All of us have faced situations where we wish to buy a product but do not know which store has the best deal. This holds good for a product of any product category. Well, we found the right place to go to when you wish to grab products at the best prices and that’s PriceTree. Read on to understand more about PriceTree and how you can benefit from using it, from the informal chat we had with Vikash Rathee, the founder of PriceTree.

What was the idea behind your startup?
The idea behind starting PriceTree originated when we bought a mobile online for my wife. I later discovered other sellers who were selling the same model at a lower price. This made me curious about the extra money being charged for the same item and on researching, I realised the same holds good for many products. Through this research, I understood that the price variation happens due to the difference in their margin. This gave me the idea of creating a price comparison portal which would help people find the best prices across all online stores and for various products.
Describe PriceTree in one sentence
A price comparison site for shoppers and retailers.
How many members make up the Price Tree team? How did you all meet?
It is a 4 member team which includes interns, analysts and me.
Who is the target audience for Price Tree?
Through PriceTree, we want to target all shoppers and retailers who buy/sell both either online or offline or both.
For Shoppers: Shoppers can use PriceTree as the single platform to compare prices of products and use coupons so as to gain maximum saving while shopping online.
For Retailers: Retailers can use PriceTree as a Price Intelligence Tool and API which enables them to monitor the prices quoted by their competitors. This will help them optimize their pricing strategies so as to increase their revenue.
What is the concept of Price Tree? What are the features available for different target audience?
The PriceTree is simple – a one stop shop for both shoppers and retailers. On PriceTree, shoppers get to know the best price for a particular product. Retailers on the other hand, get an opportunity to place their products for the interested buyers to have a look at. PriceTree is essentially for those who have zeroed in on the product they wish to buy but are looking at getting the best deal for the product.
Apart from this, PriceTree also helps shoppers discover new products, compare specs, look at reviews by experts, reviews of stores, locate shops close to where they live, get coupons and deals, and a whole range of such features.
Who do you consider as your competitors and how do you differentiate yourself from them?
There are quite a few comparison sites in India but many are restricted to comparison of a limited product segment. Whereas PriceTree is the only price comparison site in India focusing on products across all product categories under e-commerce. We have about 5 million products catalog with coupons and locators of offline stores. This would ensure maximum saving for the shoppers as well as meet all their price comparison needs.
What are your future plans for PriceTree?
We are focusing on product development and looking at acquiring new retail customers.
How are you funded?
We are looking for seed round funding.
Did you face any difficulties when starting your start-up?
Actually, more than difficulties, there were a lot of challenges right from the stage of design to development and till we launched. That time, applications like Stackoverflow, Codeproject and Github played an important role of mentoring.
What would you advice people who are looking at starting on their own?
I’d say start shaping your dream and build something awesome, you might fail in 1st, 2nd attempt, but learn from your mistakes and get back to building again.
The next time you have to make a buying decision based on the best price, remember to visit PriceTree and do not forget to like PriceTree on Facebook. You can even follow PriceTree on Twitter. If you have any questions or thoughts you would like to share with Vikash or us, please do leave us a comment below.
SEE ALSO Interview with Satya Vasireddy: Founder of Lovelychocos