Industry co-founder accuses colleagues of bias
In a bold move, Varun Gupta, CEO and co-founder of audio industry startup Boult, has publicly accused leading players in the market of engaging in anti-competitive behavior and monopolistic practices.
Gupta claims that these tactics, which include retail sabotage, planted reviews, targeted misinformation, attempts to lure away key personnel, and threats to the team, are aimed at stifling Boult's growth. He labels these actions as beyond normal business rivalry and calls them outright anti-competitive behavior intended to hamper Boult's growth in India's audio market.
Boult, founded in 2017 by brothers Varun and Tarun Gupta, has operated without external funding. The company, which prides itself on its bootstrapped, product-first, and quality-obsessed approach, has faced several alleged attempts to restrict retail access. Retailers have been told to either stop stocking Boult's products or risk losing everything else on their shelf.
Gupta alleges that incumbents may have been discomforted by Boult's fast growth without playing by their rules. He portrays Boult's situation as a point of contention with larger, well-capitalized rivals.
Fake 1-star reviews were allegedly pushed in sync with Boult's biggest product launches. Whisper campaigns in media rooms, DMs, and comment sections were among the methods used against Boult, according to Varun Gupta.
In a LinkedIn post, Gupta signalled the end of Boult's silence and promised to call out industry practices. He warns that the longer these tactics remain unspoken, the longer they continue to win, not because they are better, but because no one calls them out.
Gupta's public disclosure is not just talking anymore, but naming what others won't. His conclusion implies that Boult's situation is becoming a marketing case study. Shelves allegedly changed overnight for Boult not because they couldn't deliver, but because they were delivering too well.
As Boult shifts its strategy, ending an eight-year period of "building in silence," Gupta's move is likely to spark debate and scrutiny within the audio industry. Whether this will lead to a level playing field remains to be seen.
- Varun Gupta, frustrated with anti-competitive practices in the audio market, has vowed to challenge the status quo in the industry, using recent developments as a marketing case study.
- In a bid to curb Boult's growth, industry incumbents are accused of employing unconventional tactics such as planting fake reviews and engaging in targeted misinformation.
- The finance and technology sectors are now under the spotlight due to these allegations, raising questions about the ethical conduct of businesses within the audio market.
- Gupta's decision to speak out against these practices marks a significant shift in the business landscape, potentially opening doors for decentralized finance (DeFi) solutions to level the playing field in the market.
