Ajay Gupta founded India's leading Chinese food brand, Ching's Secret, in 1996. By recognising a key preference among Indian women, he successfully took his business to new heights. Recently, Tata Consumer Products Ltd acquired Gupta's company, Capital Foods, for Rs 5,100 crore.

Ajay Gupta noticed that Indian women preferred cooking at home rather than dining out. He built his business around this insight, launching products such as sauces, spices, chutneys, and ginger-garlic paste, which quickly gained popularity. From that point on, there was no looking back. His brands, Ching's Secret and Smith & Jones, became household names.

Background

Ajay Gupta, who began his career as an advisor and later ran a marketing agency, always dreamed of owning his own business. As the demand for Chinese food steadily grew across the country, he recognised a business opportunity in this emerging trend. In 1996, he decided to seize the moment and founded Capital Foods.

In 1996, Capital Foods launched four key sauces: soy sauce, red chilli sauce, green chilli sauce, and vinegar, all essential for Chinese cuisine. Over the years, the company expanded its product range, introducing Hakka Noodles (1998), Tomato Ketchup (2007), Instant Noodles (2008), and Schezwan Chutney (2013), which quickly gained popularity in the market. To this day, Schezwan Chutney remains the company's most popular product.

Business strategies

Marketing these products wasn't easy for Ajay Gupta. Initially, distributors were reluctant to carry his products. To overcome this, Gupta began giving his products for free to roadside food stalls, a strategy that paid off. As demand for his products grew, he set up a factory in Nashik and began promoting "Ching's Chinese" on social media. He further boosted the brand's popularity by making Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh its ambassador, which led to a rapid rise in recognition and sales.

In 2004, Gupta formed a partnership with Big Bazaar, and in 2006, Kishore Biyani invested Rs 13 crore in the company, later selling his stake for Rs 180 crore. By 2014, the company's turnover had reached Rs 350 crore. The American equity firm General Atlantic also took an interest in Ching's Chinese, acquiring a 27% stake at a valuation of Rs 1,500 crore.

By 2023, Ching's Secret products were available in 5 lakh stores across India. Following this success, Tata Consumer Products Ltd acquired the company for Rs 5,100 crore.