Rohan Mirchandani, the visionary co-founder of Epigamia and the man behind India’s yogurt revolution, tragically passed away on the night of December 20 due to a heart attack. He was just 41 years old. Known for his entrepreneurial spirit and passion for changing the food industry, Rohan’s sudden loss has left the young business and start-up community in shock. His contributions and inspiration will be deeply missed.
Mirchandani, a graduate of NYU Stern and The Wharton School, founded Drums Food International in 2013. Under his leadership, the brand evolved from Hoki Poki ice cream into Epigamia. Thereafter, This became a household name in yogurt and other dairy products. Mumbai-based Epigamia offers a diverse range of products, including yogurt, curd, beverages, milkshakes, smoothies, and kheer. According to the ‘Business Today’, With over 20,000 retail touchpoints across 30 cities, the company was preparing for a Middle East expansion by 2025-26. Various report suggests that The company had a sale of Rs 168 crore in FY23.
Rohan Draws Inspiration from Shripad Nadkarni
Rohan Mirchandani co-founded Drums Food 2 year after attending an inspiring talk at the Wharton School in 2011. Reports suggest that the talk was delivered by former Coca-Cola marketing head Shripad Nadkarni, who predicted that the coming decade would witness the rise of young, independent FMCG brands challenging multinational giants in India. This vision became a driving force behind Mirchandani’s entrepreneurial journey.
According to ‘Scroll.in’, Rohan spoke with Shripad about his plan to spread Hokey Pokey’s ice cream parlours across the country, but Shripad suggested Rohan to focus on creating an FMCG brand instead of creating a retail chain. Rohan decided to follow Shripad’s advice. At the age of 30, Rohan with his team started building the FMCG plan for Hokey Pokey. Hokey Pokey hit the stores in 2014 and, within a short period, Hokey Pokey became a famous ice cream brand known for its unique flavours.
Apart from the ice-cream, which is a seasonal product, to ensure sustained growth, the team decided to start a non-seasonal product along with their ice creams.
Deepika Padukone Becomes an Investor in Rohan’s Company
In 2019, Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone joined hands with other major investors to back Drum Foods International Pvt. Ltd., the company behind Epigamia. This investment was part of the company’s Series C funding round, which also saw support from prominent players like Danone Manifesto Ventures and Belgium-based consumer-focused investment firm Verlinvest.
