Crafting Careers- Industry Insights
The Co-founder of “Responsible Whatr”.A passionate Entrepreneur and A much-awarded Sommelier.
Q1) How did your journey in the industry begin?
My journey in the industry started in 2008 when I was selected as a management trainee at Taj Hotels through my campus interview. Later, I moved to Delhi, where I developed a keen interest in the beverage industry. This passion led me to pursue Level 2 and Level 3 certifications, ultimately becoming a sommelier. And from there, my journey took off!
Q2) How is the Delhi Hospitality market evolving in terms of alcobev, and are there different expectations than other city’s markets?
Well, I feel Delhi or not ,India for that matter, things have developed in the past few years. It is a perfect market to showcase brands. The brands now want to be out there. They want to launch and sort of come to India, particularly with the NCR as a market and specifically talking about Gurgaon with the kind of shopping experience that it has become for liquor . Such opportunities for the brands make Delhi, Gurgaon one of the most important markets .
Secondly, there is a lot of evolution when it comes to consumer spaces, wherein, earlier it was only about visiting a liquor shop, buying it and coming back. But today, I think the experience is such that you want to go to a beautiful showroom. In Gurgaon , one looks forward to exploring new brands, have a look at new variants that have been launched.
There’s a lot of communication that has been done, from the brands side as well. And there is a lot of impulsive buying that happens. So I think in order to sort of kick start in the Indian market space, I think Delhi – NCR is one of the most important markets, considering the price point also as it is something that matters a lot to the Indian consumer.
Nowadays,everybody’s sort of seeking some kind of value for money and experience , which was not the case 10- 17 years ago. So to answer the question, I think, it is one of the most important markets to be present in.
Q3) What do you believe are the three key skills one needs in order to succeed in the industry?
I wish I could say passion, passion and passion.However, passion is one of the most important traits in order to succeed. Because without that, I don’t think a person would be able to succeed or even properly survive in this kind of challenging environment. One definitely needs the passion towards the industry.
Second, I would say continuous learning is something that one has to adapt to.
Because there is so much happening, it’s like an ocean. Every day there is something or the other coming up . There is so much to learn, and I think that continuous learning is, again, one of the most important traits.
Third, I think it looks very glamorous from the outside. There is no doubt about it that there’s a lot of hard work that goes on in the back end, which a lot of people don’t really see.. So I think the third trade would be hard work for me. When it comes to success in the industry hard work plays a crucial role.
Q4) How is entrepreneurship in alcobev industry any different from entrepreneurship in any other industry? What challenges do you face?
Well, particularly in alcohol. There are a lot of challenges when it comes to understanding the business. Understanding all the nitty gritties of the excise, the rules, the regulations. I feel that is a challenge in the alcobevt space when it comes to entrepreneurship.
However, we are in that sort of industry or the consulting space where one has to be very careful when it comes to the legal obligations. So I think that is one of the major challenges.
Second would be understanding the pricing or the numbers is something that is very important. I think sometimes when you talk so much about liquid, you get into that slide of, the passion towards or the love towards the liquid. However, one has to understand eventually it is business for everyone. So, keeping the balance between the business and the liquid or the numbers and the liquid, I think is very important.
Q4) What trends do you see shaping the future of this industry? And what scope do other wine and spirit professionals have?
In terms of trends,I see a lot of evolution, learning, understanding, from the consumer side that’s coming in. That is because of the globalization of travel by people .Today’s consumer has more knowledge , evolved as a palate, and is ready to experiment. Which wasn’t the case before. As a trend going forward. I see a lot more happening in the alcobev space.
I think, for industry professionals. My humble submission would be, to be up to the entire relevance of the alcobev space, while there are a lot of things which are trending.
Moreover, one has to not forget the basics. So, a balance between the trend and the relevance is something one has to maintain.
Q5) How do you manage to stay ahead of the industry trends?
For me , this is when the passion sort of comes in. You have to keep your eyes and ears open to a lot of things that are happening across the globe, for that matter, not only in India.
That’s the only way to keep up to the trends. Any new product launches globally, any new exciting case studies that are happening globally. I think one has to keep an eye out and always be there to learn.
Q6)For someone, just starting in the wine and spirits industry, what’s the first step they should take to build a strong career?
I always say that one should always pick up the bottle, go back to history, and learn about the liquid. There is so much information that’s available now. So continuous learning is something that is important.
The first step would be to just roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. The more experience you get with the bottles, with the liquid, the more interactions you have the better it is for your understanding.
