iD Fresh Founder Talks Sweat-Soaked Beginnings To Transformer-Inspired Packaging

A simple vision for better opportunities has now grown into a batter business empire.

PC Musthafa, founder and global chief executive officer of iD Foods, does not shy away from sharing his humble beginnings. With a story that started in a remote village in Wayanad, Musthafa recounts the tough growth trajectory and learnings in the industry.

The rocky road of this business started back in the remote village of Wayanad in Kerala where Musthafa spend his early days working with his dad at a ginger farm.

"I hail from a remote village in Kerala, Wayanad. During the early days we had no electricity or roads in the village," he said. "My only motivation to go to school was the government's mid-day meal scheme. Breakfast was a luxury for me, my dad was a daily wage worker in a ginger farm getting paid Rs 10 a day."

After failing sixth grade, Musthafa remembers that it was Mathew sir who encouraged him to go back to school. Not only did he get Musthafa to join back but also gave him the mantra that said, when lacking in confidence one needs to take baby steps.

"The smell and experience of success will give you more confidence," he said as he recalls that he went on to top exams and work his way up to earn jobs at MNCs. After meeting some of his immediate commitments, Musthafa decided to come back to India from Dubai to spend more time with his parents.

"An objective was to create more jobs in India," he said. After graduating from IIM Bangalore, the lack of quality and hygiene in the existing idli batter market caught his eye.

Armed with Rs 50,000 and operating from a 50 sq. ft kitchen, Musthafa along with his cousins dove headfirst into the venture. He vividly recalls the initial days to be grueling, as it was a back breaking job where their shirts would be soaked with sweat.

In the initial years of business, the business was doing well in Bengaluru, meanwhile expansion projects became dead-ends.

"We launched the batter in Chennai at that time and lost all the money. It was good learning for us, we stayed focused on Bangalore batter," he said, highlighting that these failures were important learnings.

"The product is the superhero, even today our philosophy is that if there is a better product in the market, we will withdraw ours," he said. The confidence comes from the effort put into "cracking the product" and finding the best version of their products.

"We stick to the recipe our grandmothers used to make it at home, with five ingredients. We also upgraded the packaging into a boat shaped bag as it goes from a pouch to vessel. It's like a transformer, it has to be pouch during storage and vessel at home," he added.

With the company now rapidly growing, Musthafa's vision keeps expanding as he plans for an IPO soon to provide his investors with an exit option.