Diary
How we failed to run our startup
Notes from writing about Grocery Gunj in The Rising Nepal: what six months of running a startup in Birgunj taught him.
In January 2026 Mohammad Aftab Sheikh wrote openly in The Rising Nepal about why Grocery Gunj failed. Few founders publish the numbers of a venture that closed. He did: about Rs 2 lakh invested, about Rs 5 lakh in sales, more than 300 customers, and margins of 5 to 15 percent.
The lessons are practical. Test demand before trusting it. Count every cost. Build systems early. Know the market you compete with, including the shops across the border in Raxaul.
The venture lives on as Gogunj AI. In his words: "This failure is not our full stop; it is our comma."