Ice- Cream goes Gourmet – WORLD MILK DAY SPECIAL 2020
By Anil Mulchandani May 31, 2020

Someone walking into one of the Huber & Holly outlets will be surprised to see the social vibes in the ice-cream lounge that rivals that of a bar or a pub. Huber & Holly is the brainchild of the Chona family who have been in the ice-cream business from 75 year. The late Satishchandra Chona started his family’s foray into ice-creams in 1944 at Karachi. During the 1970s and ‘80s, his son Pradeep Chona began the expansion of the brand Havmor with an ice-cream factory mechanised to speed up production. Ankit Chona, the third generation of the family, took the ice-cream business on an expansion mode using the franchise route.

Founded in 2016, their new brand Huber & Holly is already available across Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana, and has trendy lounges in cities like Ahmedabad and Mumbai for those who want a more leisurely ice-cream experience. This brand works on the growing trend of customisation that today’s millennials are looking for in food.

FEA talks to Ankit Chona about lifestyle trends in the ice-cream retail sector.

1. For years, ice-cream was a quick service product. You took your family or kids to a cart, a stand, a soda fountain or an ice-cream parlour to pick up the ice-cream to be had on the go or you treated the kids to an ice-cream at the zoo, beach or cinema. Do you think ice-cream customers are now looking for more upmarket and lifestyle experiences?

The Indian ice cream consumer is always evolving, and their needs are ever changing. At our parlours in Ahmedabad, the customers ask “Navu su che” (what’s new?). What worked 10 years before might not work today and hence it was important for us at Havmor before it was acquired, and now with the HOCCO eateries, Huber & Holly and 1944 restaurants to understand the changing consumer mindset. For instance, with Huber and Holly we understood that the consumer’s demand was for superbly attractive, exotic and delicious desserts.

As we realised that the freshly made ice-cream at our factory has a creamier texture and taste as compared to how it is when it reaches the retail counter, the idea of giving factory-fresh ice cream experience was born. This gave rise to what Huber and Holly is today, bringing the freshly churned ice-cream concept in India, featuring mouthwatering flavours that are made live – right before your eyes.

And the best way to gather consumer insight is – well the consumer themselves – either by talking to them directly, taking surveys and feedback, checking reviews or meeting them at exhibitions.

2. Is there a growing number of consumers asking for more sophisticated flavours? How is Huber & Holly responding to the challenge?

A. Yes – with a growing urban middle-class population that now travels the world much more than the earlier generation and with the penetration of internet, the sophistication in consumer demands has grown multi-fold over the last decade.

Some of the demands we have worked to fulfil at Huber & Holly (H & H) are:

* The growing concern among parents about their children eating ice-creams that have artificial colours and flavours. And hence at H&H we make all our products with only natural flavours – the customer can be assured that it is safe to give a child, say a 3-year-old, our ice cream as often as he or she likes.

* Demand for freshness – Fresh veggies, fresh fruits and fresh Ice cream, the new age consumer is willing to pay a premium to get improved quality and freshness. At H&H we always make small batches of ice cream – right in front of the consumer so they know how fresh it is.

3. Although the popular flavours are the ones that keep the counter ticking, some speciality flavours have also gained popularity like Ruby chocolate, Vegan raspberry rose, Yuzu, Iranian chai latte. These are also highly instagrammable!

 

3. Do you think customers are becoming more health conscious, asking for options that are low-fat, low-calorie, high protein, probiotic and `free-from’ products? Have you launched products for such customers?

Yes – consumers are becoming health conscious for sure, and we have launched “PHAB” our range of high protein powders, bars and shakes to meet the demand of this growing segment). But when it comes to ice-creams they are usually looking for indulgence, though we have launched sugar free ice cream and low-fat versions for a few customers. When we dug deeper into the lack of demand for healthy options, we realized that the consumer comes into an ice cream store for gratification. A diabetic consumer we asked shared that he would rather eat full fat ice cream once a week rather than low fat ice cream 3-4 times. Ice cream is indulgence and I believe it will stay that way

 

4. Are consumers looking to experiment with mixes, mix-ins, layers, textures? Do they pay for more indulgences?

Yes definitely. Take our Mighty Midas for example. When Mighty Midas was launched – it was India’s most exclusive ice cream dessert made with over 21 ingredients and wrapped in 24 Karat edible gold leaf. Priced at Rs. 1000 the product saw amazing traction. The biggest learning for us was that an occasion demands something more special than your everyday. You want a product that makes your outing memorable for your family, children, guests or a romantic date. No one says – Remember that time when we had a plain vanilla ice cream? But people will always say – “Remember that time when we ordered that super-rich ice cream that was too much to finish?” The better the story and the more indulgent the product, the better the consumer experience.

5. With ice-creams going beyond a family or kids outing to a more gourmet level, do you find customers accepting savoury, salty and spicy flavours?

Ice cream sure has gone to a gourmet level but non-sweet flavours are yet to become a trend in our country. It sure does add marketing appeal to some brands but when it comes to flavour profile consumers do tend to lean towards familiarity.

6. Is there a trend for customisation in India’s ice-cream market?

Definitely. DIY (Do it yourself) and DIFM (Do it for me) have caught up in the country. With the amazing level of internet penetration in the country consumers are reading a lot and are willing to try more and more new flavours. With this trial comes a journey of self-discovery in terms of the flavours of ice creams, textures, mix ins. The realization of this is how the entire “toppings” section of Huber & Holly was conceived – at the lounge, consumers can fix the ice-cream or sundae with toppings of their choice. Surprisingly, customers are opting for our house special toppings like golden hazelnuts, nutty praline and ruby nutties rather than the usual ones like cookies or gems!

7. Are you working to make your ice-creams more aesthetically appealing for the generation that likes to put up photos of what they eat or buy on social media handles ?

We are constantly working towards making our offerings more aesthetically pleasing – as my father once said “Food is eaten with all senses, but it is always eaten with the eye first”. This has always been true – and has always been our mantra with 1944, HOCCO and now with Huber & Holly. But any eye-appeal and drama quotient should only add value to a product and not be an excuse to compromise on quality – because at the end of the day a good-looking product that tastes great will always sell better than an amazing looking product is not that great tasting.

8. What are the new trends you will be catering to in the near future at your restaurants, parlours and lounges?

Post-Covid the most important aspect in my opinion is offering the same customer dining experience in the comfort of their homes with a surety and confidence that their food is in safe hands and is being prepared hygienically. While delicious and hygienic food has always been our top most priority, now we are also working on getting our own home delivery platform up and running in the next few days. We are working on ice-cream home delivery products that will help offer the same gourmet experience that they would otherwise get at the store. Our focus will be towards food that travels well, that is home delivery friendly, that is value for money, fresh and delicious.