Entry of the bakery into mithai shops
The mithai industry is growing with time; it is changing according to the needs of the consumers. As consumers are more aware of their health now, the industry has also adapted accordingly and is converging more on consumer demands.
Talking about the pandemic, it has hit this industry like every other. Though there are many start-ups and small sweet shops that have suffered due to lockdown, the pandemic has brought new players to the market.
Who are the new players that are fraternising with the mithais? It’s the bakery segment that is making its way inside the mithai shoppe and adding to its value. This is turning out to be quite a quest for both the mithai and the bakery segment.
Today, a lot of mithai shops have a bakery segment. If scrutinised deeply, this move has its own potential. The mingling of baked items with Indian mithai can be seen as a smart marketing strategy for the mithaiwalas. This targets three types of consumers: one that loves both mithai and western desserts; second, those who prefer eating baked food that has minimum oil for health and fitness reasons; and third, those who always prefer to eat cakes and muffins over Indian traditional mithais.
But imagine a person who wants to buy a baked item when they see piping hot gulabjamun or creamy kalakand or a nutty halwa. He/she would definitely be tempted to indulge in mithai, especially with the aroma of hot ghee fusing with jalebis.
While, on the other hand, people who are pure mithai supporters can pair a plate of hot jalebis with baked samosas or kachoris, or try out baked cakes or muffins for a change. The strategy behind this is simple: the bakery and mithai co-join to increase consumer footfall. Where the mithai can be the art of authenticity, with umpteen ranges of traditional sweets, the bakery can be the heart of baking ingenuity with a range of delicious delicacies, including mini cocktail samosas, baked samosa, and croissants, varieties of cakes and pastry and baked biscuit. Then there is chocolate lava cake, chicken Swiss and mayo rolls, tarts, quiches, banana and grape muffins, chocolate croissants, donuts and pizzas.
The entry of a bakery into a mithai shop has undue advantages, like customers can get all that they want at one stop and they won’t need to roam around looking for other exclusive bakeries. While for the mithai shop, the bakery will attract people who go exclusively for baked items, but once they become vulnerable to mithais, the baked goods may tempt them to have mithais, thus increasing the mithai market.
Festivals are around the corner and mithais become a rage during Dusshera and Diwali. But this also brings an extra crowd for the bakery’s specialties, especially for healthy baked items for snacking or eggless cakes, muffins, or cookies. Today, folks who love mithais and swear by them do not mind mixing their festival cuisine with western gourmets.
Mithaiwalas and Bakerman
In many ways, modern-day mithaiwalas are also introducing transparency to what has so far been an opaque industry, dominated by halwais who were loath to share ingredients, recipes and techniques. Today, modern halwais are ready to share their mithai with baked goods.
How far is mithai from bakery items? One has evolved from the other. Mithai, for the main part, is viewed in India as something that accompanies festivals and religious ceremonies, or as “moohmeetha” for family celebrations such as weddings, and big purchases and beginnings (a new car, a factory opening). Even our pantheon is particular – MaaKaali is said to like her kheer as much as Lord Shiva likes his Thandai. The Rig-Veda mentions a sweet preparation called Apupa, a barley flour cake that is fried (or boiled) and dipped in honey, said to be a predecessor of the malpua. The Manasolassa, written in 1130 AD by King Someswara III, describes a doughnut called golamu, a sugar syrup-soaked cheese and flour fritter called channa, and gharikas, which is urad dal batter, fried and soaked in sugar.
Indeed, these sound exactly like the mithai we eat today – and some have evolved to be part of the bakery.
In an industry that’s run by skilled workers who eyeball quantities, and figure out doneness “andaaze se”, modern-day mithaiwalas are bringing the sort of precision, science, documentation, hygiene, lucidity, innovation, and creativity that has been thus far reserved for European bakery items like pastries.
There is no Larousse Gastronomique for mithai. Not yet. But maybe one day we will have our own mithai encyclopedia.
Previously, mithai had a short shelf life, but thanks to technological advancements, mithai can now last for a longer period of time. Not only can they sustain it, but it’s being sent to different places through the online medium. People don’t just send mithai, but they customise it in their own way. They want the mithai to look the way they want it to. Not just mithai, people customize the packaging accordingly. All of this is possible because of a huge technological change.
Many brands in the mithai industry have made their place in the market and also in the minds of the consumers. People know what they have to buy and from where, because when it comes to mithai, people do not compromise. They need the best quality and from the best place.
The mithai industry has been thriving, and it will be more in the coming years. And we will get to see more differences from now on in the future. And the industry will always have something exceptional to give to its consumers, as always.
Hopefully, in coming years, the mithai industry will have more success and India will have more varieties of mithai. A major push in this direction of turning out bigger volumes of strictly quality controlled traditional sweets for commercial sales both domestically and abroad is needed. Entrepreneurs in Europe, North America and Australia are looking into the prospects of manufacturing traditional Indian sweets.
As the mithai shops are growing, they understand the meaning of guilt-free indulgence and are trying to bring alternatives to people in their own shops.
A greater awareness of health also means an increase in guilt among Indian consumers about making impulse purchases such as baked goods. Mithai shops must cash in on this opportunity by strategically pairing indulgence with health benefits.
Creating baked goods that fit effortlessly into healthy lifestyles is key, as consumers will need positive/functional health benefits to counter some of the guilt around indulging in this category.
Alongside mithais, millennials, in particular, are always seeking new flavours and experiences, making flavour innovation key. With hectic lifestyles, Indian consumers are prioritizing convenience, and as loaves of bread and biscuits are fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), bakeries are a go-to option. While Indian consumers have a demand and appetite for baked products, the bakery industry in India faces certain challenges. The industry is generally divided into organized and unorganized, with more than 2,000 organized or semi-organized bakeries, and 1,000,000 unorganized bakeries.
Operational efficiency is a major issue in the industry, as is the lack of technology and skilled workers.
Organized bakeries in India are also utilizing social media marketing and social media engagement to provide targeted and cost-effective marketing. Lacking the large budget of resources of international chains, local bakery-cafes are eschewing traditional marketing to rely on word-of-mouth recommendations rather than social media marketing and social media engagement. Tapping into the artisanal market, smaller bakeries can concentrate on quality over quantity.
Although there are obstacles that are causing losses like a lot of other industries which lack the proper use of types of machinery and other resources, there has been a boom in entrepreneurial endeavors in the bakery industry in India.
Bakery items in shops are also famous nowadays due to their high nutrient value and affordability, are an item of huge consumption. Concerning bakery products, consumers are demanding newer options, and the industry has been experiencing fortification of bakery products to satiate the burgeoning appetite of the health-conscious Indian men, women, and children.
Several healthy wheat-based products have been launched in the Bakery Industry in India, and are gaining popularity at a high rate. The mounting presence of bakery in mithai shops has further triggered growth in the sector.
The Bakery Industry in India is profitable as backed up by several facts and figures. The Bakery Industry in India reached a value of US $7.22 Billion in 2018 and further, the market value is projected to exceed US12 Billion by 2024. When done right without compromising on quality or quantity, the bakery business is easy to scale from a mithai shop. The mithaiwalas need to select what type of bakery you want to run if it’s a bakery café, home-bakery, or delivery kitchen, which is popularly known as cloud-kitchen.
As the second-largest producer of biscuits after the USA and China, India is a key player internationally, and with the entrepreneurial spirit of Indian companies and individuals, it is one of the most exciting regions for the bakery sector.
Changing consumer tastes, preferences, and lifestyle changing habits are shaping the Bakery Industry in India. As part of a global trend, there is a greater demand for healthier products and alternatives, particularly when it comes to bakery goods, which are now more commonly consumed daily as opposed to being a treat.
With high consumption rates, customers want baked goods that are guilt-free, lower in calories, sugars, and are increasingly seeking gluten-free products or goods made with alternative ingredients such as multigrain and whole-wheat.
Insight
The bakery at a mithai store has a lot of possibilities; for example, it may provide healthier options to people who have diabetes or heart disease and prefer to avoid sweets for health reasons. Furthermore, if such persons are accompanied by family members who still like mithai, they can partake in it.
This also applies to those who are strict dieters or who are health-conscious and avoid mithai because they believe it is harmful. Furthermore, if you enjoy mithai with your baked samosas and bread pakoras or a butter croissant, you may choose from both Indian traditional mithai and western desserts like cakes and pastries. In addition, many members of a family have distinct taste preferences. Perhaps one child like Rasmalai while the other enjoys chocolate pastry, therefore alleviating the issues of many large families; they can purchase everything they need in a mithai shop that also includes a bakery.
Furthermore, the ambiance of a mithai business improves if it is diverse and has counters that are as beautiful as ever. Whereas one end offers a wonderful selection of Indian sweets such as barfis, halwas, Ghewar, Rasmalai, gulab jamun, Sandesh, rasgulla, laddoos, and so on, the other end has fragrant baked cakes, breads, pastries, samosas, pizza, sandwiches, muffins, cookies, and so on.
The epidemic has increased demand for healthful and functional bread goods, including as those made with multigrain, almonds, and other nutritious components. Consumers are purchasing a range of bakery items with a high health quotient, since it has been shown that persons with lifestyle conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity are more vulnerable to the fatal virus.
On the other hand, the pandemic has opened the way for a clean and sanitary atmosphere within mithai and bread establishments. Proper hygiene upkeep is a key component in attracting customers to a store. Also, due to fast population growth, increasing foreign influence, the advent of a female working population, and people’s shifting food preferences, the bakery sector in India has grown enormously in popularity.
Bakery goods are also popular nowadays due to their high nutritious content and low cost, and they are widely consumed.
Consumers are seeking novel alternatives in bakery products, and the industry has been fortifying bakery items to satisfy the increasing desire of health-conscious Indian men, women, and children. The bakery business is a historic activity in India and plays a significant role in the food processing sector. Several nutritious wheat-based products have been introduced into the Indian bread sector and are rapidly gaining favour.
The increasing presence of bakery chains has fueled the sector’s expansion. Considering these benefits, the addition of a bakery in a mithai shop will improve the mithai business’s marketing value and quadruple customer foot traffic.
Although the mithai business does not require such a catalyst, the bakery is quickly becoming a part of the mithai shop, therefore the best option is to take full use of it.
Many brands in the mithai sector have established themselves in the market and in the eyes of customers. People know what they have to buy and where they have to get it because when it comes to mithai, people do not compromise; they want the greatest quality and the best location.
The epidemic has caused many changes in the way people think, and in order to assist people buy in one location rather than roaming in these hard times, several mithai companies have begun providing their own bakery dish.
Cake, pastry muffins, pizza, and sandwiches have been added to their menu of Rasagullas, Gulab Jamuns, Bengali sweets, Barfi, and so on.
The bakery business is a historic activity in India and plays a significant role in the food processing sector. Many nutritious wheat-based products have also been introduced in the Indian baking market, and they are fast gaining popularity.
Chocolate, while easier to manufacture, could never compete with mithai due to its lack of cultural history, especially since traditional festival foods, aside from being sinfully delicious, have been meant to enhance health.
The baker’s industry has a long history in India and plays an important part in the food processing industry. Several healthy wheat-based products have been launched and are quickly gaining popularity in the Indian bakery market.