Theo Cesarini is a passionate entrepreneur with a zeal to change the world. His tryst with entrepreneurship began during his engineering days. He founded several successful e-commerce brands and realized the appeal of the sector. He then decided to create a marketing agency to support his peers and confirmed with them some of the problems he had encountered himself. From there, he decided to found incard, the all-in-one finance for e-commerce and online businesses. In an interview, he speaks on array of topics. Excerpts:

Conception of incard

“My tryst with e-commerce began five years ago. Since then, I have built a marketing agency to help online entrepreneurs to grow their business. While helping them, I was shocked by the lack of financial offers in line with their needs” notes Theo. He adds that these e-commerce entrepreneurs were either blocked or rejected by their banks and their cash frozen for weeks. This also meant that they could not access relevant insights to understand their business performance and track their ROI, thus they were ripped off their rewards irrespective of how well their businesses performed. “Thus, we decided to create incard, as we believed that digital entrepreneurs and influencers deserve more from their bank. Our all-in-one tailor-made financial solution is built exclusively to help e-merchants grow and influencers succeed.”

Fintechs- Bolstering innovation and growth

Noting that the pandemic de-stabilized the achievements of existing sectors and highlighted their shortcomings, Theo cites example of the inability of physical banks to open bank accounts during the lockdown. Our banking system has been relying on mastodons for years leaving little room for new players and/or implementation of new technologies. “The pandemic has emphasized more than ever the vulnerability of every individual, company and states and opened new opportunities. I think tech is a brilliant way to solve many of our society’s ills but also to reshuffle the deck by allowing everyone to get started. So, I think the challenge is in the longevity of the projects and their scope.”

An all-in-one financial partner for digital entrepreneurs

“incard is the financial partner for e-commerce and digital entrepreneurs and we offer a mix of financial management, business performance and lifestyle to help ambitious entrepreneurs grow and succeed.” The company also offers platinum cards with high spending limits, a unique reward program oriented towards what really matters and fully functional dashboard with integrations to track business performance.

Leadership traits

“I have an engineering background and I have always been on the ground. I’m very involved in everything I do but I know how to leave room for the independence and initiative of those around me. I’m passionate about entrepreneurship and I consider and value the people who follow me in my projects from the dream stage, through the vision phase, development, growth and maintenance. I would say that I am a reliable, solid and fighting person but I also know how to be understanding and empathetic.”

Success Mantras

Theo urges leaders to overcome their fear by understanding exactly the requirement and precisely relate to what they are doing. “I don’t think we can be leaders by ignoring the real work and difficulties faced by our teams. With full knowledge and understanding of the situation, you take away a lot of the fear of failure. Then, I think the rest can be erased with the support and energy of the team and surroundings, learning to trust is the key.”

Future roadmap

Today, online businesses such as e-commerce, for example, allow everyone to start up, to emancipate himself and to create a life worthy of his ambitions, observes Theo. “I’m not saying that it’s easy, I’m saying that it’s possible and that the ones who are determined can go far. It is for all these people that we admire that we decided to create incard. We have been obsessed with creating something that will positively impact entrepreneurs’ lives and that would help them to get started, grow and scale.”