“For the first time in 6 years, I’m scared,” said the Bengaluru-based salad start-up owner as he talked about his entrepreneurial journey. Varun Madan highlighted the challenges of scaling too quickly. The story, shared in an emotional post on X, highlights the dangers of overexpansion and reliance on third-party platforms. Written from his central kitchen in Bengaluru at 3 AM, the post begins with a sobering confession.
The founder started the journey in 2018 while working a tech job in Gurgaon, frustrated with the lack of healthy food options. “Every salad was either wilted lettuce drowning in mayo or overpriced greens that didn’t fill you up,” he recalled. Inspired by this lack of satisfaction, he began to experiment with making fresh, tasty salads for himself and his colleagues.
Bengaluru-based salad start-up owner shares how his business evolved over the years
What began as a personal project from home soon evolved into a business (pitching from a rented 180-sq-ft kitchen space in Galleria Market and a small seed money of ₹8 lakh).
Initially, orders were minimal (12–15 per day), but then, by using only fresh ingredients and using large portions, demand increased. As of 2020, orders had grown to 180–200 per day (supported by better unit economics and bulk corporate orders during the pandemic).
However, the growth trajectory came with significant challenges. Expansion to 78 cloud kitchens in India resulted in escalating operational costs, intense competition, and an overwhelming workload on third-party platforms, which as of now, is 92% of the total number of orders. Growing platform levies, algorithm changes, and new replacement recommendations are all squeezing out margins, with monthly expenses shooting up to ₹80 lakh.
Pondering these challenges, the inventor regretted having overwhelmed the scale for sustainability where allowed. “I pushed for expansion where I should have been working on a more robust solution,” he conceded. Action is now being taken to close 40% of the kitchens planned.
He ended a moving statement to business owners saying, “Sometimes the smartest way to create something large is to stay small enough to survive.
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