Technical glitches couldn’t dim Sanket S’s energy as he dove into his startup saga on Indian Startup Times. From bootstrapping Urban Spice in 2011—which scaled to 2,200 events across 14 cities and 40 million+ meals—to launching Scandalous Foods in May 2023, Sanket has mastered food’s chaos. Now a B2B powerhouse for frozen Indian sweets targeting restaurants, it’s raised nearly $1M, hit 50+ crore valuation, and counts Zepto Cafe, Rebel Foods, itc kitchens & Wow momo. As its clients”SCANDAL—Standardization, Convenience, Affordability, Nil wastage, independence on skilled labor, Accessibility, Lightning fast—is our edge,” Sanket revealed.
Urban Spice: Lessons in Scale and Survival
Urban Spice evolved from fresh meal boxes to a catering behemoth, but wastage, pilferage, and standardization tested Sanket. “Listen to clients, hunt white spaces in unorganized markets,” he advised. Event-scale ops honed supply chains, prepping him for food processing.
Scandalous Foods: Spotting the Restaurant Gap
Entering B2B food processing, Sanket targeted restaurants’ need for convenient, long-shelf-life Indian sweets. Blast-freezing tech ensures quality amid India’s unorganized mithai mess—Quirky branding? “Scandalous” sparks conversations, positioning them as the one-stop sweets shop.
Power Partnerships and Rapid Validation
Industry cred from Urban Spice landed deals with food tech giants, treating Scandalous as partners, not vendors. These fueled initial growth, proving B2B’s pull in India’s booming food services amid shifting consumption habits.
Tackling Scale: Tech, Common Sense, and Funding
Standardizing quality means processes over panic—replicating event strategies for production. Bootstrapped initially, marquee investors now validate and guide responsible scaling. B2B branding? “Intangible and offline marketing builds empires behind the scenes.”
Vision: Global Sweets Domination
Next: D2C exports to the Middle East and Southeast Asia, diversifying beyond Indian sweets. Sanket eyes Scandalous as the largest mithaiwala in unplanned purchase of mithai space via TiE food Network. “Collaboration wins in food ecosystems.”
Interview Conducted By : Sejal Thakur
