Small batch, huge dream

Caramellike in taste silken soft in texturemdashEleftheria Cheesersquos indulgent blocks of Brunost can change the very way in which one thinks of cheese Far from being umami and sharp like Parmesan it brings together the sweetness of toffee and the homeliness of fudgeThe multiawardwinning Norwegian offering comes from a nineyearold brand founded by Mausam Narangmdashwho quickly went from being a selftaught cheesemaker to an extensively trained one Since their early days Narang and the team behind Eleftheria knew that it was artisanal cheeses like the stringy oaxaca from Mexico and the lush stracciatella that would be their sole focus to address a gap in the Indian marketEarly on the brand recognised gaps in the artisanal cheese market pushing them to perfect their offeringsldquoDespite India being a leading producer of milk globallyrdquo the Mumbaibased brand says ldquothe availability of homegrown artisanal cheeses was severely lacking This gap presented a growing demand especially in metropolitan areas where consumers were increasingly seeking highquality locally produced cheesesrdquoThus began a journey in channelling agility and creativity to create and finetune products for the increasingly discerning taste of urban India one that would seek out more nuanced and healthier alternatives to processed cheese The destination is finding that what was once rare or unheard of is now a kitchen stapleEleftheriarsquos story and that of its peers in the artisanal food segment lies the story of an interplay between evolving consumer choices and brands committing to delivering on promises of quality and inventiveness It is why many of us now head to the striking websites of small niche businesses rather than loitering through the aisles of supermarkets as we did in the 2000smdashin search of foreign fancy jars and cans of sauces and spreadsConsider the Punebased Nomad Food Project instantly recognisable since 2019 because of its green chilli bacon thecha which adds a porky dimension to a beloved piquant Maharashtrian relish ldquoWe started as a brand focused on building around the idea of bacon introducing it in an Indian context We also went with just one kind of product because we figured we could make some noise with this specialisation and build a brand using it as a market entry toolrdquo says cofounder Advaith InamkeExperimental brand Native Tonguersquos Rohan Sonalkar says they are kept on their toes by knowing aware consumers PICNIMESH DAVEAt flea markets and farmersrsquo markets Inamke and his cofounder Aditya Rairsquos first interactions with buyers took place Inamke recounts excitedlymdashwhere they experienced the beginning of what he calls lsquocommunity emotionrsquo Buyers passionately responded with repeat orders and love and support for a brand with two faces they had come to recogniseOver time they learnt more about what their buyers needed and expanded their line to include a strawberry preserve rounded off by the herbyboozy touch of gin and chicken chilli oilmdasha garnish thatrsquoll uplift any bowl of instant ramen Today they ship jars of bacon thecha as far as Singapore the US and AustraliaThanebased Native Tongue too is in great demand overseas ldquoUnsurprisingly about eight to 10 per cent of our audience are Indians settled in the US The familiarity of flavours and the traditional method we use to make our products draws them to usrdquo says cofounder Rohan Sonalkar Among the methods Sonalkar refers to is stone grinding which enables the brand to create smooth nut buttermdashrich from the natural oils of ingredients such as cashews which are paired with the festive flavours of thandai Saffron cardamom and fennelGood kimchis stink up rooms but pay off in terms in taste and quality says Bombucharsquos Nitin GandhiNative Tongue has aced its flavour experiments resulting in jars packed with the most unexpected combinations Tangy Kachampuli vinegar essential to Coorgi cooking cuts through the sweetness of figs and caramelised onions in a relish that can find a place in sandwiches and cheese boards The nostalgic rooted nature of their recipes goes hand in hand with pragmatic use by buyers ldquoMost of us are looking for quick hacks in the form of sandwich spreads salad dressings chapati fillers or ingredients for swift cooking We are filling that gap with allnatural Indian ingredients in the way our customers need themrdquo Sonalkar explainsAs a business that caters to a knowledgeable aware consumer Native Tongue is kept on its toes ldquoThe boon of working with a limited set of highquality products is that the audience either already knows what they are purchasing or is open to absorbing information about the product before buying it The days of fooling the customer are long gone They now knows the difference between a Gurbandi almond and a California almond or between a Kashmiri and a byadgi chillirdquo he saysHis wife Ruchira who started the brand in 2018 takes a sharpened knife to matters of quality even discarding entire batches if they do not meet her standards of taste and texture This aware consumer is also welltravelled and exposed to pop culture worldwide the TV shows and movies whose reruns they watch have an undeniable impact on their taste buds Nitin Gandhirsquos Bombucha serves the globalised curious eater with an enviable list of offeringsmdashfrom beverages like kefir and kombucha to superfoods and side dishes such as kimchi and sauerkraut ldquoA good kimchi will stink up the room it will have a pungent smellrdquo Gandhi laughsPreetika and Prerna Chawla have carved out a niche for their brand in the crowded pickle market through their choice of main ingredients and in relying on family recipes PicRaghav GoswamyBombucha was born in 2016 out of Gandhirsquos organic experimentations in beverages and eatables that would promote good gut health and general wellbeing It spotlights fermentation through a purist approach like no other Indian brand does ldquoFermented food is an acquired tastehellip But Indian taste buds have evolved spectacularly And the impact has trickled into the boom of small businessesrdquo Gandhi explainsIn addition to opening themselves up to new experiences Inamke says that consumers are drawn in by convenience as grocery apps offer sameday delivery guarantees This is quite unlike when people had to travel to speciality stores with their shopping lists especially in Tier 2 cities Sonalkar on the other hand says that people are now keenly reading what is written in fine print on the label at the back ldquoThey want to know what they are consuming After the COVID19 pandemic homemakers and officegoers alike practice caution which is beginning to turn into an instinct What we eat and drink has become the most important considerationrdquo he opinesAside from trends metrics and marketing tactics the secret sauce sometimes lies in a homecoming For example sisters and actors Preetika and Prerna Chawla come from multicultural families Their maternal roots are across IrelandScotland Burma Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan ldquoThere were always jams relishes and pickles of all sorts from around the world that we ate growing up Our fatherrsquos side of the family descended from Multan near Lahore Pickles were the shared dish to send to neighbours and friends when everyone was finding their feet postPartitionrdquo says Preetika who cofounded Pickle Shickle in 2016 with PrernaFrom the getgo the duo recognised that they should draw on their threegenerationold family recipes and present them in a contemporary manner ldquoWe knew we wanted to introduce pickles which were not inherently common in peoplersquos homes This is why some of these ingredients stood out like jackfruit and lotus stem Everything from chicken to pork prawn shrimp mushroom and baconmdashwe took these ingredients and made them incrediblerdquo Preetika addsLike many of the brands it rubs shoulders with Pickle Shickle too measures its success in different waysmdashit is in buyers seeking out five bottles of their Burmese chilli oil weekly in their products lining shelves and cabinets of actors and directors and in orders from older folks who are keen to experiment And what could be more celebratory than customers giving back to the brand in meaningful waysmdashin the spirit that food is meant to be shared ldquoThey even share their own family pickle recipes with us and have stayed loyal to the brandrdquo Preetika says