to help women stay in touch with the travel industry during a very difficult time.
How many little steps there are along the way, in between the big milestones that everyone talks about.
If you were to go back in time, what piece of advice would you give to your younger self?
I would say that you need to believe in yourself first, as this sets the foundation for how you take criticism and receive validation. It’s really important to keep coming back to the reason you started, and make a note of what keeps you going along the way.
Celebrate the small wins, as they pave the way for the big ones. Even when it feels like everything is crashing, ride it out, because it is most likely temporary and you will overcome it.
We’re nearly halfway through our interview so it’s a great time to ask how does your business run. What three tools make your business run better?
Slack.
Google Docs
Airtable
Anything that lets the team keep in touch and collaborate in real-time
Communication between team members. It wouldn’t be easy if we no longer had them as all the team is remote
What do you know now that you wished you had known before?
How many little steps there are along the way, in between the big milestones that everyone talks about.
What has been your greatest or proudest achievement or moment?
Growing the community entirely organically and seeing how we all have something so core in common; it’s been so special to be able to communicate so easily with the people cheering us on.
What future life goals do you want to achieve and why?
Personally, I would love to take Amica global; I think there is so much potential in what we do to positively impact women around the world.
That’s a big dream – to help women connect with one another and make new friendships and memories that will last a lifetime.
To finish our inspire questions…”We believe that sharing inspiring words can inspire others.” If there was one positive thing you would say to someone to inspire and empower them what would it be and why?
You don’t have to know-how, you just have to know why. It’s okay if you don’t have all the steps figured out; you’ll learn so much of it along the way. So start with what is driving you, belief in it, and you won’t look back.
“Thank you it has been great learning more about your founder story and Amica “
To learn more about Amica Visit https://www.amicaapp.com/
Inspired by this story? Please share this story and other founder stories.
For more inspiring founders stories check out Founder Stories.
Disclaimer:
The views, thoughts, information, and opinions expressed in the text, videos, images belong solely to those of the individuals involved, and do not necessarily represent those of Founderat.com and its corporate owners, employees, organization, committee, or other group or individuals.
More from Founder Stories
“Surround yourself with a team of people that share your vision and goals, and can effectively challenge you and contribute towards the final outcome…” – Chirag Shah
Founder@ Interview - An Interview with Chirag Shah, Founder at Pulse. Read their story now.
“If you have a vision and you want to implement it, then make sure any legal agreements you have in place allow you to execute that vision without fear or favour..” – Owen Keenan-Lindsey
Founder@ Interview Interview with Owen Keenan-Lindsey, Founder at Assimilated International, read their story.
“Start from a good and revolutionary idea, an idea of lifestyle change, absolute innovation, and never copy something that already exists.” – Andrea Iervolino
Founder@ Interview Interview with Andrea Iervolino, Founder at TaTaTu, read their story.
