Mriganka Kumari, Founder, Pratapgarh Collective recently appeared on NewsX for an exclusive conversation, as a part of its special series, NewsX A-List. Mriganka spoke about her brand, the recent controversy around adulterated honey and making India aatmanirbhar (self-reliant).
Talking about her brand and it’s conceptualisation, she said, “Pratapgarh Collective was conceived in 2017. I had just finished working in Delhi and was spending a lot of time back home, doing a lot of exhibitions and happened to meet Dr Nitin who educated me through a fascinating process. How the raw flower honey is prepared and with the new kind of machinery and technology available, this is something I really wanted to dab into. Also, I was looking to attach myself to the agricultural industry, cottage industry, which was low in consumption of power, labour and something sustainable and eco-friendly. That’s how it came about.”
Speaking about the response received since the brand started, keeping in mind the Covid pandemic, Mriganka said, “I wanted to launch Pratapgarh Collective in 2019 but like every venture takes time, my website was under construction. I was still designing my packaging, March 2020 is when we launched ourselves and around then the pandemic struck. It was actually a good time for us, a blessing in disguise as I feel a lot of people had a lot of time on their hands, so there was great visibility and people were reading the content. People were paying heed to what you had to say so we had three months to work on our visibility and our outreach but Covid did impact us. It had its cons, mobility and courier service was a problem. Even if people were liking the product, how do you get to send the product across and migration was happening so our farmers weren’t there. So, nobody was harvesting the honey at that time. With time, things started easing out and it picked up again. Those three months worked.”
Talking about the USP of the brand, Mriganka said, “Coming from a place like Pratapgarh, I feel that Pratapgarh Collective is an extension of me. I live a simple life. That’s what Pratapgarh Collective believes in—simplicity, what you see is what you get. Our philosophy is bee to bottle, farm to table. We don’t overheat or over pasteurise our honey, it’s in the rawest form. We believe in ethical sourcing. We do believe in the bulk game and numbers but not putting a strain on the supply chain. Every batch is a small batch made with a lot of labour and love by a beautiful team. We work hard and it’s the purest honey we can provide.”
Commenting on the recent adulterated honey controversy and its impact on consumers and Pratapgarh Collective, she said, “Honey is extremely vulnerable to food fraud. Any sort of adulteration will lower food quality. The easiest thing is NMR which is Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, a five-minute procedure which differentiates the compound mixture. What intrigues me is that you can control the soil quality but how do you control the air quality. The bees make honey as they do, the process won’t change. Also, as a supplier, your conscience should be clear, people are trusting you with their health, you’re feeding people. Having said that, our honey is not over-pasteurised or overheated and our single source of nectar is from a mono flower, we do 100% raw flower honey.”
Speaking about the new emerging trends in the industry after Covid-19, Mriganka said, “Everything is becoming more virtual and digital, everybody is seeing that shift and working towards it and so are we. When you’re on Instagram, you use a hashtag,. What I see is that people are now shifting to the old way of living and that’s great as that’s what Pratapgarh Collective wants to do. We want to celebrate the old age practices, the way we used to live earlier, what you grow is what you get on your table. There’s a big trend in e-commerce, Instagram is used everywhere. Our main work mode is via Instagram and the website.”
She spoke about celebrities, fashion industry and sportspersons endorsing and appreciating the brand on Instagram. “Even when I started, I was extremely confident about my product. I was never intimidated or felt apprehensive about reaching out to people. I had help from friends and family who work with these people so access was easier. There were a lot of people, many celebrities who I shot emails at and they were kind enough to reply. They genuinely liked the product, hence they posted about it. Many of them reached out to us via Instagram as well so it’s nice and also our growth into this has been slow and organic. People are reaching out to us because somebody has tried it and they liked the product. It’s overwhelming and nice when that happens.”
Talking about the citizens of India coming together to support local products to make India truly aatmanirbhar, Mriganka said, “This is a great time for local, homegrown brands, and startups like us to grab the opportunity as I feel there is a void that can be filled. The government is aiding local brands and especially, women entrepreneurs. There are subsidiaries in departments of horticulture. Everyone is now realising that we need to stop looking at the West and look inwards as these things are already there, you just need to appreciate them more and understand their benefits. Something as simple as honey had been a part of Ayurveda and we know its benefits. It’s a great time for startups like us to reach out and grab the opportunities being presented.”
“Everything is becoming more virtual and digital, everybody is seeing that shift and working towards it and so are we. When you’re on Instagram, you use a hashtag. What I see is that people are now shifting to the old way of living and that’s great as that’s what Pratapgarh Collective wants to do.”