Kaushal Dongre
(Founder & CEO, Paawak Foods)

Q.1 Sir, could you please tell us the inspiration behind Paawak Foods & what is the problem you are trying to solve with your brand in the Agro-processing sector?

Consumption of sugar in any form has been a major cause of worry across the world. My extended family is from Satara district in Maharashtra which is a part of the sugarcane belt of Maharashtra. I have personally witnessed agitations of farmers since they were not getting a reasonable price for their sugarcane produce. Also when I met my mentor, Dr. Prabodh Halde, he advised me to focus on building a brand in jaggery since there was hardly anyone who had thought of it in 2014 when we started Paawak. People had already started looking for a healthy alternative to refined sugar.

Thus we saw a scalable business opportunity to address the two major problems - help farmers get the right price for their produce at one end and provide a healthy substitute for refined sugar at the other.

Q.2 What were your assumptions when you entered the market? Who in your mind is your ideal customer?

Since jaggery has always been considered a commodity product, I realised it was important to introduce innovative products to build a brand in jaggery. After conducting a detailed consumer survey, we observed that the inconvenient size of big one kg blocks jaggery and unhygienic packing were two major reasons why consumers were reluctant to use jaggery as the preferred natural sweetener on a daily basis. To overcome these issues, we introduced jaggery as a convenient, innovative, and unique cubes as well as jaggery powder.

We believe every person who is looking for a healthy natural sweetener is our ideal customer. Our jaggery powder is a substitute for refined sugar and jaggery cubes a healthy alternative for refined sugar-based sweets post meals as well as between meals for evening snacks with groundnuts and chanas.

Q.3 Starting as a new brand of jaggery in the market, what was the biggest hurdle you had to overcome?

With our R&D efforts and support from the Association of Food Scientists and Technologists of India & the Institute of Chemical Technology team, we could produce 500 kgs of small cubes of Natural Jaggery first time in India in the year 2014. The processing technology was different, with many challenges and it was a costly laborious affair. We also decided not to introduce the product through the existing supply chain (Mandi based system) but to establish a separate supply chain on the lines of the FMCG distribution system. I started working on R&D and Marketing at the same time and started developing the brand with a big dream. Jaggery traders were writing me off since our pricing was much higher than conventional big block jaggery and most of the retailers refused to keep the product initially. I still remember when I approached around 100 shops in Mumbai, almost 98 retailers bluntly refused to place our products and said, jaggery at such a high price would never go off the shelf. But finally, two shop keepers agreed to keep the product with condition that they would return the product if it doesn’t get sold.

In the first season, I started with two shops and one distributor but since there was a need for user-friendly and hygienic jaggery from consumers, my products got accepted within 4 months and we reached 100 shops by the end of the first year. We also applied for a Patent and started working on solving the production issues since producing small cube jaggery wasn’t very easy that too without using harmful chemicals. Our product was dark in colour since we were not using sulphur and the challenge was to sell the dark product that was not very attractive.

Q.4 What are the USPs of Paawak products?

Following are the unique selling points of Paawak products –

1. Completely Hygienic – The product is made with only natural ingredients without any chemicals and made with all GMP principles in the traditional way only. We pack it in food-grade PET jars so that there is no contamination during storage.
2. Convenience – Uniform small-sized cubes have addressed the biggest pain point especially of housewives of breaking big blocks of jaggery. Also, it led to an increase in consumption of jaggery after meals since it is a natural digestive. Parents started encouraging their kids to eat jaggery cubes instead of chocolates.
3. Quality – Paawak cubes are made in a semi-automated plant having filtration process ensuring no impurities enter the final product.
4. Taste – Since it is produced in Karad which is a part of the Kolhapur belt, world-renowned for jaggery, there is pull from consumers for Paawak products.
5. Consumer-centric approach – We continuously work on Research and development and enhance the shelf life and quality of our products. We believe innovativeness by applying modern technologies will ensure Paawak keeps growing consistently.

Q.5 It is important to understand the consumer's needs to have a great product. Sir, could you please tell us about interesting consumer behaviour trends that you have observed over time in the Jaggery sector?

We strongly believe the reason for Paawak’s success is identifying early on, the need for a product like jaggery cubes in the market. Once one identifies the need for a certain product in the market and works on fulfilling the specific need, the whole equation changes in an early stage of a startup venture. It leads to a pull from the consumers rather than pushing the product in the market. Spending on marketing in the initial years is very difficult for startups due to financial constraints.

We have certainly observed a big shift in consumer behaviour in the last few years but all the more since the pandemic started. Covid 19 has made people realise the importance of having a strong immune system which can only be developed by adopting healthy eating habits and lifestyle. People are getting more and more averse towards refined sugar and refined sugar-based sweets and moving towards natural healthy sweeteners like jaggery.

Q.6 Since inception, give us a sense of the value of business done by your venture? Please explain in detail. (e.g., what is the current turnover?)

Currently, we are present in certain regions of Maharashtra. In the last 5 years, Paawak has grown more than 500 percent in revenue as well as sales with a turnover of Rs.6 lakhs in 2015 to Rs.30 lakhs in March 2016, Rs.33 Lakhs in 2017, Rs. 50 Lakhs in 2018 to around 1 cr in 2019 and 1.7 cr in March 2020. We sold around 140 tonnes of jaggery in last financial year.

In this financial year, we have sold more than 200 tonnes and already made a turnover of over 2.5 cr even during this Covid time, reassures the shift in the mindset of consumers towards adopting jaggery. With the annual market for jaggery in India itself being around 50 lakh tonnes, a patent applied for our unique product and a huge domestic as well as international market, Paawak is poised for exponential growth in the future.

Q.7 Sir, how important do you think the role of a mentor is in any new entrepreneur’s life? Do share with us if you have any mentor to guide you along your journey.

Here is this famous quote – A mentor empowers a person to see a possible future, and believe it can be obtained. This is exactly what my mentor Dr. Prabodh Halde, Ex-President of AFST (India) has done for me. One can resolve to work very hard and give his best but unless he puts his efforts in the right direction, eventually everything can turn futile. Had I not met Dr. Prabodh who sowed the seeds of Paawak in my mind, I would not have been where I am now. The biggest blessing a startup entrepreneur can think of is to have the right mentor. I also got timely technical support and guidance from stalwarts in the Food technology sectors like Dr. Uday Annapure and Mr. M. M. Chitale.

I specifically would like to thank Mr. Abhinav Singh of FICCI and Mr. Jitendra Dongre of MOFPI who invited me for the launch of Startup India in 2016 which was inaugurated by Hon.PM Shri Narendra Modi. Attending that program widened my vision and was one of the turning points of my life.

Q.8 What is your ‘Success Mantra’?

Identifying the need in the market, perseverance and inter-personal skills are the three things, I believe are very important aspects for a startup entrepreneur to succeed. It is all about utilising each and every day in the best possible manner since every single effort collectively counts in the long run. Also, I feel the work-life balance is crucial.

Q.9 Sir, any concluding remarks for our readers?

Every food processing startup should work with a food technology institute for technical solutions. Their support and guidance are instrumental in the growth of a startup venture. Also, If I am able to make some readers of this article believe that they too can walk on the path of entrepreneurship or reaffirm the belief in entrepreneurs who are already on this path of creating a positive impact on the society at large, I will be all the more grateful to God for providing me this opportunity to be an entrepreneur because it is rightly said – Takers don’t inspire the world, givers do!! Thank you:)

About Paawak Foods

Paawak Foods is a fast growing company engaged in agro products. Since inception the company’s core business has been crafting a distinct identity by developing its own brand in jaggery and jaggery based products. The quality of the jaggery products is optimal as they are procured from the best sources. The company processes them under hygienic conditions by adopting quality methods and conducts strict quality check tests before delivering the products to the clients to ensure that no substandard product is delivered to the client. For more details, visit: Paawakfoods.com/

(Content shared by Paawak Foods)