Leaders

India is renowned for its rich cultural heritage and diverse regional cuisines, which include a vast selection of traditional snacks. These foods are an integral part of Indian culture, representing the culinary traditions and diversity of the country. With the rise of commercially produced and Western snacks, however, the significance of traditional treats has diminished. Thus, reviving traditional snacks is essential, as it is a means to preserve India's culinary heritage and celebrates its cultural diversity, especially crucial for generations to come.

Nalini Parthiban, an entrepreneur from South India, recognized the opportunity to promote the traditional snacks and sweets of her region to the world. Nalini launched Sweet Karam Coffee (SKC), the first Indian online traditional home-food store that offers authentic and healthy snacks, sweets & more, made with high-quality ingredients and recipes curated by expert home chefs. SKC aims to take tradition online, revive traditional recipes with the nostalgic authentic taste, revive the traditional recipes with contemporary healthy blends, and thereby promote the delights of South India globally. By providing a sanitary, at-home, authentic culinary experience, SKC has become a trusted destination for those seeking a taste of South India.

Below is an excerpt of Nalini Parthiban’s exclusive interaction with Women Entrepreneur magazine.

What are some important features of your expertise as an entrepreneur?I am passionate about creating products that have a real impact on people's lives. My focus is always on understanding my customers' needs and developing innovative solutions that meet those needs. Build for the customer is my Mantra. I specialize in product management, strategy, and design thinking, and I love collaborating with teams to bring ideas to life. Market research and business analysis are also important parts of my work, as I strive to stay up-to-date with industry trends and best practices. Moreover, I'm always looking for new opportunities to study various business cases and grow my leadership skills.

What inspired you to establish Sweet Karam Coffee? Tell us about the brand's founding idea and key differentiators.

The three P's (Passion, Purpose, and empowering Power) were the driving forces behind the establishment of Sweet Karam Coffee. Growing up and getting married to a ‘foodie’ family from Madras (now Chennai) with expert home chefs, I always had a family where food was such a main focus. I was always surrounded by the tales & traditions of South India. Inspired by our passion for healthy, and Traditional South Indian snacks, as a family, we set out to share the flavours and stories of South India with the world. Our goal & Purpose was Simple - to offer authentic, clean products that are free of Maida, Palm Oil, Preservatives or artificial additives with a taste of home cooking. We curated a list of recipes & crafted them to perfection that tasted exactly like those prepared by our grandmothers. Also, we wanted to sell the cultural experiences of South India, not just the products.

As an India F&B entrepreneur, what have been your major business challenges? How do you get past these roadblocks?

According to market research, 52 percent of the Savory market in India is dominated by Western Snacks and 58 percent of the organized snack market is still dominated by western snacks. We discovered that this was due to a lack of standardization and a poor packaging experience in of many regional snacks resulting in fading consumer trust in this segment. To revive traditional food, we started offering both iconic traditional products and healthier alternatives made from millet & indigenous rice varieties (like black rice for example) with a standardized branded experience and ‘clean’ ingredients to restore consumer confidence. Most marketed companies use palm oil and preservatives to maintain low prices and prolonged storage lives, which we did not want to do. To address this, we developed innovative production and packing methods that keep our products fresh longer without resorting to any of these unhealthy substances.

"Inspired by our love for clean, healthy, homemade, & traditional south indian snacks, we set out to share the flavours & stories of south india with the world"

Tell us about some of the key milestones you have achieved throughout your professional journey.

As a first-generation entrepreneur, I am humbled & take pride in the fact that I have been able to create a successful company from scratch and generate more than a million dollars in revenue while increasing sales by almost 100 percent year over year, with NO outside funding. It becomes even more remarkable when done while being a mother to a 6-year-old and leaving a comfortable corporate job. To that end, I believe that Passion, Perseverance, and Patience have been the three most important factors in my accomplishments.

How has Sweet Karam Coffee’s growth journey been so far? What are your primary focus areas in terms of taking the brand’s growth journey forward?

We started with almost Zero Investment in 2015 and sold only sweets & snacks mainly during Diwali. Based on the reception, we knew the potential was huge and we were motivated to take this business online & brought in people in our family initially. Since then, we’ve expanded product categories, built a strong warehouse operation, and started delivering PAN India & more recently across the globe. We are now in the process of fundraising primarily for channel & geographic expansion.We would love to have connoisseurs of our culture & cuisine join my family of cousins who come with varied industry expertise in the supply chain, finance & marketing to spread this good-food revolution, to put our home-grown sweets, snacks & filter coffee on the global food map.

Nalini Parthiban, Co-Founder, Sweet Karam Coffee

Nalini Parthiban, a trendsetter in the food and beverage industry, obtained her bachelor's degree and an MBA from Anna University, Chennai. And, before establishing Sweet Karam Coffee, Nalini worked for corporations such as Royal Bank of Scotland Business and IDP Education.