“Innovation and passion for food are very important in the food business, without these, it’s very difficult to run and survive a brand in a highly competitive business segment. We were the first ones to use nanotechnology in food,” said Dr P Sadananda Maiya, Director, Maiyas Beverages and Foods, also the founder of MTR Foods.
He was speaking at the first edition of the Medianews Futurescope Conclave in Bengaluru on 15th July 2022, on the topic ‘Reinventing a Legacy Brand for the Future’.
On restaurant brand Maiyas reinventing itself for the packaged retail space, he said, “I never thought of creating a second brand. I sold the first company (MTR) in 2007 and for the next five years I didn’t do anything, but that was a learning period for me. I did two PhDs during that period and did a lot of innovation in terms of food technology; hence I made a comeback with the second brand.”
“When I started MTR, I never thought it would become so big. I was ahead of time (1976). That gave us the first mover advantage. The ready-to-cook, spices and mixes segment started taking off, only in the ’90s,” he added.
Speaking about the role of advertising in building his brands, he said, “We advertised on the cricket world cup that India won. We saw no growth in sales. Advertising is of no use if there is no rise in sales.”
He was of course referring to a time when TV penetration was nowhere in comparison to what it is today. For brand Maiyas, a slew of videos informing viewers about the nuances of products and recipes are in the works.
Maiyas is planning to launch its next restaurant at Bangalore Airport on October 3rd, 2022, revealed the speaker.
On the vision for the future, he is very clear. “I want to overtake my old company (MTR). Give me some time. It will happen. In the next two years, we should be doing Rs. 300 crores (turnover),” he surmised.
