What’s driving the sales of artisanal ice creams in India?

With an array of brands making small batches of ice cream in unique flavour combinations using locally sourced ingredients, the Indian consumer is spoilt for choice

Throughout the several pandemic-induced lockdowns over the last two years, Karyna Bajaj, executive director at KA Hospitality–which runs the restaurant Yauatcha Mumbai–noticed an increased interest among customers for their dessert offerings. She explains, “When we went into the first lockdown [in March 2020], overall, the city saw the demand for desserts and I guess, comfort foods, in a way, really spike. Even when our guests were at home, they continued to seek our desserts out.” Eventually, during the third wave in January 2022, Bajaj decided, “to do fun ice creams,” recreating their “most beloved desserts with a fun twist.” As a result, earlier this year, the restaurant launched four ice cream flavours, each of which is directly inspired by desserts on their menu–pecan and coffee, hazelnut and praline, chocolate pebble and finally, honeycomb. During the summer, they added coconut and cashew–a vegan option–and mango and mascarpone.

No dearth of choice

The addition of a vegan option on Yauatcha’s menu isn’t new, as ice cream makers like Brooklyn Creamery, Amadora and Minus 30 have been offering milk-free options since a while. No wonder, then, the ice cream market in the country is expected to grow by 15 per cent as per the Indian Ice Cream Manufacturers Association (IICMA). This is after the industry suffered greatly in the last two years, with sales down to half in 2020. While it’s been a tough time for established brands, the pandemic has also seen several artisanal brands crop up across the countr

This means that consumers are spoiled for choice, with ice cream flavours getting more and more inventive and every niche being catered to. Mumbai-based MeeMee’s launched during the pandemic, and offers ice cream cakes, tubs and toasties. Founder Meha Agarwal, a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education in New York, says, “Baking has been my passion but ice cream has been my obsession.” Having successfully run a baking business, The Big Apple Baking Company, she shares, “During the pandemic or right before it hit, I felt a kind of shift, where I felt I want to do something and this is not it, and maybe I need to go back to that ice cream dream I have.” Agarwal’s dream has grown into a business that sells across the city, via her brand’s website, through WhatsApp and delivery apps.

Pandemic-induced pivots

Ashni Shah of NOTO ice creams, which she founded with her husband Varun in 2018, has a similar story to share. NOTO has seen outside investment to the tune of ₹4 crores. She says, “With the pandemic hitting, a lot of stores shutting down, and ice cream not included as an essential commodity for the first couple of months [of the pandemic], forced us to rethink our whole strategy.” So a website was eventually launched and, more importantly, the brand’s offerings are available on delivery apps, even though Shah thinks the pandemic made consumers more patient and more willing to wait “a day or two for delivery.”

This is not to say that the present incumbents are suffering. Sales at Amul are up by 45 per cent for ice cream and other ‘value-added’ products such as lassi and buttermilk, all put together. While some of the uptick in sales may be due to a return to normalcy, there’s also the fact that parts of the country went through a torrid summer. However, the bigger ice cream brands are facing difficulties when it comes to sourcing raw materials and ingredients. The ongoing war in Ukraine and supply chain issues means that prices are rising as well, while the production and export of certain commodities like sugar and milk have also been constrained. Mohit Khattar, CEO at Graviss Foods, Baskin Robbins says, “This year, too, we effected a small price increase just before the start of season to cover the increased cost of dairy ingredients, packaging costs, increased freight costs and so on. The price increase brought about currently does not fully cover the increased costs though.” He goes on to support the growth numbers saying, “Sales has been absolutely exceptional this year. Demand for our products across diverse channels including ice cream parlours, online platforms, food service accounts as well as retail outlets has been very strong.” He also points out, “COVID seems to have heightened concerns of hygiene amongst consumers, leading them to prefer products from national and renowned brands.”

Premium offerings

For makers of artisanal brands, like Mumbai-based Bono Boutique Ice Cream, co-founder Alyssa Chesson says, “Our ingredients are sourced from various suppliers, based on what we need. We definitely feel our customers are willing to pay extra for quality ingredients as it changes the flavour of the ice cream, taking it up a notch.” Bono’s vanilla beans come from Puducherry and Belgian chocolate is sourced from a local supplier. This means that Chesson’s products are priced higher, ranging from ₹710 to ₹950 for a 500ml tub. In comparison, Baskin Robbins’ 500ml tubs start at ₹250. Philosphice, another small-batch ice cream maker, has only eight flavours that are rigorously taste-tested, to achieve founder Ayesha Mehra’s desired taste, sweetness and consistency levels.

The ice cream market in India is one that’s changed tremendously in the last couple of years. Papacream has collaborated with Bollywood producer Rhea Kapoor for a range of four “in-tub sundae experiences.” There are innovations like NOTO’s ice cream bites and the resurgence of ice cream sandwiches at Tandy’s Creamery and Minus 30. From the looks of it, the market sees no need to cool down right now.