Her father's daughter: Avani Singh focuses on the low-cost model of Ajay Singh's SpiceJet to disrupt COVID-19 testing market

SpiceHealth CEO Avani SIngh is the daughter of SpiceJet Chairman and MD Ajay SIngh.

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26 Aug, 2025 12:21

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Sniff an opportunity, quickly start off operations and ensure a low-cost operation. The SpiceJet stamp is unmissable.

Since it began operations in end-November, SpiceHealth has already set up five labs in Delhi that provide RT-PCR test, starting from Rs 499, to detect COVID-19. The company is now gearing up to add nearly one lab a day with a target to hit 100 by January 2021. It has hired up to 150 technicians, and is holding open door interviews daily to recruit more, and is simultaneously training them in batches.

The tests are just a start. As soon as COVID-19 vaccines become available, SpiceHealth will use this network of labs to administer the vaccine. To do so, it will work together with SpiceJet's cargo unit SpiceXpress, which has been in the thick of things. The airline, which plans to transport vaccines, has tied up with companies that will have a fleet of refrigerated trucks on the ground. And now, SpiceHealth will provide the last-mile connectivity in this whole network.

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SpiceHealth is not a SpiceJet venture, but is led by Avani Singh, daughter of Ajay Singh, the airline's Chairman and Managing Director. The family has founded the company with its own capital.

"The idea has been to keep the cost low, and not compromise on quality," said Avani in a conversation with Moneycontrol. "We have a partner who manufactures the kit, and right from setting up the labs to procuring other equipment, we have kept the cost in mind," added the 24 year-old, who returned from the US in 2019 with a master's degree from Stanford University, and a flying licence.

While she eventually wants to join the aviation business, in which she has interned in the past, Avani started off her career as a Business Analyst at Mckinsey. "It was in the middle of the (COVID-19) pandemic and working from home, the conversations were about the surging number of cases in Delhi, and the limitations in testing," said the second generation entrepreneur on how the idea struck.

The idea looked like a good business when the prospective business partner, the Delhi-based genomics company GeneStore, said the tests can be offered at a much lower price point. In Delhi, said Avani, the prevailing market price was Rs 2,400 a test.

The SpiceHealth CEO said the company has already "made a difference", with the competition now forced to lower its prices. Recognition has also come instantly, and from an industry stalwart. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Executive Chairperson of Biocon, tweeted on December 11:

"Kudos to Avani Singh for launching low-cost and efficient mobile laboratories, certified by the ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) and NABL, which conducts more than 3,000 #COVID19 RT-PCR tests per day at an affordable cost of Rs 499."

Leveraging support

The start has been promising, but has also brought in scrutiny. "It is a private venture, but seems to be aligned closely with SpiceJet, a listed entity," said a senior industry executive from the aviation industry.

Avani agreed. "I don’t think I could have done it myself, without leveraging SpiceJet. We have worked closely with SpiceJet," she said. The help has come in the form of setting up SpiceHealth's IT systems and logistics. "SpiceHealth is slowly building up so that our operations can be completely independent," she said.

She also underlined the role played by her father. "He is the family mentor. I can bounce ideas off him. He is involved in SpiceHealth and ensures smooth functioning at his level," said the daughter.

Their camaraderie was visible at the launch of SpiceHealth's first lab that was inaugurated by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The first lab is based in the ICMR's facility, and SpiceHealth will continue to tap the government-owned institute's facilities across the country to set up more units.

Apart from tapping his own network to ensure success, there is no doubt that the senior Singh also sees SpiceHealth as an opportunity to groom Avani, who has been meeting government officials, bureaucrats, scientists and also the karigars.

The Singh family has put in "Rs 5 crore to Rs 10 crore" in the venture. "We have started generating cash. The five labs conduct 10-15,000 tests a day each. We hope to be self-sufficient as soon as possible," said Avani.

From Delhi, SpiceHealth will expand to Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. "We hope to expand across the country," she said. After RT-PCR tests and vaccines, the CEO wants to tap opportunities in genome sequencing.

And SpiceJet? "I retain my interest in aviation.  I do see myself eventually being involved in SpiceJet, but would like to focus on SpiceHealth right now, and build it up," she added.