With the aid of KeHe’s Elevate programme, ice cream company Heritage Kulfi is getting ready to introduce its assortment of South Asian flavours to the Midwest and Northeast, according to brand creator Mansoor Ahmed media.
“My own South Asian ancestry and a sense of nostalgia for the range of diverse ingredients I grew up with but didn’t see represented in the ice cream category served as the foundation for the brand. I thus believed it would be a perfect opportunity to create something that is creative and exciting in a market that is often very sleepy. I had some expertise in frozen distribution, some graphic design, and some learning of commercial ice cream manufacture.
Introducing delicious kulfi flavours to the US market
Heritage Kulfi gets its name and inspiration from the South Asian frozen delicacy known as kulfi, which is thicker than ice cream and frequently made with flavours like rose, mango, cardamom, and saffron. While several Asian frozen treats, like mochi and desserts inspired by bubble tea, have arrived in the US, Heritage Kulfi is the first company to introduce kulfi to the ice cream aisle, according to Ahmed.
“Since this is being done for the first time, South Asians are also experiencing something fresh. They have never eaten saffron or rosewater ice cream in a certain way. It is often created in a very handmade manner and frozen on popsicles. Therefore, it was crucial for me to have widespread appeal among the general public rather than merely expanding on that.
And although Ahmed wants to spread awareness of kulfi flavours, he is also conscious of market trends and offers a clean-label ice cream product that contains milk, cream, sugar, and the flavour’s primary component or ingredients.
“The reason I want to do that is to give that ingredient the kind of space to really shine, and that comes down to my formulation,” he continued.
Ahmed acknowledged that the company encountered a number of difficulties while formulating for ice cream because the flavour profile would alter when it was a liquid mix and frozen. Other difficulties came from the fact that Heritage Kulfi’s formulation included “a variety of florals and teas and ingredients that are completely novel to the commercial ice cream world,” he continued.
Ahmed is considering the possibility of expanding into additional ice cream sub-categories, such as the plant-based ice cream category, now that the recipe has been refined. Ahmed is “aware of criticisms from a consumer standpoint around the various plant-based ice creams out there,” when it comes to flavour and texture, despite the fact that the market for plant-based ice cream is showing indications of expansion.
“I’m very excited because I feel like I have a formulation that had these flavours that maintain that same level of creaminess that you’re expected from kulfi and that same flavour profile within that,” Ahmed said. “I do have plans to expand to that as well,” the seller said. “It is an expanding market, and the novelties have been growing as well.”
Developing the KeHe brand together
With the aid of KeHe and its elevate programme, which offers retail tools for startups to help build their brand, Heritage Kulfi will be making a significant push into the Northeast and Midwest in addition to searching for possibilities to expand its range. According to the announcement news release, KeHe now has 65 graduates and 67 active suppliers in the category. As a result of the programme, brands generally have 170% additional distribution locations.
“They’re a great group of people to work with, so having their internal support and being able to build on that to hopefully be available nationally in different areas within [these] two years is very exciting for a small emerging brand like [mine], and I’m hoping to capitalise on that opportunity.”
According to Ahmed, as part of its elevate programme, KeHe provides its “wealth of information” on retailers and works “very directly” with brands to ensure they get the assistance they need to flourish and develop in retail. Furthermore, KeHe category leaders will meet with businesses in the Elevate programme on a regular basis to determine which stores to contact and when to do so, he added.
While the ultimate objective is to expand into additional stores, Ahmed emphasises the importance of initially developing a strong connection with a distributor.
“Much like in any CPG product, having a retailer interested in carrying it means nothing if you don’t have the distribution behind it to support it,” he added.