Learn How To Rebrand And Innovate In A Family Business Despite facing severe challenges, how Vishal Chordia rebranded his family business

By Anindita Ganguly

This story appears in the June 2018 issue of Entrepreneur India. Subscribe »

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Picture Courtesy- Entrepreneur India

Born and brought up in a staunch business family, Vishal drew his inspiration from his grandfather. He remembers, "My grandfather used to narrate the tales of how this business was a way of survival for the family. Then my father gradually turned it to a commercial one." This drove him to join his family business in 1999 at the age of 22, post his MBA.

Initially, there was an acceptance issue. However, after the company was re-branded from Pravin Masalewale to Suhana Spices in 2001, things started falling in place and he rose to a leadership role! Vishal explains "It was kind of a logistical nightmare. I had to ensure all the old packages of 140 products were sold out before the launch of Suhana Spices. I invested all most 24 hours regularly before the re-launch. My employees along with my father were sceptical about it, but its successful execution earned me their confidence."

Gradually, the family business saw changes in terms of strategies in acquiring new customers. For him, the route to people's heart was through their spice preference in terms of quantity and variations. "Change in customer requirement is the biggest hurdle we observed and evolved accordingly. Previously, people bought spices with simple packaging or no packaging at all. Now, with the availability of multiple food choices, we had to change our strategy," shares the Chairman of Maharashtra State Khadi and Village Industries.

On that note, the spice variations are created depending on the regional taste preferences of the cities. Chordia did not restrict himslef only in spice manufacturing, he innovated several ready-to-cook cupfull delights for the mass; something ahead of his competitors. "We are customer centric and not a competitor centric organisation. While the northern belt prefers garam masala, the coastal belt likes mustard, on the other hand, the central part indulges in garlic flavour. We could only reach out to the mass by adopting to their requirement. That thought drove me to innovate several ready-to-eat variations like Cuppa Khichdi, Cuppa Poha, instant omlette mix etc.," concludes the 41 year old.

(This article was first published in the June issue of Entrepreneur Magazine. To subscribe, click here)

Anindita Ganguly

Former Trainee Writer, Entrepreneur India

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Franchise

The Simple Formula Behind a Top-Ranked Personal Care Franchise

Great Clips ranked #1 in the personal care category and #33 overall on Entrepreneur's 2025 Franchise 500.

Business Solutions

Business Owners are Cancelling Their OpenAI Membership for This Less Expensive Alternative

1min.AI gives you lifetime access to GPT-4o, Midjourney, Gemini, and more with no recurring costs.

News and Trends

Recur Club Announces Credit Offerings for Startups Beyond Series A and SMEs

In FY 24–25, the platform also plans to deploy an additional INR 2000 crores through its Recur Swift program for startups.

News and Trends

What is DeepSeek and Why is it a Big Deal To Tech World?

DeepSeek also knocked Nvidia from its position as the world's most valuable company, from USD 3.5 trillion to USD 2.7 trillion

News and Trends

Semiconductor Firms Race to Secure Supply Chains Amid Growing AI Chip Demand

Currently only two in five semiconductor firms are confident in their supply chain's robustness. To mitigate risks, companies are shifting towards domestic and regional sourcing