“The Shark Tank India deal will prove to be beneficial for my brand” – Boba Bhai founder Dhruv Kohli

One day, while sipping on a cup of boba tea, Dhruv Kohli came up with a business idea which he believed, if executed well, could turn out to be a huge success. Soon, he launched Boba Bhai, a food brand that caters to the tastes and sensibilities of the GenZ. Along with a variety of boba tea, the brand sells burgers and ice creams.

At the moment, Boba Bhai has 40 outlets and a cloud kitchen in Bengaluru. After creating a huge consumer base for his brand in a short span of time, Dhruv arrived on the sets of Shark Tank India 4 to pitch his brand to the Sharks. The entrepreneur’s pitch left a strong impact on the Sharks and he ended up getting a solid deal from Viraj and Namita.

You sold 1% equity of your company to Viraj and Namita for Rs. 90 lakh. What kind of value, you think, they will bring to your brand?

The Shark Tank India deal will prove to be beneficial for my brand. Viraj is known as the ‘sauce king’ of India. We can learn a lot about the market from his. Namita, with the kind of experience she has, can open up a lot of markets for us.

In the last few years, the youth in India has taken to Korean culture in a big way. According to you, what are some of the pertinent reasons behind that?

30 years ago, India started getting influenced by America. Whatever the west did was supposed to be cool. People have moved away from Hollywood and are into K pop and K Drama. Korean culture has now become aspirational for the Indian youth. They want to look cool and that’s why they are bowing a lot of elements from this culture.

This, in turn, has created a very competitive market space. A lot of businesses, both organized and unorganized, are selling products based on Korean culture.

Competition proves to be healthy for any business. Earlier, momos would only be sold on the streets. Now, one can see them being sold in organized stores. Along with variety, these stores offer a hygienic environment and a better customer experience.

What kind of plans do you have for Boba Bhai this year?

We want to expand to a 100 stores. We hope to earn more than a 100 crores in ARR. We are constantly working towards elevating customer experience. Creating a healthy workplace for our employees, too, has been one of our topmost priorities.