How this new age startup is redefining food deliveries- Spicing the food industry with Preppr

• ByStartupStory     |    February 8, 2022

“With the onset of the pandemic we have placed key emphasis on the food that we consume and many of us took upon the hobby of rolling out delicious dishes for their family. While the food that is delivered to us lacks accountability of the quality of ingredients and cooking practices at food outlets, our goal is to revolutionise the home food-cooking experience for our users, using the correct balance of technology and content, ensuring our users enjoy the most delicious dishes with quality ingredients in a jiffy,” said Shubham Thakur, co-founder and CEO of Preppr in an exclusive interview with Startup Story Media.

With developments in the food industry, consumer interest has diverted towards quick commerce and food delivery options like Zomato and Swiggy. However, on the contrary, consumers have started becoming more cautious of the food they intake and are always on the lookout for healthier food options and they want to understand their food better. The ongoing pandemic has further aggravated concerns over hygiene and instilled the necessity of accountability from multiple brands. In an attempt to address the issues of hygiene and further motivate individuals to cultivate the skill of cooking with an added hand holding through high quality recipe video content, Preppr was established.

Founded in 2021, Preppr is a new age startup which offers its users a highly curated, freshly prepped set of ingredients, that is delivered to their doorstep within 33 mins, which they can use to prepare food at the comfort of their house without worrying about the secondary hygiene issues. Once the ingredients are delivered, the users can hop on to the Preppr app and begin the video that acts as a virtual cooking coach. The startup aims to change the way India cooks at home and they’re doing this one store at a time.

Letting out the Foodie

Founded by Shubham Thakur, an engineer and a serial entrepreneur, Mahesh Kumar Singh, a Ph.d from Indian Institute of Science (IISc Bangalore) and the Chief of Business Development at Preppr, Yashpal Zala, Head of Product Development and Sanket Tatiya, Head of Vendor Management and Supply Chain, Preppr is a startup that aims to redefine the way people imagine food. Following his graduation, Shubham was associated with IIT Bombay and it’s Startup Incubator to identify promising startups and incubate the same.

Following that, Thakur marked his entry into the realm of entrepreneurship with his first venture which later on became a success in the IoT and Smart Devices sector. Gathering years of experience as an entrepreneur, he then went out to unlock a venture which he was most passionate about – food and thus Preppr was born.

Talking about the story of inception of the startup along with the inspiration behind the same, Shubham stated, “I have always been a foodie at heart and I always intended to follow my passion for food and create something within this space, and the recent rise and acceptance of D2C startups in India, fuelled my belief even further. While the concept of Preppr has been quite famous abroad, it isn’t something that has hit the Indian market in its true potential. We initially carried out a couple of surveys with around 300 people to understand our market and decipher whether the idea would garner an audience. The survey results pointed towards a need for a platform like ours and we thus went on our journey to build a solid food ecosystem with Preppr”

Decoding the Sizzling Business Model 

Based out of Pune, the startup focuses on multiple aspects rather than just food delivery. The startup is on a wave of producing quality food-content which thereby enables high user engagement and helps in establishing great value for the users while cooking with Preppr. The startup is currently consumer facing and is engaged in serving B2C clients through its app.

Highlighting the business model of the startup along with its journey since inception, Thakur revealed, “We have a very unique business model which is divided into two segments. The first one is based upon direct sales of our Preppr kits through our app, which consists of all necessary ingredients and equipment required to cook up the original recipes developed in-house. Just like alternate delivery apps, customers are supposed to place an order on the Preppr app and the ingredients are delivered to their doorsteps within a short while.

Preppr is aimed at not just being a food company, we are also heavily focused on the content side of it, which is why we have our in-house team of chef and videographers that create the best quality videos for us, keeping a 12-year-olds perspective in mind, so as to make sure that with Preppr, anybody can cook. We have tied up with multiple content creators and influencers to increase the reach of our content for the users.

The second model is based upon franchising our brand out to amazing food partners who share the same vision as us. With the right people on board, we aim to elevate the entire experience of home cooking in India, at warp speed. It has just been 4 months since we hit the market and we are delighted to see a 30 percent week on week growth of our startup which is in line with our future goals as well. ”

Within a short span of time, the startup has been able to garner a reasonable audience for its brand in Pune. The founder revealed that they set up multiple kiosks-styled experience centres in diverse localities which allowed its potential consumer base to experience Preppr, directly from the team. Further to garner more audience, the startup conducted multiple cooking competitions in key localities across Pune which drove up engagement and reach for the food app. The founder has attributed the ongoing success of its venture to its highly determined team and amazing mentors including Mr. Ashutosh Kumar (Head of Prasthutha Foundation, Bangalore) and Mr. Girish T (Member of Committee, Bowring Institute, Bangalore) who have been an instrumental part of their journey.

Elaborating upon the key attributes of the business which sets the startup apart, Shubham revealed, “We are certain that there might be multiple players which are present in the food delivery segment but the model which we work upon is unexplored. Our app which is user friendly and has an elaborate interface is something which is better than any other player. We have never paid unnecessary heed to the work of our competitors in a manner that would negatively affect our operations. We do not wish to be copycats. We believe firmly in obsessing over our customers and figuring out ways to improve their experience, rather than obsessing over competition. It’s not a great strategy to be obsessive over the competitors when you are focused on creating a world class organisation very fast”.

Growing the food revolution and a word for entrepreneurs 

With only 4 months since inception, the growth exhibited by the startup tops charts with its presence being noteworthy across Pune. Moving ahead, the startup also intends to expand and replicate its business model across key cities ranging from Gurgaon to Bangalore. The operations of the startup are geared up to hit the Bangalore market within the next few months. Further, the startup has also set its eye on becoming a formidable player in the market which does not suck a hole in the pocket of its customers and delivers world-class food experience to its users. 

On being asked to give a word of advice to the budding entrepreneurs, Shubham Thakur expressed, “Through my years of experience a thing that I can advise is to be a horse with blinkers. Once you are clear with what you are building and your thought process is doubt- less, it is essential that budding entrepreneurs run with zeal and enthusiasm towards the idea. Once you have set your mind to it, there may be a lot of noise distracting you, just stay focused on the end goal”

With its plans panned out and the key operations doing wonders, Preppr is all geared up to take over the food industry for a ride.

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