Chennai will soon get a Mumbai flavour — Naturals.
The hand crafted ice cream maker, a Mumbai favourite, plans to sell the delectable ice cream in the southern city and in some rural markets.
Naturals Ice Cream had shut production and sales in mid-March in Maharashtra, where it recently opened a factory, after the state imposed a lockdown. After Unlock 1.0, it resumed operations in mid-June.
“We have always expanded with caution and strategy. Our motto is purposefully slow. We would be expanding to rural markets and Tier-I cities where we are not present yet, Chennai to be specific,” Siddhant Kamath, Director of Naturals Ice Cream, told Moneycontrol in an interview.
Naturals has been in business for 35 years, and has 126 outlets across Maharashtra, Delhi, Karnataka, Gujarat and Goa. Two years ago, it opened an outlet in Kolkata.
“The company is going slow and cautious over the sales overdrive that is expected from brands after a long period of zero business. Our current focus is on safety before getting retail operations back to normal,” Kamath said.
Naturals resumed business after the lockdown with Mango, Tender Coconut, Chickoo, Roasted Almond, Anjeer, Choco Bite, Malai and Malai Khurma flavours.
“We are currently focussing on selling only family packs, which are made at our factory under safe and hygienic conditions. We deliver these packs to the stores directly,” Kamath said.
As far as end-customers are concerned, “sealed, safe products are the priority. We are promoting delivery services and contactless (physical) options,” Kamath said.
To promote safe and hygienic opening and consumption of ice cream packs, the company has come up with packaging sleeves that have paper soaps attached.
The ice creams are mostly made out of fresh, natural fruits and have a limited shelf life of 15 days. They are made with only three ingredients — milk, fruits and sugar.
Naturals produces 25 tonnes of ice cream a day, consuming 3,200 litres of milk and around 15,000 tender coconuts. Among the best sellers are the tender coconut, lychee, kala jamun and mango flavours.
Naturals is working on new product lines keeping “convenience and home consumption in mind,” Kamath said. He did not disclose any margin numbers, but said the company’s FY21 retail revenue target was Rs 300 crore.
Coronavirus, Lockdown Impact
With hygienic premises, protective gear for employees and sanitisation becoming the priority during COVID times, the company had to bear a cost increment. Margins, he said, may take a marginal hit.
Kamath says “this is the new way forward” and it is crucial that these costs are absorbed by the company.
Speaking on the supply-chain disruption due to the lockdown, he said: “As we procure from strategic vendors and partners, we did not witness any disruption. We process our own fruits and are not dependant on the market.”
In the short term, the company may face logistical challenges. However, being a seasonal and fresh brand, Naturals have kept the menu limited, Kamath said.
The company works on two models – franchise and company-operated stores.
Most franchise stores are in the company’s own premises. Those using leased space may face some difficulties in paying rent and the company is in talks with the landlords to work out a win-win model, Kamath said.
The Journey so far
What started out as a small store in Mumbai’s Juhu on Feb 14, 1984, founded by R S Kamath, has now become the symbol of Mumbai’s delectable taste for desserts.
In 1994, after 10 years of operations, five more outlets -- in Malad, Borivli, Bandra, Lokhandwala Complex & Vile Parle -- were started. It is also in the course of being one of the few home-grown brands adopting the franchise model for expansion.
The first outlet outside Mumbai -- in Pune-- was opened on 2000. This was followed by Ahmedabad, Goa, Hyderabad (2009), Bengaluru, Jaipur (2010) and Kolkata (2018).
Asked if the company is planning an initial public offer, Kamath said: “We are a family run business and have no plans to go public yet.”
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