image
REAL-WORLD StratigoNow IMPACT STORY

School Chain Development & Education Ventures

Company / Organization

VIS - a K-12 School

Location

Sambalpur, Odisha (flagship campus)

Industry / Sector

K–12 education, offering a progressive CBSE curriculum built on Multiple Intelligences, experiential learning, STEM immersion, and deep skill-based development.

The promoter was young, ambitious, and deeply committed - but had absolutely no experience in the education sector. The original school plan was a collection of well-intentioned ideas without academic philosophy, positioning clarity, or operational structure. Sambalpur had strong legacy schools with decades of influence, and breaking into that landscape required not just a good school, but a fundamentally different one. The early design lacked differentiation, depth, and academic identity; it risked becoming just another private school with glossy brochures and nothing unique beneath the surface. Without intervention, the school would have launched into a brutally competitive market with no clear reason for parents to trust it.

The promoter believed that infrastructure quality, digital classrooms, and general “modern school” claims would win parents over. He underestimated the sophistication of school-choice behavior among parents in Tier-2 cities and the weight parents place on academic philosophy, leadership credibility, and long-term developmental outcomes. His mindset reflected sincerity but not strategy - he had the passion to build a school, but not the blueprint to create an institution.

270 days

StratigoNow entered at the inception stage, when nothing existed yet - not the narrative, not the academic spine, not the brand philosophy, and not even the school’s personality. The first step was to help the promoter imagine a school that wasn’t trying to imitate existing institutions, but one that could stand as a benchmark for modern education in Odisha.

We articulated a core philosophy anchored in Multiple Intelligences, experiential learning, and global exposure - a combination no school in the state was offering. This philosophy became the DNA of the institution, shaping everything from pedagogy, timetable design, classroom culture, assessments, event architecture, and teacher development.

Once the academic identity was set, StratigoNow benchmarked the school against leading global models - charter schools in the US, future-ready schools in Singapore, and experiential learning ecosystems worldwide. This became the inspiration behind VIS’s internal culture: curiosity-driven classrooms, interdisciplinary learning, maker-spaces, reflective practices, and student-led initiatives.

To elevate ambition, we crafted a set of marquee tie-up visions. TEDx-inspired event formats, NASA-affiliated learning journeys, international Olympiad pathways, and STEM partnerships were conceived not as marketing gimmicks but as deep developmental experiences. These created an aspiration halo around the school, making it clear that VIS was not just another CBSE school - it was a gateway to modern global education.

StratigoNow also shaped the brand personality - warm, progressive, human, and intellectually confident. Communication moved away from clichés like “holistic development” and “modern facilities,” and focused instead on curiosity, capability-building, individuality, and future-readiness. Parents in Sambalpur immediately sensed the difference.

The launch was engineered carefully, stitching together brand identity, PR visibility, academic storytelling, faculty induction, and community engagement. Teachers were trained not just in content but in the school’s philosophy, ensuring consistency across classrooms.

Within three years, the transformation was undeniable. Students from legacy schools began switching to VIS for its atmosphere, clarity, and culture. The school’s results, events, and student achievements created a strong pull-effect. Waiting lists formed in multiple grades. The promoter matured into a visionary leader, guided by StratigoNow’s mentoring, and soon the school began expanding into new towns across Odisha - each new campus built on the same strong academic blueprint and institutional philosophy.

VIS Schools have now become one of Odisha’s most sought-after K–12 brands. Parent trust soared, faculty stability improved, and student outcomes strengthened year after year. Industry observers noted that the school shifted Sambalpur’s educational landscape by raising the bar for innovation, academic design, and school culture. Expansion into other towns became natural because the institution no longer depended on charisma or luck - it ran on a replicable academic engine. What began as an uncertain dream by a first-time promoter grew into one of the state’s most influential school chains.