Natural Ice Cream is a famous name in the ice cream world. This successful business started from humble beginnings. It shows that you don’t need privilege to achieve your dreams. Hard work and dedication can lead to success.
Raghunandan Srinivas Kamath, the founder of Natural Ice Cream, is a great example of this. He was a fruit vendor’s son and lived in a mud house in a Mulki village. Despite his humble beginnings, he never gave up on his dreams. He moved to Mumbai and worked hard to make his dreams a reality. Today, he leads a company that generates a turnover of more than Rs 300 crore. His story is truly inspiring.
Who is Raghunandan Srinivas Kamath?
Raghunandan Kamath was born in 1954 in Mulki, Karnataka. He was the youngest of seven siblings. He spent his days climbing trees and exploring his village.
His father was a fruit vendor and struggled to meet the needs of his large family. The family’s financial situation was difficult.
The Kamath family moved to Mumbai when Raghunandan was 15 years old. They were not financially stable. He started working with his brother in an eatery. They lived in a small room, known as a kholi, in Juhu, Mumbai. It was a 12 by 12-foot room where the entire family lived together.
How did Raghunandan Kamath come up with the idea for his venture?
Everyone loves the feeling of ice cream melting on their tongue. Ice cream comes in a wide variety of flavours, shapes, and sizes from mango, strawberry, to coconut.
At 14, he joined his brother’s South Indian eatery to sell their homemade ice cream. He had a unique idea to go beyond the basic flavors of homemade ice cream. He wanted to make ice cream with real fruit pulp.
After the restaurant split, Kamath received some money. He quickly started his own venture. He set up a small shop in the Juhu Koliwada area in Mumbai. The shop was around 200 sqft and had six tables. Kamath focused on selling original fruit flavors to the public.
The Start of Naturals Ice Cream’s Journey
Naturals Ice Cream started its journey in 1984. Raghunandan Kamath opened the first store in Juhu, Vile Parle, Mumbai. It was the first parlour in the Juhu suburbs. It offered twelve ice cream flavours and had a staff of six people.
Raghunandan learned how to select the best fruits from his father, a mango vendor in Mangalore. He decided to use simple ingredients for his ice cream: fruit, sugar, and milk. Naturals prides itself on not using any additives, chemicals, preservatives, or gelatin. This makes it a high-quality product.
At first, Raghunandan wasn’t sure if people would like his original ice creams. So, he started his business by serving Pav Bhaji as the main dish, with ice cream as a bonus. The ice creams were a big hit and sales soared. After about a year, he stopped selling Pav Bhaji and Naturals became a full-fledged ice cream brand.
The high quality of the ice creams quickly caught the public’s attention. By 1994, Naturals had become a household name, known as the ‘Ice Cream of Juhu Scheme’. It expanded to open five new outlets. Naturals Tender Coconut Ice Cream is listed among the top 100 ice creams in the world by Taste Atlas.
Now, Naturals has around 160 outlets across several cities in the country. In the year 2024, they generated a turnover of Rs 300 crore.
Raghunandan Kamath said,
“I didn’t have to spend a single penny on advertising. It was mostly through word of mouth”
Our thoughts on the sad demise of our patron and founder of Naturals Ice Cream, Late (Shri) Raghunandan Kamath. Indeed a very sad and unfortunate day for us.
Regards,
The Naturals Family.
Date: 18th May, 2024. pic.twitter.com/6x5guC5ae8— Natural Ice Cream (@Naturalicecream) May 18, 2024
