How this Psychology teacher turned entrepreneur saw sweet success with her chain of dessert stores

Some women believe they were always destined to be entrepreneurs. And there are others who take up conventional careers before they realise they are cut out for the business world and its risks, challenges, and successes.

Swati Chugh, Director of 7^th Heaven, a popular chain of dessert stores across India, decided to take up teaching after completing her master’s in Psychology from Jai Hind College, Mumbai. After she got married, she taught the subject in Delhi Public School and then decided to join her husband Arjun who was running 7^th Heaven.

From teaching to entrepreneurship

It was a fortuitous leap in many ways. The startup was launched in 2013 as part of Kitchen Fragrances India LLP, and a franchise model a year later in 2014. Since then, 7^th Heaven has rapidly grown in the retail space in a traditional and trendy concept, with more than 150 stores, and having its presence in over 75 cities and 21 states.

Swati says, “The F&B sector is extremely dynamic, but has immense potential if you understand the segment well. We have always been interested in food and desserts, and believe they are an integral part of any home. Whether it’s a big family, small or for someone living alone, the target consumer belongs to a wide range. So, we decided to take the plunge to pursue the passion of bringing innovations in the bakery industry and building a brand on quality and values.”

For different palates

Swati says a lot of hard work went behind making sure that we had all the business elements right.

“We invested in the right places to make sure there was no compromise on quality. Efforts were made to figure out the logistics and make sure they functioned seamlessly. The break-even time ended up being longer than expected, but we remained resilient and soon enough, our persistence bore fruits,” she adds.

According to Swati, all their stores have an international look and feel that makes it the perfect ambience for the customers to keep coming back.

“We understand that different people have different taste palates, and that’s why we have something for everyone with a huge variety of desserts.”

These include brownies, cheesecakes, customised cakes, and macaroons.

7^th Heaven also came up with the concept of a Live Kitchen where cakes are made in seven minutes so that they sell only fresh products, fresh out of the oven.

Swati explains, “Unlike other bakery chains that use a central kitchen to bake cakes and then distribute to various outlets, we have a live kitchen in every outlet so that we serve only fresh and soft cakes. This is a huge hit with our customers because the difference in quality is a distinguishing factor that makes us stand apart from the rest.”

Apart from desserts, it also offers 3D designer cakes, macaroons, chocolate pizza, mug cakes, and cupcakes.

After much research on pricing, 7^th Heaven found a tipping point that is neither too low nor too expensive for its consumers. This helped in reaching out to more people without compromising on the quality of products.

Swati says the best stories in the journey are the ones where we have touched people’s lives or become a small but significant part of their lives.

“We believe our job is to spread happiness wherever and whenever possible. Some interesting ones that have stayed with us are stories like this couple who would visit us daily to share a paneer puff. Another customer ordered cakes from us right from her baby shower to her son’s fifth birthday party a few weeks ago. So, we feel really grateful to be able to play a vital part in the lives of our customers and grow with them, in good times and the rest.”

Right strategies

7^th Heaven has used both ATL (above the line) and BTL (below the line) forms of advertising to stay relevant to consumers. Its strategy has been to hit the right balance between being informative and creative in its communication.

“From print ads like leaflets to newspaper ads, radio ads, hoardings, movie theatre collaborations, free sample tasting to customers, online ads, and membership programmes, we have used different media vehicles to form a certain connection with our customers. This has helped us in forming a bond with our existing customers while constantly reaching out to potential customers.”

The biggest challenge Swati faced was entering an industry they were not completely aware of. “We learnt on the go as we put in a lot of efforts, constantly studied the market, had a few setbacks that we overcame, took some time to break even, but overall it was a wholesome journey.”

While declining to share exact revenue details, the founder, however said, that the business broke even in three years and then started making profits.

Currently, due to COVID-19, its outlets are shut, but they are looking at ways to restart the catering side of the business.

When things get better, the plan for the future is to go international with its first store opening in Dubai.

“It took a lot of persistence, learning, and investment to reach where we were before the lockdown. We are sure we will come back stronger as we are taking this time to build our goals, strengthen new ideas, plan new strategies, and focus on the future,” says Swati.