When we talk about cider style alcoholic beverages, Fruzzante is the first name that flashes in front of eyes. They are the pioneers of wine made from Chikoo. Along with Chikoo, the brand has more variants like Pineapple, Spice garden (chikoo with a mix of honey and spices like Cinnamon), Starfruit (mixed with grapes). They would be launching more variants like strawberry and orange too. Founded by Priyanka Save and Nagesh Pai, who are engineers by profession and were working in the USA, before they quit their respective lucrative job to answer their calling, strongly believe in building sustainable economy have been sourcing their products only from the local farmers, like Mango from Ratnagiri, Pineapple from Sindhudurg, Strawberry from Mahabaleshwar, thus building a chain of the economy and helping the farmers grow and prosper. In an exclusive interview with TMM Priyanka Save and Nagesh Pai share insights about making wine from fruits and the story behind Fruzzante’s inception.
What made both of you come up with Fruzzante, despite having high paying jobs in the US?
Our secured jobs were never a consideration when it came to starting Fruzzante, because we always had a soft corner for the orchards of Dahanu-Gholavad. That is where I grew up and saw first-hand the tribulations that farmers had to face during the seed border disease of 2004. We thus share a profound affection for not only farm-grown fruits but also for the local farming community as we witnessed entire plantations being slashed and uprooted. We’ve always felt that community service is the most valuable currency there is, which is why we established Fruzzante as a quest to revive and popularize the chikoo market.
What is the USP of the brand?
Fruzzante is the first and only producer of chikoo wine in the world. In this sense, we are truly unique in our aims to glamorize the cider and fruit industry as well as earnestly put our local farmers back on the map. Our products are also vegan and gluten-free, making it an easy choice for consumers.
What are the avenues where Fruzzante is available? 
Our wines are available in Dahanu and Bordi, Palghar, Pune, Nagpur and in Mumbai. Having said that, we are envisaging to create stronger distribution networks across the state of Maharashtra for modern consumers to avail Fruzzante products.
Who is your target audience?
Fruzzante strikes a chord with audiences who are essentially beer drinkers and enthusiasts. It is thus intended for modern consumers who are increasingly craving for unadulterated beverage options.
As entrepreneurs, what kind of challenges you face?
Our initial challenges were more product-centric considering chikoo is a highly perishable fruit. Only after extensive research conducted were we able to tackle the challenges head-on. The next challenge existed in the form of packaging, which we overcame by installing state-of-the-art fully-automatic bottling machines which ensure that bottles are efficiently rinsed, filled, and capped. In addition, the collaborative use of the bottling machine and the air-conditioned storage facility helps maintain comfortable temperatures for product storage.
To be truthful and benevolent, nature and distinctiveness of our product and supportive components such as local farmers, our brewery, and our award-winning winemaker put together have lessened the threshold for any challenges in our entrepreneurial journey.
How does Fruzzante keep itself different from the competition?
Once we nailed it on the head, there hasn’t been a need to keep making ourselves different from the competition. We will always be the world’s first producer of wine made from chikoo extracts and are currently the only player as well. We are also the only company producing fruit-based and non-grape bottled products in the wine category that is currently commercially available. Adding to that, we are also vegan and gluten-free which makes it a great choice in the wine category. We are thus both proud and grateful that our difference will always remain unhindered.
What are your future plans? Would you be coming up with a new and different brand offering?
You have guessed that right. In terms of product diversification, our plans are to work with several other fruits soon by going beyond our Pineapple, Mango, Starfruit and Spice Garden products. We are currently working on strawberries and will be adding some more fruits in the near future. We also envision tying up with a few distributors to form a stronger distribution network in Maharashtra and Western part of India.
What is your advice for aspiring entrepreneurs?
From our own experience, we can only advise future business heads to prioritize extensive market research and product/service development to truly create an engaging experience for the consumer.
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