Why Delhi based Ashish Gupta's Cougar Motorsport is a dream come true for motorsport enthusiasts

After spending close to 15 years in the banking and finance industry, Ashish Gupta decided to pursue his passion. A childhood fascination for motorsports eventually led him to found Cougar Motorsport, which organises luxury self-driving motoring events. "Being an army officer's son, I witnessed many army teams participating in the iconic Himalayan Rally. This fuelled my passion for motoring events," says Gupta.

A chartered accountant by training, Gupta spent 14 years working with ABN AMRO Bank. When he exited in 2008, he was one of the bank's directors. He worked briefly with a private equity firm and then, in 2009, he started Cougar Motorsport. "I had spent enough years doing what was expected of me, I wanted to follow my dream," he says. Gupta, who has ended up on the podium a few times while participating in motorsport events, found that his peers in the corporate world were enthused about the idea of participating in motoring activities. "They, however, did not want to go for really gruelling expeditions. They wanted a bit of adventure mixed with the luxuries that they are used to," he says. This convinced him that there was a market for motorsport events.

Delhi-based Cougar Motorsport, which kicked off with a four-day motorsport event in Rajasthan, The Desert Dash, has since organised close to 70 events. Founded with an initial investment of Rs 14 lakh—Gupta's savings—the company broke even in its second year of operations. It raked in a revenue of Rs 3.3 crore in 2014-15. "Our business model is based on recovering direct costs from participants. Overheads are met from sponsorships and event management," says Gupta.

The company's success lies in tapping the growing demand among high net worth individuals, including business owners and company executives, who enjoy self-driving expeditions and rallies but want a balanced experience with the right mix of adventure, comfort and safety.

Cougar plans and executes its event—the expedition, accommodation and refreshments, insurance, technical assistance, the necessary licences, among other things—to meet the high expectations of its clients. "They can be unsparing even if there is a minor glitch. So, we cannot afford any," says Gupta. Participation in an event can cost anywhere between Rs 75,000 and Rs 1 lakh, depending on the event type and its duration.

Reaching out to the target group and communicating the concept without significant marketing spends was quite a task for Gupta. Creating tie-ups with luxury hospitality partners, planning and delivering a quality experience were the other key challenges, he says. Gupta's corporate contacts helped him surmount the hurdles.