Through my conversations with food entrepreneurs, I have come to observe that they are driven not only by the need to offer something interesting, but also by the need to solve a fundamental issue. I was pleased to speak to Saumya Agarwal Tyagi founder of Nashta , who is essentially doing this on a daily basis.
Nashta is a Gurgaon based venture, started in June 2013, which ensures you get your daily dose of healthy breakfast. Saumya , a management graduate from XIMB, says the idea hit her when her own busy schedule prevented her from getting “the most essential meal of the day. Working in Mumbai, staying alone and having a busy schedule took toll on my breakfast. There were days when I just wished for someone to bring breakfast for me.”
Saumya soon realized that this problem was very common among her peers. Instead of jumping right in to fill this void, what followed was a thorough, research oriented approach to understand their market better. Nashta hired a few management graduates who did an in-depth study of the target audience by conducting interviews. This was followed by a questionnaire study, and all this information was used to come up with “the first of its kind purely breakfast service-Nashta!”, she adds proudly.
Being very thorough in their approach, they dint stop there. They first educated people on the importance of breakfast and then introduced them to their breakfast plans. In fact, they even handed out free breakfasts to get feedback, and for people to understand how it feels like to be nourished at the right time of the day.
After listening to this detailed approach, it came as no surprise to me when Nashta gave me a backstage glimpse of its menu. Nashta has 5 star chefs on board to ensure delicious breakfast options. They also make sure that the menu does not get repetitive for people who opt for their multiple day plans. A quick look at their menu on the website will show options like “Bajre ka paratha”, “Besan achari crepes”, and “Chicken tikka breakwich”. Hold on, it does not end here. You will also find “Lebanese falafel”, “Oriental baked fish” and “Mexican tortilla wrap” to name a few. Now that’s having breakfast around the world. You have the option of selecting from packages like “Non Veg 7 days package” or “Veg/Egg 30 days package”. There are more options available on their website.
Nashta took a good 6 months to standardize the recipes and give customers a wide variety to choose from. As Saumya conveys, “A good product on the menu will definitely take you places. “ Nashta must have had more than one good product on the menu, seeing the wonderful reviews people have written about them. Would you be surprised if I told you that they started with zero marketing and let their product do all the talking! The free products that they handed out for feedback created quite a buzz. Nashta actually got orders even before they announced officially that they are open for business.
One of the things that I noticed in all the reviews (apart from the description of the food ;)) was that people praised their packaging. This was one of the challenges that Nashta had to undergo initially. They spent a lot of time trying to get the right packaging material. “We are not just delivering food, but an experience. We had in mind this image of people enjoying hot and delicious breakfast as someone would do when served at home. Hence, we went that extra mile with our packaging”, Saumya explains. They made sure that the material was biodegradable and microwave friendly.
The other challenges were delivery and training manpower. “At Nashta, everything is made fresh. So we have about 20-25 minutes for preparation and 20 minutes for delivery. We always aim to meet these timelines. We also spend quite a bit of time training manpower to make sure everything is executed well.”
Saumya strongly believes in attention to detail, “When you go to great lengths to ensure small things are in place, you will have a better control over situations later. A lot of the initial phase was spent in planning and paying attention to all the little details. Be it menu, or packaging or other facets of the venture, everything was thought through. This lets you face situations later and you can fix them with ease. The initial phase is when you can spend time for all this. Once you grow and the orders start pouring in you will be busy pushing orders out, at the right time with the right quality.” That’s definitely points to be noted for future entrepreneurs. “Execute well, and spend time on your blue print. It will pay off later as your venture grows”, she adds.
What lies ahead for Nashta? “We are planning to expand into evening snacks. We also are planning to bring out new outlets which will serve as touch point/take away outlets.” We wish them good luck with all this and more.
Nashta is a Gurgaon based breakfast delivery service. Visit their website to check out their menu and their breakfast plans. Do stop by their Facebook page to stay updated on all things Nashta.
Images courtesy of Nashta