THIRUNELVELLI *IRRUTU KADAI HALWA ECOSYSTEM

Our mission: procuring the famed IRRUTU KADAI HALWA

Buying this famed sweet from the small shop tucked away in the semi urban, almost rural part of Thirunelveli, which sells limited quality of the sweet is a feat in itself. After strong digital footprint and engagement through social media, the craze to buy the sweet directly from this shop rather than copycats,  spiked high. 

As we neared the shop, I was surprised to find a veg hotel of rather higher end Brand which has a chain of eateries all of over Tamilnadu at this nondescript place down south. The sole attraction in this semi urban place is the NELLIAPPAR TEMPLE. I was wondering why a well known brand would actually invest here in this place. Anyone with even a basic connect with tier two towns in India, are aware about the profound “value for money” ingrained into the very DNA of the Indians, and it only increases as we travel down south. So starting a eatery over here wouldn’t make much sense 

• As locals for sure would not eat at higher end eat outs
• Tourists would only be having one thought “how do we accomplish our mission and clear out”.

So I couldn’t for life of me, understand  the idea of a successful higher end eatery investing in such a place since anyone could see that this venture would not have been cheap.

Our mission: procuring the famed IRRUTU KADAI HALWA 

Meanwhile we had already encircled the alleyways near the temple two times in the hope of parking the vehicle as we realized that we may never be able to park our vehicle anywhere. A kind, shopkeeper named this very eatery and told about the basement parking they had.

We followed the shopkeeper’s advice to the basement and were charged an exorbitant 50 Rs. to park the vehicle. Surprised and mentally calculating how buying few kg of sweet costing about 300 Rs per kilo with 50 Rs parking is working out in this semi urban  and visibly cost conscious place, “Saar you can deduct this at the hotel( ie the higher end eat out that I spoke about!)” 

• So that is how the eatery was making sure that it pulls the customers to eat at its restaurant! (pull need not be advertisement as simple value providing can work too!)
• The locals seeing the crowd can test the water with with different options, a bakery, a juice shop, a chat Centre and the main restaurant (all rented out by the famous eatery of course) Another source of revenue to the hotel.
• Also I noticed that the eatery did not maintain the usual expensive décor but one that of simple chair and tables of yester years reminding one of the old simple hotels. This works with the customers perceiving the eating at the hotel as “non expensive” one.

In reality I ended up spending another 40 Rs over and above the Parking of 50 Rs in a bid to “extract value for money” for that mere 50 rs parking ticket!!

The takeaways as I see it

1. Positioning need not always make business sense (here the higher end eatery wore a middle and lower middle garb)

2. Value addition or solving the key issue is the key(parking)

3.One target segment can attract another.(the parking crowd pulled in the locals)

3.Testing water options or low cost products can be a huge crowd puller (the chat shops were the first stop for many customers)

4.Different avenues of income from same business is very viable.

* IRRUTU KADAI HALWA, NELLAIPAR- a background

 “Irrutu Kadai Halwa” ,is a sweet which has purportedly an history of more than hundred years. So famous is the sweet that it has found its way into the Tamil language and the district, Tirunelveli is famous for this sweet. This  very unassuming shop has people queuing for the sweet at this shop . It is situated on the Nellaipar temple vicinity. The temple is a typical traditional temple supporting scores of small time business with packed alleys, disorganized stalls of all shapes and sizes with the, “once broad road” encroached over decades with assorted shops and narrowed down to a barely functional “patli gali” or alleyway. Tourists thronging the place cannot even hope to meander through these streets. Apart from the fact that you have to walk in a very crowded street, the hawkers  and booming sounds from the free use of microphones can turn the walk into a nightmare.