Our Vision Is to Send a 3D Printer to Every Home and to Educate at an Early Age Says Saloni Chandalia, Director, WOL3D

StartupTalky presents Recap'22. This is a series of interviews in which we conduct in-depth discussions with founders & industry leaders to understand their growth in 2022 and their predictions for the future.

3D printing is a process in which a digital model is used to create a physical object by adding successive layers of material. This is in contrast to traditional manufacturing methods.

3D printing can be used to create a wide variety of objects, from simple toys to complex mechanical parts and even entire buildings. The technology has been used in a number of industries, including aerospace, healthcare, and manufacturing.

It also helps reduce waste materials compared to other traditional methods. We can solve complex problems and create better products by using 3D printing. The global 3D printing industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of about 17% between 2020 and 2023.

For this Interview, we invited Saloni Chandalia, Director of WOL 3D and we talked about the growth, challenges, insights, and future opportunities in the 3D Printing industry.

StartupTalky: Saloni, what does your company do? What was the motivation/vision with which you started?

Saloni: The company name is WOL3D India. The company is into education and innovation technology which is into 3D printing. In 3D printing technology, we sell printers that have a wide range. We have about 35 different printers. We manufacture the raw material which is the filaments that can be used in the printer and the 3D pens that can be used by kids beginning at the age of 5 to professionals.

The motivation was a new age technology the 4th generation and there was a missing gap in the industry wherein 3D printing technology is widely used in India in commercial and the industrial application but for the consumers, the educators, the students, the direct customers it wasn’t available it was an untapped market. So our vision is to send a 3D printer to every home and to educate at an early age.

StartupTalky: What is/are the USP/s of your product?

Saloni: The USP of our product is it is affordable, reliable, and easy to use. Also, there are 3 product lines 3D Printers which have a wide range beginning at 14,000 and going up, 3D Pens that can be easily used by children beginning at the age of 5 and Filaments that are manufactured in India the USP is that they are made from biodegradable plastic.

StartupTalky: How do you stay up-to-date on the latest trends and developments in the 3D printing industry?

Saloni: So the 3D printing industry majorly was for commercial and industrial use. We wanted to bring 3D printing to the consumers and this is how the industry has changed. This is how Wol 3D has brought 3D printing to the consumer in India.

StartupTalky: What were the most significant challenges your company faced in the past year and how did you overcome them?

Saloni: The challenge the company has faced since its inception is that people did not know the technology, so basically educating the people and how we do that is we do a lot of exhibitions, we do a lot of free seminars, and went to a lot of educational institutes like IIT and design institutes and even to schools so to educate at a very early age. We do about 25 exhibitions a year in PAN India.

StartupTalky: What are the different strategies you use for marketing? Tell us about any growth hack which you pulled off.

Saloni: The best move we have done significantly is to set up India’s first 3D printing experience center wherein people can come and experience all different types of technology where they can get their first-hand experience.

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StartupTalky: What are the different strategies you use for marketing? Tell us about any growth hack which you pulled off.

Saloni: The strategies that we used are like I said seminars, exhibitions, and franchise models which have worked very well for us. Today we have 10 franchises in PAN India.

StartupTalky: What are the important tools and software you use to run your business smoothly?

Saloni: The software that we have is a centralized IVR system wherein we have a centralized number and it's recorded where we track the queries coming in and the turnaround of all the orders. For the company's growth and performance accounting analysis again is centralized. Monthly analyze the growth and the profitability ratio. We also analyze our revenue to advertising costs across all platforms online and offline.

StartupTalky: What opportunities do you see for future growth in your industry in India and the world? What kind of difference in market behavior have you seen within states in India?

Saloni: Opportunities for future growth in the industry in India we see have a big market for the consumer section. A lot of people are getting accustomed to using 3D printers. A lot of businesses and a lot of professionals will be using 3D printing for their commercial and personal use.

StartupTalky: What lessons did your team learn in the past year and how will these inform your future plans and strategies?

Saloni: Lessons the team learned in the past is to educate the customers the sales will follow. Our future plans and strategies are to expand to more cities and also set up more experience centers like the one in Mumbai so that the customers understand what the technology is.

StartupTalky: One tip that you would like to share with people reading this article who want to get into entrepreneurship?

Saloni: Follow your passion, and the money, sales or success shall follow.

We thank Saloni Chandalia for spending her valuable time and sharing her learnings with all of us.

You can read other Recap'22 Interviews here.