SME Story: Interview with Prabhakar Posam, CEO of Patang

What is Patang’s core business model?
Patang is a tech startup that provides digital platform solutions in logistics. We aim to transform the logistics industry with our real-time global visibility platform and digitising customer interactions through its multiple logistics solutions.

Along with this, we are a Web3 technology service provider, which offers development services in blockchain, crypto, NFTs and the metaverse.

What gap did you see in the market that necessitated the need for Patang?
Low penetration of digitalisation in shipping and logistics industry is the major challenge in the industry. Upon further drilling down, the cargo visibility for multi-modal transportation is a major hurdle for customers and logistics service providers.

Today, enterprise resource planning (ERPs) doesn’t solve business challenges because customers’ expectations are different from the organisation’s internal digital strategy.

Most organisations consider customer interaction as the last part of their journey after setting up internal process with their ERPs.

Customer expectations have changed from having information on the desktop or website to getting notified on WhatsApp or mobile apps.

Patang integrates multiple systems by connecting data providers, shipping lines, telematics service providers, ERP systems and pushing real time information to customers on their preferred mediums.

What are some of the challenges you faced when starting off?
In the logistics tech business, supply chain digitalisation is not a high priority for most customers. It has taken us a lot of time to change this mindset.

Our offer to customers is to digitise their interactions and reduce huge operational costs with real-time interactions through multi-channel platforms such as WhatsApp, social media and emails.

In terms of the blockchain and metaverse vertical, the Web3 industry is still in the early adoption stage with limited participation.

Corporates have their concerns over compliance issues and are unable to understand the difference between crypto trading and blockchain as a technology.

We help customers understand these technology concepts and how they can make use of Web3 technologies to offer unique solutions to the market.

Tell us about your operations in the UAE and overseas.
We are headquartered in the UAE and started our sales and operation from Dubai. We have operations and sales offices in multiple cities in India.

We are also setting up offices in Middle East, Europe, US and Singapore region. With our strong global network, we will serve our global customers effectively.

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