Chai Sutta Bar’s Success story

Background Story

Wannabe IAS Officer decided to ditch his parents dream and ended up opening tea café with his childhood friend which has a turnover of Rs 100 crores now. That’s Chai Sutta Bar for you guys!

Anubhav Dubey, who cofounded this famous tea café hailed from Madhya Pradesh and it was a courageous step for him to quit IAS prep in 2016 and start a small business with very less money. The cafe with just a 3 lakh investment and borrowed furniture from friends is now operating with more than 160 outlets in India and has also marked its presence in 3 countries- Nepal, Oman, and Dubai.

Why did they decide on entering this segment?

With many leading tea cafe chains like Chaayos and Chai Point and even many local players having their presence at almost every corner of the road, how they were able to craft for themselves a prominent and distinct image is one interesting thing in itself.

The founders noted that after water, it is the tea that is widely consumed by the people, especially in India. And not to forget that India is the second-largest producer of tea. Thus, it seemed to be a very promising business idea to them.

Unlike the biggies in the tea cafe business, they didn’t price their chai at 150-200 rather it is priced as low as Rs10!

And who would not want to get the vibes of a café and get the same local roadside priced tea?

Interesting, isn’t it?

To date, Chai Sutta Bar offers tea with various flavors, including Chocolate, Rose, Elaichi, Paan, Kesar, Tulsi, etc., in earthen cups known as Kulhad with other snack items, such as Maggie, sandwiches, burgers, juices, shakes, mocktails, coffee, pizza, etc., with a wide range of choices to its customers.

Marketing Strategy

Initially, the founders marketed their offering in a gimmicky style by setting up a tea stall outside the girl’s hostel so that their stall would have more girls aggregated, which will attract more male customers in turn increasing their sales. Moreover, Chai Sutta Bar leveraged the craze and love that Indians have for Tea (chai) by serving it in an Indian earthen cup, Kulhad. It wanted to make its USP of traditional tea serving an important symbol and by the quality of the product and offering numerous variations with complementing snacks, it gained the loyalty of customers and was able to retain them.

Currently, for the folks to be aware of their product, it extensively leverages social media platforms, such as Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, etc., by enticing through slogans, viral marketing, and digital marketing, which indeed serve them well and expand its customer base.

Outlook

The company’s vision for the next 3-4 years is to serve the traditional Kulhad chai across the globe. In 2021, it opened 110 outlets in India and aims to make a presence in every city of India by having 2,000 operating outlets and at least 1 café in every country by 2025, thus generating more employment opportunities.

The company also aims to generate employment opportunities by opening new stores in the cities and using over 3 lakh kulhads every day, supporting more than 500 potter families and its current aim is to use 5 lakh kulhads every day. Currently, it employs more than 1500 people from all sections of society with a special focus on economically weaker families, with its expansion plans in 2022 it aims to employ to over 500 people with a similar background.

Conclusion

The Chai Sutta Bar is India’s one of the fast-developing chai franchises with a diversified franchise model, innovative taste, and presenting the traditional Indian-styled drink in a modern setting and ambiance. Moreover, it claims to serve hygienically made food items with a pocket-friendly amount, attracting Gen-Y and Gen-Z customers.

Sources:

  1. https://failurebeforesuccess.com/anubhav-dubey/amp/
  2. https://yourstory.com/smbstory/fmcg-india-tea-brands-indore-chai-sutta-bar-business-entrepreneurs/amp
  3. https://bit.ly/3KbqW9X
  4. https://hospitality.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/operations/food-and-beverages/taking-the-chai-dream-abroad/82519029
  5. http://www.hospitalitybizindia.com/detailNews.aspx?aid=40828&sid=1
  6. https://www.freepressjournal.in/business/chai-sutta-bar-announces-expansion-plans-to-hire-over-500

 

Comments

  1. Very interesting and unique topic. Specially for a country with majority of ppl loving chai!!!

    ReplyDelete

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