The Belgian Waffle Co, owned and run by Bloombay Enterprises LLP, has expanded its horizons. The brand is currently concentrating on adding more new outlets to its inventory and getting into the FMCG category via e-commerce platforms and their stores.
Taking a multichannel approach, the brand, launched in 2015, now aspires to be present across categories such as QSRs, e-commerce platforms, modern trade, and A-list stores across the country.
It was the pandemic that accelerated the digital and FMCG growth of the company. “We had always planned to naturally extend into this segment and Covid fuelled the need to expedite this and diversify. We have a skilled product team and the right expertise that allowed us to innovate and create the perfect product basket for retail consumption, which resonated with our core brand promises,” said Shrey Aggarwal, founder of The Belgian Waffle Co.
The pandemic also prompted the QSR chain to focus as much, if not more, on online performance than in-store performance. However, the founder believes that the game will be played on an omnichannel level in the future, rather than online, in-store, or in silos.
“While third-party delivery platforms will continue to be a key lever in our growth platforms, we do believe having our own D2C platform will help us take our online experience to the customer even further and provide more value. Our own brand store will launch in the next couple of months and will provide some exciting additions,” Aggarwal added.
Belgian Waffles Co. began with a single location in Mumbai and has since expanded to 75 cities in India and Nepal, with 275 locations. In the next three years, the waffle company hopes to become the country’s most significant QSR dessert player, with 750 locations across the country and overseas.
“For our core business, we have always had a Pan Indian focus and ensured our model is built to fit that vision of scale while prioritising quality at all times. Our products have a high shelf life and we provide our own custom products and flavours centrally to all our own and partner stores throughout the country and internationally through 3P logistics,” Aggarwal stated.
He believes that today’s consumers are more adventurous and responsive to a good product. Gen Z and young millennial audiences are well-versed in global tastes and trends, as well as their preferences. He went on to say that the epidemic had a significant impact on consumption patterns.
He said, “We are seeing online consumption increasing and with higher ticket sizes than in-store purchases. With stores back open now, we are also witnessing consumers flocking back to our stores and picking up from where they left off. I think the consumer preferences are now going to be an amalgamation of offline and online consumption patterns, and those who serve omnichannel experiences and provide quality and convenience will make the most.”
