How Salud Beverages is Aiming to Become a Global Brand
How Salud Beverages is Aiming to Become a Global Brand

A global lifestyle brand, Salud has been working towards changing the way the world parties with its array of products available for the Indian market. A brand that was ideated to be just a beverage brand evolved into a lifestyle brand purely through the impact of its marketing strategy, and the existing necessity of a brand like Salud in the Indian market.

With a universal appeal, all about unwinding, relaxing, and creating a new way to relax with a refreshing drink, Salud drinks are avant-garde yet retain the nuances of a traditionally prepared Gin and Tonic.

“We were tasked with creating ready-to-drink beverages that were not only a convenient choice for a global audience but a standout in terms of craftsmanship and flavor suited for any occasion. Whether you're in a crowded party, lounging away in your homes, or seated for a social gala, you can pleasantly sip Salud's refreshing range of G&Ts,” said Ajay Shetty, Founder, and Director, Salud Beverages.

Ideation and Journey

With the vision of being an urban lifestyle brand that was available in multiple countries, Shetty’s experience and knowledge of the alcohol industry allowed him to understand the market and its existing gaps. This further helped him introduce products that would eventually fix the same.

Launched amidst the pandemic, the brand’s story is one of innovation and disruption as it has made progress both in terms of sales as well as positioning itself as a lifestyle brand. The brand, therefore, played to its strengths, identifying and filling the market gap.

How Salud Beverages is Aiming to Become a Global Brand

Salud’s USP

Salud’s ability to innovate makes it stand out from its competitors, being able to innovate in both alcoholic and non-alcoholic segments. One of Salud’s most innovative products is the non-alcoholic bitters that elevate a variety of drinking experiences be it cocktails, mocktails, juices, or desserts, thus not just being limited to the beverages categories.

“Our ability to innovate is extremely crucial to Salud’s success and we have a range of delicious and convenient beverages coming your way. The products that are currently available are all phenomenal products and placed at extremely competitive price points,” said Shetty.

Options Galore

Salud’s products range across numerous categories and markets including merchandise, music, and NFTs, however, its primary focus lies in the ready-to-drink segment. The brand intends to introduce products that follow its theme of innovation by creating convenient and elevated drinking experiences.

“The brand will soon be releasing its non-alcoholic bitters to ensure individuals who do not consume alcohol have a way of enjoying Salud. We are also working on releasing the base spirit which will be launched in the coming months,” said Shetty.

Having sold 6 RTDs, the brand has built a strong base across the markets and is moving forward to launch base spirits as well as non-alcoholic bitters. Once fully established in the RTD segment Salud aims to expand into newer categories.

 

How Salud Beverages is Aiming to Become a Global Brand

Technology, Metaverse, and Web 3.0

With its product focus for 2022-23 being RTDs as well as everything else that allows Salud to build a community and tell a story, the brand has been constantly trying to integrate technological innovations that are in line with its vision.

Moreover, the brand’s venture into the Web 3.0 space is a perfect illustration of consistent innovation, “We have mapped out a multi-step long roadmap that includes creating and releasing NFTs, as well as multiple perks given to NFT owners. We created these incredible NFTs through collaboration with Asia’s highest-selling artists,” stated Ajay Shetty. 

Owners of the NFTs will be able to get exclusive merchandise, and early access to Salud Sessions, its music label, and will eventually be able to avail a percentage of merchandise sales.

As a company that is not very large, Salud believes there is not much scope for technological innovations however, the brand plans on having multiple tech innovations once it creates its own plant playing a big role in Salud’s future.

Growth and Marketing

Aiming to create a price-sensitive and accessible brand while retaining a premium quality product, Salud’s venture into multiple different sectors has allowed it to bring out the ‘Salud Experience’ to a larger number of individuals.

Salud’s growth has so far been exponential, with investors including former CEO of Microsoft India Srinivas Koppolu, Anthill Ventures, and actor Rana Daggubati. Completing one year of its growth, Salud has undergone a few rounds of funding and has raised over $2 million. Furthermore, the brand has sold over 40,000 with its growth being targeted to be over 100 percent.

Using D2C for its non-alcoholic bitters to ensure that the products are as accessible as possible, Salud’s unique product portfolio has allowed it to create new and innovative products that have previously not been readily available.

How Salud Beverages is Aiming to Become a Global Brand

Aiming to go omnichannel, the brand believes it to be a long process while actively working towards it. “Salud has multiple products which will require different approaches. As a brand that innovates and creates new products, there is not going to be much data denoting how exactly one can optimize the consumer shopping experience. Therefore this is something which will require a lot of time and effort, but will happen in the future for certain products if not the company as a whole,” commented Shetty.

Future Plans

Salud Beverages recently expanded its retail footprint to Delhi, thus being available in Karnataka, Goa, Chandigarh, and Delhi. Moreover, the brand intends to expand to 4 states in the next fiscal apart from expanding to 11 countries in 3 continents including Africa, South East Asia, and Europe respectively.

With its ultimate goal to be a global brand, Salud aims to create a notable presence all across the globe. “Salud creates products that provide lots of value for the price, and we aim to expand our product portfolio in order to bring Salud to a maximum number of people. We already have multiple verticals we can grow and aim to continue to push them as much as possible,” concluded Ajay Shetty.

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