Technology, capital, and talent can help startups build and scale their businesses. But as competitors gain access to similar resources, founders also need to explain what makes their companies different.

At TechSparks 2026, Shweta Rajpal Kohli, President and CEO of Startup Policy Forum, spoke about the role of storytelling in building a business.

Leading a masterclass titled ‘Startups and Storytelling: Making Narrative Your Moat’, Kohli said founders often treat storytelling as something to consider after developing their products. However, before achieving product-market fit, their story is often what they are selling.

“Every startup is a story no one believes in yet,” she said.

Kohli began by asking the audience why storytelling matters. Participants spoke about building trust, creating personal connections, and differentiating a business.

She then used her own career to demonstrate what founders often leave out of their stories.

After summarizing nearly 28 years of work in a few minutes, she asked the audience what was missing. It was the reason behind her decision to establish Startup Policy Forum.

While she had explained how founders approached her to work with them, she had not mentioned the gap she had identified: India lacked an institution to represent the startup ecosystem’s policy concerns to the government.

Kohli said a mission alone does not make a startup distinctive because competitors may have similar goals.

Founders must also explain why them—what makes them suited to building the business—and why now—what makes the timing relevant.

Their passion and the community supporting their work also help make the story harder to replicate, she said.

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