PhysicsWallah Ventures into Offline Primary Education with PW Gurukulam School

• ByStartupStory     |    February 6, 2024

Alakh Pandey-led edtech unicorn PhysicsWallah (PW) has made its foray into offline education for primary classes with the launch of PW Gurukulam School. Situated in Gurugram, the school will cater to students from play school to seventh grade.

The school’s inaugural batch has already enrolled 400 students, and its curriculum will be affiliated with the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), according to a statement by PW. The school aims to provide students with education rooted in experiential learning, with a focus on financial literacy and entrepreneurship. It plans to enhance these aspects through programs like Model United Nations (MUN).

Commenting on the school’s launch, Alakh Pandey stated, “PW Gurukulam will be a platform for students to shape their futures through immersive and transformative learning. Our goal is to offer education that spans a wide spectrum, enabling students to choose from limitless possibilities beyond traditional career paths.”

The introduction of the elementary school marks PW’s entry into offline primary education. Founded in 2020 by Alakh Pandey and Prateek Maheshwari, PW initially offered coaching to IIT/JEE and NEET aspirants. However, it has since expanded its offerings to include postgraduate programs, UPSC preparation, and upskilling courses.

Originally established as a YouTube channel, PW has expanded its presence in recent years. Despite the slowdown in the edtech sector following the Covid-19 pandemic, PW, like many other edtech startups, has ventured into the offline market. It opened its first offline center in June 2022 in Kota, Rajasthan, and currently operates 67 offline centers, PW Vidyapeeth, across 38 cities, with a student base of nearly 1.5 lakh. The company aims to increase this number to over 120 in 2024.

In December 2023, PW, which joined the unicorn club in 2022 after a $100 million funding round, reported a 3.3X year-on-year (YoY) increase in revenue from operations to INR 771.76 crore in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23). However, the startup did not disclose its bottom line for the year.

This development comes at a time when the Indian edtech sector is grappling with the ongoing funding winter. While BYJU’S, once a leading figure in the edtech ecosystem, is facing challenges, other startups in the sector are also feeling the impact of the funding crunch. Layoffs and cost-cutting measures have become common among Indian edtech startups as they navigate through this challenging period. Additionally, several edtech startups have shut down operations due to the funding squeeze.

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