Lucknow: Mosasa in collaboration with Bun Makhan Chai was founded by a group of people, who had a very strong corporate background. Director in the venture, Pankaj Sharma recalls how from struggling during COVID to bouncing back has been quite a journey. He says building a pan India business with 100 plus outlets in three years is how they plan their growth trajectory.
Sharma narrated – everybody in office would love to have tea and he would be the go to person to fetch that hot cup with. His old colleague Rajeev Sethi then circle head of Uninor UP East would take him for a short tea break to a tapri. It was he who on seeing his concern for tea quality pitched the idea to work to build a scalable quality tea brand. This pitch was due to his animated discussions with another colleague Saurav Prakash. Sharma always believed that there should be a more hygienic way of selling tea at a low price. With demand increasing and the eagerness to serve the masses, in 2018, the venture got a formal shape in the form of Bun Makhan Chai. The first outlet was opened in Aliganj. With a setup, the next question was how would one differentiate themselves from the big brands. For Pankaj Sharma and his colleagues the four things that counted the most were being hygienic, tasty food, purity and being high quality.
To add value to this venture the one ingredient that according to them was missing was samosa. Jitender Chutani a dear friend boasted of a distinguished career working for multinational corporations such as IBM, Telenor, and Idea Cellular, made a significant career shift in 2014. Leaving his corporate job, he moved to England with aspirations of starting a business. However, it wasn’t long before he realized his true passion lay in the culinary arts.
Returning to India, Chutani founded his samosa brand, MOSASA, in 2016. He launched his venture with a humble food cart and an innovative outlet in a shipping container. As his business grew, he expanded into regular food supplies for corporates and schools and established a cloud kitchen to cater to a broader audience.
Today, MOSASA, in collaboration with BMC, boasts 12 outlets, marking a successful foray into the food industry. Mosasa now offers samosa of 15 different types which can cater to various taste buds. As a next step Mosasa collaborating with Bun Makhan chai have now opened their first big outlet at UP Darshan Park.
For Sharma and his venture partners the business interest now goes beyond just a food chain. He and his partners are looking at cementing their position as a key player in the hospitality and service segment. By not only catering to respected brands in the corporate world but also touching base with multiple schools. They are also actively working on a cloud kitchen setup where people can order food on demand which can be delivered. In the first expansion phase they plan to target Ahmedabad, Sangli and Pune in Maharashtra, in UP apart from Lucknow they plan to target Kanpur, Allahabad, Gorakhpur and Jhansi.
The focus will also be on bringing some of the most exquisite Indian flavours from across India to Lucknow. For morning joggers and health enthusiasts they plan to have 4 hours of proper health menu which includes salads with yoghurt, cut fruits, juices, sprouts, protein shakes among other offerings. To make it a truly unique experience stuff like banaras thandai, Indore Regada patties, Ahmedabadi daveri, and other authentic foods will be available. They are also looking at a future plan to set up hi – tech hostels where children can stay at affordable rates and get food accessibility.
