While Pakistan’s economy may arguably be grappling with challenges of gargantuan proportions for quite some time in the future, there are developments taking place on a smaller scale that are infusing a new hope.

The country is experiencing a fresh surge of entrepreneurial spirit with the emergence of startup businesses. Riding on a wave of technological modernisation and duly aided by the influx of social media, these businesses have even caused traditional corporate giants to introspect and reinvent themselves.

Becoming a buzzword during the dot-com bubble, a startup is an entrepreneurial venture that, in the words of Stanford Professor, Steve Blank, is "designed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model". A startup is a new business that has the potential for growth and is characterised by innovation.

The process starts with market research at first, which involves asking questions related to viability in terms of the target market and the product or service that one wishes to offer. Then comes the crucial step of figuring out the financing. It can either be financed by the individual(s) interested in starting the business or alternatively, the venture capital can be raised by seeking out investors who would be interested and pitching the business plan to them.

The business structure also needs to be decided upon; whether it will be a sole proprietorship, a partnership, a corporation or a limited liability corporation. A tax lawyer’s services are usually needed at this stage to decide on the structure that fits the needs of the interested individual(s).

Deciding on the name of the business is also a critical step. The name needs to convey the desired message and resonate with the target market.

Essentially, what begins as an innovative or better solution to a problem or need that exists in the market is sustained by the passion of the entrepreneur.

"This is the initiation of a business which is by nature disruptive and is designed to disrupt the existing structure in any industry. It is driven by the passion of entrepreneurs -- and in most cases young entrepreneurs. It is technology-driven in most cases because disruption comes with the help of technology as a tool," says Faisal Sherjan, entrepreneur and also co-founder of Patari, the startup that is making waves at the moment.

He says, these are, by nature, businesses which do not have too much capital and are setting out to develop a business idea and then to pitch it to potential investors, pull money in from the market and develop the business. "It doesn’t always mean inventing something new.  Steve Jobs didn’t invent the Music Player, it was already there. He just came out with a better design… a better way of listening to music."

Looking around, we find many encouraging success stories of startups: Daraz.pk, Rozee.pk, Inov8 Limited, and Careem to name a few. A lot of this has to do with the fact that internet penetration has increased over the years and so has the use of social media.

This has allowed businesses to engage with consumers at a more personal level and very gradually, consumers are embracing the revolution -- finally making online purchases with an open mind and greater confidence. The environment has become more enabling than before, although Pakistan still has a lot of catching up to do.

All around the world, startups are very much en vogue and there is no dearth of innovative, more efficient approaches to meeting the needs of consumers that are becoming increasingly fickle with time. There is a focus on personalising solutions to individual whims and desires.

Read also: "We are interested in businesses. We don’t care what the area is"

While piggybacking over the gains made by the heavyweights and simply adjusting their products and services, the new businesses can make a powerful impact. It reads like the classic small-fish-eats-big kind of script and adds a bit of drama and curiosity in the corporate world as well.

"People who are working in startups tend to be people very early in their career… People who have had one or two years of experience and have realised that they don’t want a routine job…. They are more excited about startups and are at that point where they have not yet settled and stable. They are very comfortable taking risks," says entrepreneur and consultant Jazib Zahir.

He says there isn’t a standard formal qualification that you need to have a successful startup. "A lot of people who have studied abroad, whether it is engineering or business or liberal arts but have exposure to startups as an industry and see it as something exciting, tend to come back to Pakistan and work in that space."

Sherjan laments there aren’t enough female entrepreneurs coming forward, when there is a huge opportunity for goods and services which are targeted towards women. "We do cinema ticketing and we tied up with Bin Roye. 22 per cent of the women who got tickets from us had never been to the cinema before because they didn’t want the hassle of going and standing in a queue. Calling and booking for tickets was a better option. They were more prepared to do that," he says.

Zahir thinks a majority of homegrown talent that is working on startups does tend to be from a technical background. "They do tend to be people who are active in pursuing business ideas at a school level so they’ve taken part in business plan competitions and gone to lots of talks by people on startups and that’s where they’ve got their exposure and excitement from." he believes.