The slide titled "Shark Tank India Case Study – Spice Story" serves as an introduction to a presentation on the startup. It welcomes the audience and describes Spice Story as a company delivering authentic Indian street-food flavors to homes via ready-to-use chutneys.

Welcome everyone! Today, I’ll be presenting a Shark Tank India case study on Spice Story — a startup that brings authentic Indian street-food flavours to our homes through ready-to-use chutneys.

Source: Indian street-food stall blur, warm orange tones, chutney bowls, modern minimal overlay

--- Speaker Notes: Spice Story isn’t just a chutney brand — it’s about bottling India’s nostalgia. The founders wanted to make desi swad convenient, modern, and globally available. We’ll explore their journey, mission, challenges, and how they impressed the Sharks.

Spice Story is an Indian FMCG brand specializing in bottled chutneys inspired by authentic flavors from cities like Delhi, Agra, Indore, Chennai, and others. The products are available online through platforms such as Amazon, Flipkart, Swiggy Instamart, and BigBasket, and distributed in over 1,700 offline stores across the nation.

About Spice Story

• Indian FMCG brand crafting bottled chutneys

• Inspired by flavors from Delhi, Agra, Indore, Chennai, and more

• Available on Amazon, Flipkart, Swiggy Instamart, BigBasket

• Distributed in over 1,700 offline stores nationwide

--- Speaker Notes: Every Indian dish has its signature chutney. Spice Story captures these authentic tastes in hygienic, modern packaging. Their mission: “Taking Desi Flavours Global.”

The slide introduces the founders of the company: Soumyadeep Mukherjee, with 21 years in FMCG, business, and distribution; Gayatri, a branding and marketing strategist focused on consumer appeal; and Chef Vibhor, a culinary expert specializing in authentic regional flavors. Their motivation stems from addressing the gap in hygienic, packaged desi chutneys, while building a brand deeply rooted in Indian culture and taste.

The Founders & Their Motivation

• Soumyadeep Mukherjee: 21 years in FMCG, business & distribution expertise

• Gayatri: Branding & marketing strategist driving consumer appeal

• Chef Vibhor: Culinary expert perfecting authentic regional flavors

• Motivated by gap in hygienic, packaged desi chutneys

• Building a brand rooted in Indian culture and taste

Source: Professional portraits theme with subtle Indian spice textures (chili, mint, tamarind)

--- Speaker Notes: Soumyadeep found a huge market gap — modern kitchens lacked desi chutneys in packaged form. Together with Gayatri and Chef Vibhor, they built a brand rooted in culture and taste.

The slide titled "Problem Identification" highlights key challenges in the food preparation and packaging sector. It points out that home preparation is time-consuming, hygienic packaged options are lacking, and international sauces overwhelmingly dominate store shelves.

Problem Identification

• Time-consuming to prepare at home

• Lack hygienic packaged options

• International sauces dominate shelves

--- Speaker Notes: Despite demand, no one had packaged desi chutneys like ketchup or mayo. Spice Story aimed to fill this convenience gap.

In 2019, the vision for "Desi Swad in Modern Style" emerged to deliver convenient Indian flavors, though early chutney recipes failed market tests due to lacking authenticity. By 2020, Chef Vibhor Anand joined to refine the process, leading to the development of genuine regional Indian recipes using local ingredients in 2021.

Idea & Origin Story

2019: Vision Conceived Started with idea: Desi Swad in Modern Style for convenient Indian flavors. 2019: Early Attempts Fail Initial chutney recipes lacked authenticity and did not succeed in market tests. 2020: Chef Vibhor Joins Culinary expert Vibhor Anand joins to refine and perfect the recipes. 2021: Authentic Recipes Developed Each chutney crafted from genuine regional Indian recipes using local ingredients.

--- Speaker Notes: Their first recipes lacked authenticity. Chef Vibhor rebuilt them using real local ingredients. Eventually, even the Sharks were impressed during tasting!

The slide highlights the unique selling points and features of authentic regional Indian chutneys, emphasizing their preservative-free and artificial flavor-free composition. It also notes the premium modern packaging and availability through both online and offline channels.

USP & Product Features

• Authentic regional Indian chutneys

• No preservatives or artificial flavours

• Premium modern packaging

• Available both online and offline

--- Speaker Notes: Their USP = Authenticity + Convenience. It emotionally connects with Indian roots while looking modern and premium.

The slide highlights the company's market journey, showcasing strong revenue growth from ₹4.1 crore in sales for 2021-22 and an ambitious expansion target of ₹9 crore for 2023. It also notes ₹4.7 crore in total funding raised and distribution to over 1,700 stores across 5 cities.

Market Journey & Achievements

• ₹4.1 crore: 2021-22 Sales

Strong revenue growth

• ₹9 crore: 2023 Target

Ambitious expansion goal

• ₹4.7 crore: Funding Raised

Total investor capital

• 1,700+: Stores Distributed

Presence in 5 cities

--- Speaker Notes: Their growth attracted investor confidence, reaching a ₹23 crore pre-money valuation.

The slide outlines key challenges in business operations, including high marketing and sampling costs that strain the budget, alongside negative margins resulting from heavy advertising spend. It also highlights disruptions from COVID-19 to retail sales channels, as well as ongoing issues with cash flow and inventory management.

Challenges Faced

• High marketing and sampling costs strain budget

• COVID-19 disrupted retail sales channels

• Cash flow and inventory management challenges

• Negative margins from heavy advertising spend

--- Speaker Notes: Quality wasn’t the problem — financial discipline was. Acquiring customers cost more than the revenue initially.

The Sharks praised the product's exceptional taste, strong branding, and innovative concept but raised major concerns about the high valuation ask and weaknesses in financial control and management. Namita Thapar ultimately invested ₹70 lakh for 5% equity, leading to a post-money valuation of ₹14 crore.

Sharks’ Feedback & Deal

--- Speaker Notes: The Sharks rated the taste “10/10,” but questioned profitability. Namita saw potential and invested.

The slide emphasizes that a strong product alone doesn't ensure profits, highlighting the importance of execution, cash flow, transparency with investors, and blending authentic Indian ideas with modern execution for global success. It closes with thanks for joining the journey and a call to apply these insights to your next venture today.

Key Learnings & Takeaways

Good product ≠ guaranteed profits. Execution & cash flow matter. Authentic Indian ideas can go global. Investors value transparency. Desi Emotion + Modern Execution = Success.

Closing: Thank you for joining this flavorful journey! Call-to-Action: Apply these insights to your next venture today.

Source: Shark Tank India Case Study – Spice Story

--- Speaker Notes: Spice Story reminds us that strong cultural products can scale internationally — but only with proper financial management.