DAILY FISH IS THE LATEST OFFSHOOT OF THE BABY MARINE VENTURES TO TAP INTO THE LUCRATIVE BUT SCATTERED RETAIL FISH MARKET OF KERALA. WITH THE NEWLY LAUNCHED WEBSITE AND APP, THEY ARE LOOKING TO BRING THE CHOICEST MARINE DELICACIES TO THE HOUSEHOLDS OF KERALA.
Interviewed by: Sangheeta Bhattacharya Text: Anish Shankar Photos: Daily Fish
From the world-famous Flower Shrimp of the coast in Mandapam, near Rameshwaram to the White Pomfret from the coast of Mangalore and Kerala’s very own Seer fish, Baby Marine Ventures has been delighting its customers with the tastiest fish from eastern and western coasts of Southern India. In 1969, the entity was set up and entered the business of building boats. Ten years down the line, they were able to get into the export market and today, with their new venture Daily Fish are ready to enter the retail market in Kerala. No doubt the challenges that accompany breaking into the Kerala market are manifold. There is a perception that packaged and processed fish is not as good the ones bought and sold daily in the markets. Being an export company, there are perceptions that the fish price is low as the catch is export reject or is unsold stock. The promoters of Daily Fish believe these perceptions will change overtime as people get used to the idea. They cite the example of milk and oil – how over time consumers have made the shift to buying packaged, processed and branded products.Daily Fish seeks to bring about awareness to their customers on what they’re buying by strictly abiding by their service pillars. The first pillar is that of product quality. They claim that their fish is as good as alive, since they use an extensive cold chain storage process from the moment the fish is caught to the time it is delivered. The focus of the cold-chain is to maintain the core temperature at -18oCelsius thereby arresting bacterial growth and locking in the nutrients. The refrigerators used to store the fish are the same ones they use for export. The second pillar is delivery. The products will be cut, cleaned and delivered at your doorstep. The convenience is doubly appreciated in the monsoon months when going to the fish market can be a hassle. The third pillar is customer service. They operate an 8AM to 8 PM customer helpline where customers can ask about the process, report issues and even get the recipes for their favourite dishes. They conduct an outreach programme called App Assist, where a dedicated team of people will go and teach those customers how to use the Daily Fish Mobile App.
To tempt that Malayali into buying fish online, they have launched an initiative called ‘MazhakalaMoham’ which is loosely translated as ‘longing for the monsoons.’ The monsoon period in Kerala is a time when the prices of fish go up due various factors. Surprisingly, Daily Fish aims to keep the prices low and affordable through a series of combos that start from Rs 333 to Rs 999 To tempt that Malayali into buying fish online, they have launched an initiative called ‘MazhakalaMoham’ which is loosely translated as ‘longing for the monsoons.’ The monsoon period in Kerala is a time when the prices of fish go up due various factors. Surprisingly, Daily Fish aims to keep the prices low and affordable through a series of combos that start from Rs 333 to Rs 999 offering delectable varieties of fish to choose from.All this has led to an emphatic response from their customers. The App alone crossed 13,000 downloads in the 3 months of its introduction and is a clear example of how user friendly the Daily Fish India app is. New hubs will be sprouting across Kerala and Bangalore in the coming months. The hubs at Kochi and Trivandrum are already functioning at full swing.
Their expertise in catering to the export markets as well as the premium hospitality segment, combined with strong backward integration for procurement and processing fish, have allowed them to enter the retail segment and expand quickly. Having been in the industry for the more than 40 years, they have been able to accomplish this without causing much flutter within industry. But the challenge is not yet over. Speaking to us, Mr. Alex K. Thomas, Managing Director & CEO of Daily Fish said, “This is a long-term venture and you cannot make profits overnight. If you see, we are selling anchovy at Rs 150 per half-kilo and the delivery cost itself would amount to Rs 80. You will not get cleaned anchovies for Rs 70 anywhere. Daily Fish ensures 100% products processed in our factories have no added chemicals and preservatives. This ensures the products are of the highest health standards. All Daily Fish products are sold on net weight, ie, for 500 gram pack you will have 500 grams of cut and cleaned product, where as normally the weight of the product is taken before cutting and cleaning where almost 40% of the product goes to waste. For shrimps, we are selling as low as 250 grams. This way it looks like I’m giving the fish for free. I’ve not even counted the other overheads like marketing, IT, and analytics. This is a long-term project. It will take a few years for it to make profits. India is a conservative market. I cannot charge a huge price for my products. Our products have to be good and affordable to sell.” High on ambition and backed with vision, Daily Fish has entered the market to provide the everyday consumer with high quality, reliable and affordable fish.