Go DESi: Creating new categories

Abstract

Vinay Kothari was trekking in the opulent Western ghats in rural Karnataka's Malnad region when he came across some dried jackfruit bars at a local chai ki tapri1 that he discovered had been made by a local cooperative. As he relished the products, he wondered why such amazing products were not readily available in the urban retail markets. He bought about thirty kilograms of these local and regional products 111 to sell at a flea market back in Bangalore with his sister Raksha Kothari. The stall that had been booked for three days sold out before the first was over. It was this success that triggered the idea of "making forgotten regional foods accessible to urban consumers while creating a revenue channel for rural women".