A company that started with just Rs 2,000 in a Chennai home kitchen is now a snack brand valued at Rs 580 crore. Sweet Karam Coffee was founded in 2015 by Nalini Parthiban, her husband Anand Bharadwaj, and their cousins Veera Raghavan and Srivatsan Sundararaman.
The company has served more than 19 lakh customers and received over 60 lakh orders. It also ships its products to more than 30 countries. Its revenue grew from Rs 11.26 crore to Rs 46 crore in FY25. Around 45% of its customers reportedly return to buy its products again.
The brand sells more than 100 types of snacks, sweets, coffee and other food products. Its range includes murukku, mixture, banana chips, Mysore Pak, laddus and South Indian filter coffee. The company says its products are made without palm oil, maida, vanaspati, added preservatives or artificial colours.
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Some products, such as Mysore Pak, do not stay fresh for long. So, the company uses special packaging to keep its products fresh for longer.
“Inspired by our love for clean, healthy, homemade and traditional South Indian snacks, we set out to share the flavors and stories of South India with the world,” said Parthiban, as quoted by Yes Press.
The founders started the business using recipes passed down by their grandmother. They wanted to bring the taste of homemade South Indian food to more people.
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“Build for the customer is my mantra,” Parthiban stated.
Sweet Karam Coffee has now gone beyond Chennai and sells its products across India. It sells its products through its own website and app, online marketplaces, retail stores and quick-commerce platforms such as Blinkit and Zepto. It also has a separate website for international customers.
In FY25, around 55% of the company's revenue came from online marketplaces and quick-commerce platforms. Its own website and app contributed about 35%, while offline sales accounted for around 10%.
Sweet Karam Coffee competes with established snack brands such as Haldiram's and Bikaji, as well as local sweet shops.