In the Battle of Super Foods' Business Dominance, this Startup is Bringing back India's Old Forgotten Basics With a mission to innovate and offer deliciously healthy food options, Soulfull started in 2011 under its parent company name Kottaram Agro Foods
By Aashika Jain
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While speaking to Entrepreneur India on how Indian's consumption behavior is changing with respect to adopting healthy practices, Prashant Parameswaran, MD & CEO of Bengaluru-based packaged food startup Kottaram Agro Foods said that India has actually paid a heavy price for forgetting the basics.
"I think as long as you constantly talk about the value proposition, most of the time we are in fight; it's not about the exorbitant premium product that is where the challenges will really come in, it boils down to where is that right price where it does not become that exorbitant a price and affluence doesn't go up.
The FMCG Competition
With a mission to innovate and offer deliciously healthy food options, Soulfull started in 2011 under its parent company name Kottaram Agro Foods.
"He think all the FMCG companies are in the same competitive zone but why Soulfull stands out is because of its belief that we do not offer across multiple categories we offer biscuits, it could be in the form of breakfast cereals at the end of the day it's a food, it's a meal all of us are fighting for the same meal moments so the way I look at the competition is also slightly different," said Parmameshwaran.
In a new battleground readying for healthy foods, Soulfull appears to be well-prepared.
"We are very clear about our value-proposition. We deliver to the honesty of the ingredients. We do not do fraudulent food items, we use the goodness of grains," Parmeshwaran said.
Investing Bolstering Experience
The company is currently active in 16 cities and is aiming at expanding to a number of cities. For their pan-India strategy, Parameswaran explained how Soulfull looks at different cities at different classes. If it's in North which market we will get into, if its Chandigarh, NCR or Rajasthan which market of those.
Aavishkar, part of the Aavishkaar-Intellecap Group, has committed INR 35 cr in Kottaram Agro Foods through its Aavishkaar Bharat Fund.
Parameswaran explains the rationale behind the investment.
"Aavishkar has invested in us mainly with the focus in building of our brand ensuring that we bring these ancient grains in front of the consumers and how do we do them in a way we can market and build a sustainable business out of it so essentially lot of the funds that are being used its towards demand generation getting consumers to be aware about Soufull and also being able to provide them that is required for the customers, Parmeshwaran said.
Kottaram Agro is a Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion-recognised startup that works with state governments to promote healthy foods.
