The Price of First Product

Date: April 27, 2009Time: 10:00 AMLocation: Salt Lake Office, Conference Room, Kolkata

The late morning sun flooded the sleek conference room of the Salt Lake office, its warm rays bouncing off the polished glass windows and casting golden reflections on the mahogany table. A faint buzz from the overhead lights mingled with the quiet hum of the air conditioner, but the real electricity in the room came from the anticipation etched on every face present.

Aritra Naskar sat at the head of the table, his gaze steady as he looked at the small, sleek device resting at the center—the Nova One prototype. Its smooth, matte finish gleamed under the sharp LED lights, the product of countless hours of design, engineering, and ambition.

Gathered around him were his trusted team members: Ishita, the organized and sharp-witted secretary who had proven indispensable in managing operations; Arnav, the tech wizard with a knack for turning impossible ideas into reality; Rajat, the operations manager who never met a spreadsheet he didn't love; and a few engineers who carried both excitement and exhaustion on their faces like badges of honor.

Aritra leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping rhythmically against the table. "Alright, we've built the phone. We've tested it. Now comes the part that'll decide how the world sees it—not through features, but through the number on its price tag."

Arnav shifted in his seat, clearly eager to dive into the discussion. Rajat, ever the pragmatist, opened his laptop and connected it to the projector. A slide flickered onto the screen, displaying a breakdown of the phone's production costs.

"We've analyzed everything," Rajat began, adjusting his glasses. "Since we control the entire supply chain—from processors to batteries—we've cut costs significantly. No middlemen, no inflated supplier margins."

The slide transitioned to a detailed breakdown:

AMOLED Display (4.8-inch): $25 per unitNovaCore Processor (Dual-Core, 1.6 GHz): $15 per unitLithium-Polymer Battery (3200mAh): $8 per unitCamera Modules (8MP Rear + 2MP Front): $12 per unitStorage (32GB): $10 per unitAssembly & Labor: $20 per unitPackaging & Logistics: $5 per unit

Total Production Cost: $95 per unit

The room fell into stunned silence. Even Aritra raised an eyebrow, though his expression remained composed.

"Less than $100 to produce," Rajat confirmed, his voice tinged with disbelief despite the numbers staring back at him. "And we didn't cut corners—this phone outperforms most devices in development today."

Ishita leaned forward, pen poised over her notebook. "So, the question is—how do we price it? We can't go too low, or people might assume it's cheap in quality. Too high, and we lose our competitive edge."

Aritra didn't respond immediately. He picked up the Nova One, feeling the cool, smooth surface against his palm. The screen reflected the light subtly, the edges crafted with meticulous precision. After a moment, he set it down, his decision clear.

"We price it at $129 for the 32GB model."

The reaction was immediate.

"What?!" Arnav nearly choked on his coffee. "That's—insanely cheap. Are we… are we giving it away?"

Rajat's fingers flew across his keyboard. "At $129, our profit per unit is around $34. That's… that's—"

"Exactly what we need," Aritra cut in smoothly. "Our goal isn't to make a fortune on each unit. It's to sell millions of units. We're not here to compete with overpriced brands—we're here to disrupt them."

Ishita's eyes sparkled with excitement as she scribbled notes. "It's bold. People will think it's too good to be true."

"Good," Aritra replied with a faint smile. "Let them think that. Then they'll buy it, and realize it's even better."

Arnav shook his head in disbelief, but a grin crept across his face. "We're going to cause chaos in the market."

"That's the plan," Aritra replied, leaning back in his chair.

The conversation shifted to logistics, marketing strategies, and production schedules. But soon, Ishita raised an important point.

"If we're going to dominate the market, we need to protect what we've built," she said, her tone serious. "The design, the hardware, the OS—everything. We need patents. Global patents."

Aritra nodded. "I want patents filed for everything—the phone design, the NovaCore processor, the battery tech, the Orion OS architecture, even the unique packaging. Cover every detail."

Ishita opened her laptop, fingers flying over the keyboard. "I'll coordinate with patent attorneys. We'll file in India first, then the US, Europe, China—every major market."

Rajat frowned slightly. "That's going to cost a fortune in legal fees."

Aritra waved him off. "I'm not worried about money. I'm worried about our ideas being stolen."

Arnav groaned dramatically. "More paperwork? I thought we were done with all that after the prototype."

"Consider it the price of brilliance," Aritra said with a smirk.

The room filled with laughter, easing the tension. Ishita projected a detailed plan for the patent filings, including timelines, legal processes, and necessary technical documentation.

"We'll start with design patents for the hardware," she explained. "Then utility patents for the processor architecture and software algorithms. I'll draft the initial documents and work with legal teams to finalize."

Aritra nodded approvingly. "Good. I want our technology locked down tight. No one should even think about copying us without hitting a legal wall."

Rajat leaned back, arms crossed. "You know… we're not just building a phone company. We're building an empire."

Aritra's gaze lingered on the Nova One, the future reflected in its glossy screen. "Not an empire," he said softly. "A legacy."

As the meeting wrapped up, the team felt an unspoken energy buzzing between them. They weren't just launching a product—they were about to change the world.

And it all started with a number: $129.