Beyond batter and Malabar parotta, the nearly two-decade-old brand hasn’t been able to create a successful product. With an IPO on the cards, founder P.C. Musthafa wants to find new channels of revenue.
P.C. Musthafa is adored by India’s startup ecosystem. And for good reason. His rags-to-riches story, mixed with his down-to-earth telling of it, with nostalgia and serendipity, strikes a chord with listeners and cheerleaders everytime. This deification over the years has masked a serious problem. Musthafa, while wildly successful in the consumer business, remains a one-trick pony. Perhaps, two.
Since the early 2010s, he has done everything possible to grow iD Fresh Food, his packaged food company, beyond batter and parotta. And he’s failed miserably. A fact that hasn’t registered well because Musthafa is one of the poster children of India’s …
Parvathi covered tech startups and large corporates at The Morning Context. She has been a journalist for eight years. Previously, she worked as a data journalist at The Hindu BusinessLine.
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parvathi@mailtmc.com
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