“At Nithara, the Coffee is freshly ground, packed and delivered within short spans of time to ensure that the coffee delivered is fresh and flavourful.”

Nitish Harihar
(Founder, Nithara Coffee)

When you sit sipping on your morning coffee or working on your laptop at a coffee shop or an office, little do you know about the process that goes into making a quality cup of coffee. Drinking coffee is a multi-sensory experience, hence the quality and taste of the coffee beans have to be at the top. The time since the coffee beans were ground, the time since the beans were roasted, how clean the coffee equipment is, and the quality of beans and water being used are some of the factors that determine a quality cup of coffee.

A highly quality-driven coffee market brings into the spotlight a Salem-based Coffee Powder Manufacturing brand, Nithara which has entered the coffee market with an absolute aim to provide a consistent, high-level coffee product each day to coffee lovers, while adhering to the strictest quality control processes.

The word ‘Nithara’ is an acronym for “Deep Rooted” in Sanskrit and it represents the most fundamental values – Quality, Consistency & Service. Nithara is devoted to preparing top-notch coffee powder from its “Deep Rooted” understanding of growing, harvesting, curing, roasting and Blending Coffee.

Nithara is positioned as a D2C and B2B brand in the coffee market. It sells coffee:

At wholesale prices to the HoReCa (Hotel/Restaurant/Cafes) establishments
To customers directly through its Physical Branches situated in select cities in Tamil Nadu, along with delivering coffee directly to the customers via its e-shop
On leading e-commerce websites as well.

A FAMILY OF COFFEE GROWERS

Nitish Harihar, the Founder of Nithara Coffee never forgets to mention the contribution of his family members who are the leading pioneers in the Coffee Industry.

While reiterating that Nithara is a family concern, Nitish mentions his maternal grandfather Sri R. P. Sarathy who is also his role model. Apart from his rigorous contribution to the Coffee Industry, Sri Sarathy had also diversified into Flour Milling, Spinning Mills and Educational Institutions. His inherent knowledge about coffee was so extensive that people from around the globe used to take his guidance in all aspects of coffee manufacturing and that’s what places him different from the rest of the pioneers in this field.

Nitish’s parents, Sri R. Badri Prasad and Smt. B. Jayashree are a major contributor to the prolific success of Nithara as they handle all the operations at the estates in Chikmagalur. Their vast knowledge of coffee growing and cultivation bestow the whole team of Nithara with a deep-rooted understanding of coffee right from its growing and grass root stages.

“We also take guidance from some of the best Coffee Cup Tasters to check and confirm the quality of the coffee being grown and procured, so as to ensure that the quality of coffee served to the customer is of top-notch quality,” mentions Nitish.

The Production and Sales Team at Nithara consists of highly industrious people who at all stages maintain good hygiene and standard operating procedures to ensure the quality of the product and service.

NITISH HARIHAR: BRAIN BEHIND NITHARA’S GROWTH TRAJECTORY

Behind every successful business is an experienced and indefatigable leader who consistently practises behaviours that cultivates success. Behind Nithara’s exemplary success is Nitish Harihar who believes in creating great teams and turning each employee working at Nithara into high flyers.

As the Founder of Nithara Coffee, Nitish Harihar explores new market opportunities and takes steps to expand its presence in the current market. He also brings different perspectives to the development process.

“At Nithara Coffee, we procure our coffee from our own award-winning estates and other top estates from the southern hills of India mainly from Kushalnagar, Chikmagalur, and Wayanad. We have invested in best-in-class imported roasting machinery and grinders which are used to process roasted coffee and powder,” mentions the brainchild behind the organisation.

This ensures that there is no compromise in the roasting quality and grinding quality of the coffee powder. The customers always request the same quality of coffee powder all year round and Nithara, prioritising customers’ demands over anything, always tries its best to fulfil the needs and requirements of its customers.

THE PERFECT OFFERINGS FOR THE PERFECT CUP

To let customers experience the perfect balance of Aroma, Flavour and Mouthfeel in a cup of Coffee, Nithara provides three categories of filter coffee in the coffee manufacturing landscape.

1. Superior/Signature Blends, roasted and blended for retail customers i.e. those who brew coffee at home. Nithara maintains minimum stock of coffee beans at its retail outlets and grinds them when the need arises from customers. The brand also facilitates its customers with different options on the grinding size of coffee powder which as per Nitish depends on the kind of brewing equipment they use.

Products: Under this category, Nithara’s coffee powder is available both as pure coffee and also blended with 20% chicory.
Pure Coffee: Nithara Coffee Classic PB (Perfect Blend).
Chicory Blended Coffee (80% Coffee and 20% Chicory): Nithara Coffee Premium

2. Economy Blends, blended and roasted in a way where the decoction can be stored for a longer period of time and may cater to the requirements of hotels & restaurants.

Products: Under this category, Nithara offers:
Pure Coffee: Nithara Coffee Unique
90:10 Blend: Nithara Coffee Best
80:20 Blend: Nithara Coffee Perfect
70:30 Blend: Nithara Coffee Prime

3. The third category of coffee blends caters to wholesale/hotel customers, under which Nithara customises coffee blends for wholesalers and large hotel chains. These coffee blends remain unique to the buyer and they can maintain their own taste of coffee at their establishments, as per their requirements and needs.

“Our coffee products are processed ‘just in time’ to ensure that the coffee has the highest degree of freshness. We have implemented novel practices unique to us which include rigorous quality control measures to ensure that the quality of coffee is at its best. We do not overstock on finished goods to ensure freshness of our coffee products,” mentions Nitish.

THE DIFFERENTIATING FACTORS

Blending in with the crowd never stays on Nithara’s agenda. Understanding the complexities involved in a highly competitive market, Nithara has very well established itself to stay different from other players in this segment. Here are some differentiating factors:

Just in Time Policy: The aim is to deliver the product to the customer within the shortest period of time to ensure that the coffee is fresh, fragrant and tasty. This is the main reason behind the set-up of many stores in and around Tamil Nadu.
Quality is the most significant factor that the brand upkeeps in the entire manufacturing process. Right from maintaining Quality in the procurement of raw coffee beans and Quality in processing equipment to ensuring Quality in processing methods and eventually Quality in service, Nithara speaks through its products.

THE GROWTH CHART

The journey of Nithara started with the establishment of the Roasting Unit in January 2020. Despite facing bundles of challenges, Nitish’s determination helped him fight back and erect a Coffee empire for people craving for that perfect cup of coffee.

Currently, Nithara’s roast and ground outlets are available in Coimbatore, Erode, Salem and Chennai.

Since its inception, Nithara has launched its four branches across different cities of Tamil Nadu:

First Branch – Perandurai Road, Erode
Second Branch – Sungam, Coimbatore
Third Branch – Sai Baba Colony, Coimbatore
Fourth Branch – Ashok Nagar, Chennai

“All our branches are equipped with grinding and packing equipment to ensure ‘on the spot’ grinding of Coffee Beans,” reiterates Nitish.

Furthermore, Nithara is slowly moving into other cities in Tamil Nadu to widen its presence and improve service. The brand also couriers its coffee powder to customers who are unable to access the R&G Branches.

NITHARA’S ACHIEVEMENTS IN THE COFFEE INDUSTRY

Nithara leaves no stone unturned to place itself as a leading coffee brand in the industry and this can be validated via a number of distinguished awards that the company has been conferred with. Here are some of the notable ones:

Nithara’s two Estates Ramagiri and Krishnagiri Estates, situated in Chikmagalur have received two prestigious awards:

The Ramagiri Estate has been awarded as “The Best Among the Arabica – Bababudangiri Region” in the “Flavour of India – The Fine Cup Award 2012” Competition.
The Krishnagiri Estate has been awarded as “The Second Best Among the Arabica – Bababudangiri Region” in the “Flavour of India – The Fine Cup Award 2011” Competition.

While remembering these achievements, Nitish mentions, “It was under the leadership and supervision of Sri R. P. Sarathy that Ramagiri and Krishnagiri Estates were bought and developed.”

Furthermore, Nithara Coffee was awarded the “Food & Beverage Start-Up of the Year” in 2021.

THE FUTURE AHEAD

With over half a billion people, India is the second-most populous country in the world and has a rapidly growing economy. The coffee culture of the nation is also on the rise, as more and more switch to enjoying cups of coffee daily while doing their daily tasks. Furthermore, the growing popularity of premium coffee is one of the foremost drivers of market growth, as consumers are now increasingly willing to pay for top-quality coffee beans. What matters to them now is the quality.

Renowned brands like Nithara Coffee are contributing their significant share to the Indian Coffee Industry. Nithara Coffee envisions improving its presence all over India, starting with South India.

What would always place Nithara apart from the rest would be its unwavering commitment to deliver quality products in the minimum time possible.

With a vision to provide the Best Quality Food Products to Customers Globally, Nitish is assertive about the holistic growth of Nithara Coffee in the upcoming years.