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August 05, 2022
Onboards six former Indian athletes from diverse sporting backgrounds
New Delhi, August 5, 2022: Leading merchant commerce omnichannel platform, Pine Labs today announced the hiring of six former Indian athletes under its ‘Second Innings’ program, an initiative to reskill and employ retired sportspeople in India. The company has partnered with Natekar Sports & Fitness (NSF) which is led by its founder Gaurav Natekar who is a former India number 1 tennis player, Arjuna Awardee, double Asian Games gold medalist, and son of the legendary Indian badminton star Late Nandu Natekar.
Pine Labs and NSF will be mapping each of these hired athletes to the right job within the Pine Labs organisation and provide the necessary skill development training as well. These new hires will be entitled to the same perks as existing employees, and they will also be a part of the Pine Labs Annual Review process.
Commenting on the initiative, B Amrish Rau, CEO, Pine Labs, said, “This could not have come at a better time. In the month when India celebrates 75 years of Independence, and the country’s sporting heroes vie for the top honors at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, I am delighted to announce the launch of the ‘Pine Labs Second Innings’ program. It is our initiative in partnership with Natekar Sports & Fitness to empower retired Indian sporting heroes who have given their all in the service of their state/country. We strongly believe this needs to be the start of a bigger movement and should not just stop at Pine Labs. Happy to have some real Champions join us this month.”
“The Indian sporting ecosystem has seen tremendous strides in the past few years. However, one area that has concerned me tremendously is the lack of job opportunities in the private sector for the thousands of Indian sportspersons and athletes who give their heart and soul to play for India but are unable to make the grade for various reasons and are then left stranded once they retire from active sport. I am delighted that ‘Second Innings’ an initiative by Pine Labs in partnership with Natekar Sports & Fitness will be aiming to address this huge issue. I strongly believe this initiative has the potential to be a path breaking program which will not only create more jobs for our sportspersons but will also inspire more youngsters to take up sport. We are confident that all the stakeholders in the Indian sports ecosystem including the ministry, federations, NGOs and sports organizations will support the program to ensure its success. ” said Gaurav Natekar, Founder, Natekar Sports & Fitness (NSF).
The ‘Second Innings’ initiative by Pine Labs has the potential to transform into a big movement, driven by the startup community and one that aids government efforts in strengthening the aspirations of the sporting talent in the country once they are past their prime in sports.
About Natekar Sports & Fitness (NSF)
Natekar Sports & Fitness (NSF) is a firm founded by a family of sportspeople who have represented India on the international platform in their respective sports and have a combined experience of over 100 years in the sporting industry. They include the late Nandu Natekar, a doyen and legend of Badminton in India, his son Gaurav Natekar, multiple times national champion, Arjuna Awardee and double Asian Games gold medallist, and Gaurav’s wife Arati Ponnappa Natekar, a former India number 1 tennis player and multiple times national champion. Today, NSF works with some of the biggest companies in the public and private sector on sports advisory, consulting, infrastructure development, and management. To know more, please email contact@natekarsports.com and visit www.natekarsports.com.
Pine Labs is a leading merchant commerce omnichannel platform operating across India and Southeast Asia. Pine Labs’ tech-first approach to digital payments and focus on simplification at the front end aims to help many businesses embrace fintech products at scale. In digital payments, our online payments cloud-based software Plural represents a one-stop payments destination across channels. Plural is designed to deliver secure and frictionless online payment experiences to the end user, powered by an advanced tech stack that can augment an existing online business or build an all-new e-commerce payment setup from the ground up. In issuing, Qwikcilver serves leading corporates, Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) brands, e-commerce companies, the Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI) sector and the airlines industry, with a presence across India, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Australia. Qwikcilver is a go-to gift card provider among companies looking to, among other things, bolster their employee rewards program and issue closed-loop gift cards for customer acquisition. In consumer app, Fave is a fintech platform for the next generation of consumers, providing smart payments and savings, while empowering merchants with a loyalty solution to grow and engage with their customers in a whole new way. Incorporated in Singapore, the key investors of Pine Labs include Sequoia India, Actis Capital, Temasek, PayPal and Mastercard.