Ahmedabad based Melt In to focus on Mumbai, Pune and NCR expansion

Ice Cream and innovation are something, which Melt In has observed from close quarters. There was a clear insight that with people having more exposure to a broader palate and appetite for an offering brings the best across geographies. There was scope of having a differentiated offering in an environment, which people would love. And, hence, Melt In was born.

Share your entrepreneurial journey and what led to the inception of your brand?

Entrepreneurial spirit and innovation has been an intrinsic way, we have approached things. The idea to start Melt In was out of desire to innovate in business. In fact my sister Astha Gandhi, to whom the credit of starting Melt In goes. It took four weeks gelato training programme at the world’s finest institute, Carpigiani Gelato University. This reinforced our understanding that if it is done in a right way, we could create an experience and product, which would be well differentiated and create resonance to our target audience.

Our experience with Melt In has vindicated our belief in the product and experience, which we set out to create. We hope to take forward this journey with fellow entrepreneurs who are as much passionate about creating a world class dessert experience as we are.

How was the response so far?

The response of Melt In has been good from all perspectives. The customers have appreciated our gourmet offerings and the experience, which we have tried to create. Many of our well-travelled customers put us with the best they have had across countries. This appreciation is also apparent on popular food search and discovery platforms such as Zomato, where we are well rated. From the business perspective, Melt In would be one of the top grossing stores in the city in Ice Cream category; and this has given us confidence to chalk out our expansion plans.

What are the types of cuisines served at your restaurant?

We serve Italian fare, many of these are very popular; but our focus remains on desserts, specifically gelatos and sorbets. We are planning to launch a new dessert category around Valentine’s Day. We are quite optimistic about this category doing well among those who are young at heart.

How are you competing with your competitors?

With respect to the product and experience, we are operating in more of a white space. Our endeavour is to bring this experience to more people across cities. Also, there is a lot of internal focus on innovation.

What is your revenue and target revenue for this fiscal?

With respect to Melt In store sales, our target for FY 2016-17 is approximately four to five times that of FY 2015-16. This increase in sales will be backed by geographical expansion.

What is your expansion plan?

We are looking for expansion in Mumbai and Pune cluster early FY 2016-17 and NCR cluster towards the end of FY 2016-17.