Ambika Malvia and Vikram Kotibhaskar went from selling their authentic Indian meal kits at Sydney farmers’ markets to being ranged in Woolworths supermarkets across the nation through Seedlab Australia, a Woolworths Group-funded small business incubator and accelerator program.
Making dreams a reality for small businesses
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“I truly believe that some people eat to live and other people live to eat and we fall into that second category,” Vikram tells Woolworths Group. “Growing up, my mum was an amazing cook, and that started the journey of discovering how flavours, fragrances and textures come together.
“Being foodies, Ambika and I used to have a lot of dinner parties with friends, who’d ask us for recipes for the dishes we’d make. That highlighted to us that there was a need for us to be able to bring a product to them that they’d otherwise find very difficult to make at home.
“And that's how Spicecraft was born.”
Vikram travelled to Delhi to learn the art of making the perfect butter chicken with the team at Moti Mahal restaurant, who are famed for inventing the iconic Indian dish.
The couple sourced the highest quality spices from across the globe and soon began selling their fragrant Spicecraft meal kits at Orange Grove Market in Sydney’s inner west, often with their daughter Tara in tow.
In a bid to scale and grow their brand, Ambika and Vikram applied for Seedlab Australia, a small-business accelerator and incubator program, which is fully funded by Woolworths Group.
Seedlab provides training, mentorship and unique opportunities for small, local and regional founders, like Ambika and Vikram, and their Fast-Moving Consumer Goods businesses throughout Australia and New Zealand.
The free program, which recently received an additional $7 million in funding over three years from Woolworths Group, gave the couple the skills, confidence and knowledge to upscale their business.
After completing Seedlab’s six-week Bootcamp incubator program, they signed up for the Cultivate Accelerator program, a free structured four-month course for small businesses with unique, scalable propositions.
They were invited to take part in the Seedlab Expo, held at Woolworths Group’s Norwest Support Office, where they impressed Category Manager Tom Rojas and Serena Anson-Cope, Head of Specialty Range and Supplier Development for Woolworths Supermarkets.
“It was immediately clear that, with some fine-tuning, the Spicecraft meal kits were exactly in line with what we were trying to do in Indian Foods at the time,” says Tom.
“We were already offering a range of Indian meal kits, but the Spicecraft kits are clearly a step up in interest, involvement, and delivery. Just as importantly, Ambika was quick to grasp what we were trying to do, and worked hard to reformulate her existing offer into exactly what we wanted.
“She is quick, responsive, and flexible in her approach. Working with her was easy. Not every prospective supplier could have done what she did. Seedlab is a great mechanism for bringing category managers and small, highly-motivated potential suppliers together.”
Spicecraft was given a trial at two Woolworths supermarkets, Double Bay and Crows Nest, before Ambika and Vikram learnt their brand would be ranged in 400 Woolworths stores across Australia.
“Seedlab was transformational for our business,” says Ambika. “In six years, Spicecraft has grown from just a little idea between Vikram and I to now being ranged in 400 Woolworths stores.
“None of this would’ve been possible without Seedlab and Woolworths Group. They helped transform our business in unimaginable ways, beyond our wildest dreams.”
Seedlab Australia co-founder and CEO Dr Hazel MacTavish-West says the new three-year $7 million commitment from Woolworths Group would be a “game-changer” for more than 500 small business founders who, like Ambika and Vikram, will benefit from the extra support to take their businesses to the next level.
“To make a decision to stock a product that's developed by a family business and then to range it throughout almost half their stores nationwide, changes the face of small business,” says Dr MacTavish-West.
“Our partnership with Woolworths Group is everything because it comes with financial support, and it comes with real support and mentorship that money can’t buy. It’s priceless.”