Meet The founders of Sweet Karam Coffee Nalini Parthiban Anand Bharadwaj Srivatsan Sundararaman and Veera Raghavan. transformed grandmother’s recipes from their home kitchen into a South Indian snack company with 11.5 Cr in sales

Learn How The founders of Sweet Karam Coffee Nalini Parthiban Anand Bharadwaj Srivatsan Sundararaman and Veera Raghavan. transformed grandmother’s recipes from their home kitchen into a South Indian snack company with 11.5 Cr in sales. Founded in 2015 by Nalini Parthiban and Anand Bharadwaj in Chennai, Sweet Karam Coffee produces preservative-free South Indian snacks that are inspired by their grandmother Janaki Paati. The company currently serves clients in more than 30 countries as well as India.

• Inspired by their grandmother’s traditional South Indian recipes, Nalini Parthiban, Anand Bharadwaj Srivatsan Sundararaman, and Veera Raghavan founded Sweet Karam Coffee in 2015.
• With ₹11.5 crore in revenue, the brand has turned home-kitchen snacks into a scalable enterprise.
• Preservative-free South Indian delicacies are now available from Sweet Karam Coffee in more than 30 countries and throughout India.

Get to Know Sweet Karam Coffee’s Founders

Nalini Parthiban, her spouse Anand Bharadwaj, and their cousins Srivatsan Sundararaman and Veera Raghavan founded Sweet Karam Coffee.

Nalini attended Anna University to study engineering before earning her MBA. Prior to officially entering the family business, she held positions at IDP Education and the Royal Bank of Scotland. Anand offered planning, sourcing, and sales knowledge from his time at Hindustan Unilever.

The business expanded for years in tandem with their normal employment. “We worked in the mornings and had Sweet Karam Coffee at night,” Anand remarked. Nalini moved full-time in 2021 when orders stabilized, and Anand followed her in 2023.

Also read: To challenge Spotify’s Backstage, Port raises 100 million with a valuation of $800 million

The Origin of Sweet Karam Coffee

Janaki Paati, whose cuisine influenced the founders’ early years, is at the center of Sweet Karam Coffee. Making fresh jaangris, murukku, and mysurpa at home required spending a lot of time in the kitchen on Diwali. While she prepared, the grandchildren listened to her stories and assisted with modest chores.

The family began preparing their own food with just 2,000 and a little kitchen. While Nalini and Anand manually packed boxes and transported them on a two-wheeler, the family’s women prepared small amounts.

Orders were generally placed over the phone, usually during festivals, and there were sluggish months. Nalini remarked, “There were days when we delivered everything ourselves.” As demand increased, particularly during the Covid era when people yearned for comforting, home-cooked meals, the home kitchen gradually developed into a legitimate enterprise.

Our grandma used to prepare jaangris, murukku, and mysurpa at home every Diwali. We started Sweet Karam Coffee as a result of helping her in the kitchen, Nalini tweeted.

Also read: Meet The 28-Year-Old Businessman Driving The Food Industry’s AI-Powered Financial Revolution

Concerning Sweet Karam Coffee

Sweet Karam Coffee produces South Indian snacks and candies free of artificial ingredients, palm oil, maida, and preservatives. The goal is straightforward: prepare food in the same manner as the family. “We wouldn’t sell it if we wouldn’t cook it for our own family,” explains Nalini.

With more than 100 products ranging from 99 to 899 for festival packs, the firm currently offers snacks, candies, chips, pickles, papads, filter coffee, and ready mixes.

Both at their Triplicane facility and through reliable manufacturing partners, food is prepared. Testing, packing, and shipping are handled in a 10,000-square-foot office and warehouse in Guindy, Chennai.

Also read: Mirelo raises 41 million from Index and a16z to address the silent issue with AI video

Financials of Sweet Karam Coffee

Sweet Karam Coffee generated operational revenue of 11.48 crore in FY24, according to MCA filings. Compared to 1.73 crore in FY23, this represented a significant increase.

FY25 official files have not yet been made public. Nonetheless, the founders have stated in interviews and on social media that the company’s annual revenue run rate has continued to rise quickly.

So far, Sweet Karam Coffee has raised more than $12 million. Fireside Ventures made the initial investment, and Peak XV Partners led a subsequent round in which Fireside Ventures also participated.

Also read: I have more money than I’ll ever need after selling my business for hundreds of millions. However, I have no intention of retiring at age 66

The Future of Sweet Karam Coffee

Sweet Karam Coffee currently intends to open physical locations in Bengaluru and Chennai. Additionally, it intends to expand its export business and establish closer ties with hotels, offices, and gift purchasers.

Nalini Parthiban is unwavering on one thing despite the company’s expansion. She tweeted, “Palm oil is inexpensive and extends shelf life.” But why should we use it in our business if we wouldn’t use it for our own families?

Sweet Karam Coffee demonstrates how straightforward cuisine, sincere labor, and consistent effort can come together to create something significant, from one soggy Diwali evening to restaurants all around the world.

Also read: First Voyage raises 2.5 million for their habit-building AI companion

About The Author