New Delhi: Naturals Ice Cream Company was founded by Raghunandan Srinivasa Kamath. In 1984, he opened the first shop in Mumbai. The son of a struggling fruit seller, Kamath traveled from a kutcha hut in Karnataka to Mumbai by foot. The ice cream chain registered a revenue of 300 crores in 2020. Additionally, the business was ranked among the top 10 brands in India for customer satisfaction in 2013.
Currently, it operates outlets in 135 Indian cities. After experiencing many hardships and disappointments, Kamath opened his first store and hasn’t stopped since. Here is his remarkable story of rising from poverty to success.
Raghunandan Srinivas: Early Life
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In 1954, Raghunandan Srinivasa Kamath was born in the small town of Mulki in Karnataka. He is the youngest of seven children. Kamath grew up in a very basic environment. They explored their surroundings and spent their days climbing trees. Kamath’s father was a modest fruit seller who barely earned enough money to support his wife and seven children.
Kamath moved to Bombay at the age of fifteen to work in his brother’s restaurant. He lived in a 12 by 12 feet chawl in Bombay. He worked in his brother’s restaurant selling pav bhaji and ice cream. Kamath wanted to provide more culinary options to its consumers. So he decided to open his own store.
Naturals Ice Cream Foundation
Kamath worked in his brother’s restaurant in Bombay after he shifted there to join the team. He got the idea to sell ice cream made from fruit pulp there. Eventually he got some cash from the restaurant and decided to start his own ice cream parlor.
Thus Kamath opened a modest 200 sq ft store in Juhu, Vile Parle. They tried to develop interesting new sensations in addition to the typical vanilla and chocolate varieties. He opened his first store in 1984 with only four employees and ten types of ice cream. After many setbacks and hardships, his persistence finally paid off.
To focus on his ice cream business, Kamath kept the ingredients relatively simple and eventually stopped selling pav bhaji. Some unusual but delicious flavors are cucumber, soft coconut, and gajar ka halwa (a dessert made of carrots).
These include jackfruit, melon, lychee, black grape and other fruit flavors. The business now offers 125 flavors to its customers. The company has got a revenue of 300 crores in 2020. Naturals has locations in 135 cities across the country.
The business won the award for Best Customer Service in 2013. One of the most popular locally produced brands in India is Naturals Ice Cream.