We are publishing an interview of Ms. Sonal – CEO, WhiteCub DairyFree IceCreams – A Gurugram based startup that has created the first cholesterol free, trans-fat free and gluten free certified dairyfree ice cream.
Please tell us about the founders:
I have always been interested in spreading the goodness of plant based food choices. I look after the product development, sales and marketing for Compassionate Choices Pvt Ltd. (the parent company of WhiteCub)
What is the problem you are trying to solve? Can you share with us any insights that led you to believe that this is a big enough problem?
A lot many people do not want to eat animal derived foods for a combination of different reasons- choices, ethics, medical advise , environment protection(production of animal derived foods is usually much more resource intensive than plant derived foods. In-fact UN has also advised adoption of vegan food options over non-vegan ones because the production of former involves lesser carbon footprint. Hence animal derived foods often get avoided by Eco-conscious people. But there is nothing till now in the Indian market to cater to such people .We are yet to have Vegan milks, yogurts and ice-creams as widely available in India as their dairy laden counterparts . As many as 50% of Indians living in metropolitan cities of India currently have health problems caused due to milk consumption. These people need products made from dairy milk alternatives since they are better off by avoiding dairy consumption. Besides, while running my vegan ice-cream parlour, I often used to encounter parents / health practitioners of autistic children who would share their happiness and relief at discovering WhiteCub. Many people have reported relief in managing autism by adopting cfgf diet( casein free, glutenfree). While WhiteCub is casein free by default, I consciously went a step further and ensured that all our flavours of our dairyfree icecreams remained gluten free as well( In mainstream market, not all icecreams are glutenfree). Being dedicated to the pain point of those having dairy allergy, I could also identify with the pain point of gluten allergy sufferers as well.
What is the uniqueness about your Startup?
WhiteCub till now is the only Cholesterol Free, TransFat Free and Glutenfree certified dairyfree icecream – available in stores in India.
Why do you choose crowd-funding?
To spread farther the word of WhiteCub to educate people about the relevance of businesses like WhiteCub. to tell those who may not have yet heard of WhiteCub that we are very much around to handhold them on their healthful eating journey.
Why should anyone or investor back you?
Its a win-win for everyone .Backers get awesome rewards over a wide range .Smaller ticket contributions makes one win vegan icecream tubs and cakes while the big ones include getting a WhiteCub variant named after oneself ! Investors should back WhiteCub because the product has steadily grown in the Indian market and has till now been doing this amazing work on a non-marketing budget basis .If given the right investments in terms of marketing support, etc., the true potential of WhiteCub can be indeed harnessed.
Where can people back your project?
http://bit.ly/2q7bZg5
What would you do after raising funds?
Marketing, Machinery, Salaries – the three areas where the raised funds would be utilised post funding.
What is the revenue model? Explain your thought process.
We produce the dairyfree icecreams (with our own machinery ) and sell it to Retail stores. Corporate tie-ups;Catering agencies and Franchisee are the other three revenue generation aspects we continue to explore and undertake.
Who are the consumers that you are targeting? How is this going to affect them?
People having dairy allergy , lactose intolerance; those who may be continuing to consume milk but still do prefer healthy bites. WhiteCub lets these people have those foods which they can’t have in their conventional dairyladen form. To be noted is – WhiteCub does do some other foods well, eg- Dairyfree yogurts, dairyfree bakery and dairyfree mylks too (due to a bootstrapped model, till now these other foods’ production has remained on a small scale).
What is the big picture of your startup? Will it lead to something bigger? If so, how?
WhiteCub being sold pan-India in all the tier1 metropolitan cities of India. Subsequent plans include exports as well.
What is the success story of your startup in your own words?
WhiteCub defied the typical logic of waiting for studies to happen for checking the feasibility of this product. We knew we were to wear the huge responsibility of becoming the market creators of vegan products. We have been pretty successful in getting appreciation from different experts- food industry stalwarts ,health coaches and business experts as well. Winning Govt of India’s Deptt. of Science and Technology’s Certificate of Excellence award (this one carried a cash prize of Rs 2.5 lakh as well !) for our creation of a scalable innovation, PETA Vegan Food Annual Awards, coverage in Femina magazine, Economic Times, Hindustan Times, etc. – all have been a part of our startup’s success story so far.