The RAW Pressery Story -Juices Without Preservatives On A Shelf

Being a tropical country, India is home to unique and exotic fruits people all over the world have come to savour.  Mangoes, ice apples and custard apples are just some of the fruits which are unique and found in India. Fruit and vegetable juices have always held a place in the Indian culture and civilisation in the form of medical remedies or coolers.  From the humble lemon juice to the exotic mango juice, Indians love to make them a part of their daily routine.

Juices in India sold at supermarkets or retail stores always have preservatives added to them in order to increase their shelf life and keep them safe for consumption.  A relatively new player, RAW Pressery, broke out on to the market by advertising their juices as preservative free and all natural, to take on established market brands like Tropicana and Real Fruit Power.

Beginnings

RAW Pressery was founded in 2014 in Mumbai by Anuj Rakyan when he realised there were no preservative free juices available in the market.  Anuj Rakyan began experimenting in his kitchen with various juices and ingredients to come up with a product. After investing INR 80 lakhs from his own pocket and borrowing money from friends and family, Anuj was able to pool INR 1.5 crores to start RAW Pressery.

Growth of RAW Pressery

Once Anuj Rakyan was able to successfully develop juices, he began to deliver the juices himself to his initial clients.  All this had to be done before any bacteria formed in the juices, therefore time was important. As his nutritional and fresh juices started seeing more demand, Anuj Rakyan employed the famed Mumbai dabbawalas to deliver to his clients in Mumbai.  The juices saw their demand surging and before long, RAW Pressery added Pune to its market base.

Godrej Nature’s Basket and Foodhall became retail partners to sell the juices on shelves across their retail locations.  Anuj Rakyan got his big break when investment firm Sequoia Capital decided to invest in RAW Pressery. A cold press was later added to increase the production of juice and also to increase the shelf life of products to 21 days.  A cold press is a technology which avoids oxidation and preserves the nutritional value of fruits, vegetables and nuts.

With the growing demand, the product offerings shot from just six to eighteen present now and divided into four categories—Benefits, Basics, Boosters and Shooters.  Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez was roped in as the brand ambassador for RAW Pressery.

Shelf life and beyond

The juices have a shelf life of 21 days and RAW Pressery makes sure the juices do not go to waste.  Seven days before the shelf life expires, the juices are recalled to be sold at events while it is still safe to consume them.  RAW Pressery also recycles their plastic bottles by collecting them from shops and homes and turning them into polyester fibre. This fibre is used to stitch school uniforms and distributed for free to poor students.

This is the story of a startup which, under the leadership of Anuj Rakyan, was able to capture the market with its strong and original products.  Although RAW Pressery still has a large market to capture, it continues to grow by leaps and bounds. Therefore, it comes as no surprise RAW Pressery saw its valuation grow from INR 5 crores to INR 250 crores in just under four years.