From the sandstone city of Baroda to the suburbs of Chandigarh, from double incomes and hope to a lean, boot-strapped start-up and then a global SEO leader, the story of Webomaze is one of focus, adaptability and staying rooted while reaching for the world. ““When we started out, we both had stable jobs,” recalls Ravi Sharma, co-founder of Webomaze. “But we wanted to build something of our own.” He and his wife Vinika launched their venture in 2015 in Baroda, Gujarat, with little more than savings, shared dreams and a strong belief in their abilities. Their aim: an IT-services company offering software development, e-commerce websites and digital marketing. Over time, however, the modest setup began evolving into something larger.“I remember the long nights, the uncertainty,” says Vinika. “But we told ourselves: If not now, when?” The couple’s grit and adaptability laid the foundation for what Webomaze would become.The turning point: focusing on SEOThe journey was not without its obstacles. From family apprehensions to the challenge of serving overseas clients from Chandigarh, and even enduring a 70 % drop in revenue in 2017 due to a banned lead-generation channel, the road was bumpy. “Every day is a roadblock for entrepreneurs,” Ravi laughs. But such experiences forged resilience.Eventually the moment of clarity arrived during their stint in Melbourne, just before the pandemic. “We were doing too many things—trying to sell everything to everybody,” Ravi confesses. “When we looked back at our performance, we realised SEO was our strongest vertical.” With that insight, they shifted focus exclusively to Search Engine Optimisation—and the company’s trajectory changed markedly.Roots in Chandigarh and the Tricity advantageThough the venture has international reach—offices in Melbourne and beyond—the couple chose to base operations in the Tricity, not out of compulsion, but sentiment. “I was born and brought up in Chandigarh,” Ravi says. “Starting here meant being close to my roots and my parents. It’s a city I love.”He adds that establishing base locally came with practical advantages: “When you’re in your own city, everything—from finding vendors to setting up your office—becomes simpler. It allows you to focus on the business rather than basic logistics.”Division of labour and leadership styleStory continues below this adToday, Webomaze is a 150-member international enterprise. The leadership remains firmly in Ravi and Vinika’s hands. “From lead generation to sales—that’s my domain,” says Ravi. “Once the client is on board, everything from project delivery to customer success is managed by Vinika.”Their complementary skillsets reflect mutual trust and clarity of roles. Both are computer-engineers from Shaheed Bhagat Singh College, Ferozepur, where their story began as college mates before becoming life partners. Ravi went on to study a postgraduate diploma in Business Administration at Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies, Pune, while Vinika completed a Master’s in Computer Science from Panjab University.Staying aheadWith the tech world rapidly transforming, the Sharma duo is keenly alert to change. “Search behaviour is changing,” says Ravi. “People no longer only search on Google, so our services have expanded accordingly.” Webomaze now works on visibility across Google and emerging platforms such as ChatGPT, Perplexity and Pi.To fellow IT entrepreneurs his message is unambiguous: “Evolve or be left behind. Don’t be the Nokia of the mobile industry. AI is changing everything. Instead of fearing it, we must learn to leverage it.”Beyond businessStory continues below this adWork isn’t everything. Ravi finds peace in travel and event-management. “Organising events relaxes me,” he shares. “It’s something I’ve done since college. And whenever I feel stuck, I travel. In fact, I’m heading to Chiang Mai next week for a conference—mixing business with leisure.”