Expanding Business Lessons: The Reincarnation of Omfed Stores

Expansion is the name of the game for any business. Whether it’s a small local hawker with big dreams on your street or an E-commerce giant with a massive online following, scaling up with more products and services range helps build a broader customer base and prospects. Today we will talk about an example of a business expansion model that works well similarly for a local tea shop and an E-commerce store.

The Origin & Growth of Omfed

If you are a resident in Odisha, you might have undoubtedly come across an Omfed store. These stores, which are located at almost every nook and corner of the state, witness countless conversations over tea and are likely common “Adda” of friends.

Omfed is the largest milk producer brand in Odisha. Established in 1985, It rules the milk market in the state. Other dairy companies also try to compete in the market, but none have come close to meet the popularity and production demand for Omfed.

The best thing about Omfed is it’s got a fantastic dealership scheme for branding. Many tea shop owners set up their store under Omfed’s dealership and sell various dairy products to daily customers. The brand has such a strong holding in the market that people don’t ask for a milk packet; they ask, “Do you have an Omfed?”

Companies like Omfed exist in other states as well, such as Vishakha Diary in Andhra Pradesh, Heritage & Tirumala in Telengana, Nandini in Karnataka, etc. But none of them managed to create a brand like Omfed in the local market.

Omfed store owners are the best example of how to expand your business model.

Let’s take a stroll down memory lane. In the mid-2000s, when the internet was still a luxury and not an essential commodity, Omfed stores were just the daily tea kiosks. They didn’t have any identity of their own. But with the emergence of the internet, the first wave of change came. Omfed owners started adding other products to their stores, from FMCG goods to recharge services. Paytm was the first wave of simplified payments that attracted more consumers to the stores.

Slowly and gradually, Omfed stores reincarnated their fate from being mere tea stalls to full-fledged departmental stores.

But what is this inherent drive inside people that makes them want to scale up? What causes the irresistible need to climb up the food chain. Is it to achieve the American dream wrapped in the guise of tricolour or the will to be a part of the capitalistic race? Whatever it may be, it seems to be working well for local business owners. So well that big e-commerce companies also follow the business model run by local Omfed store owners.

Source: INC42

Grofers, one of the first online grocery delivery services in India, has now expanded its core services from groceries to FMCG products and home appliances.

Going by the same plan as the omfed stores, but with more capital, of course, Grofers first built its consumer list through the primary service of veggies and other groceries. Once it had a stable customer base, it has leapt to join the leagues of biggies like Amazon and Flipkart.

Grofers is expected to achieve 10,000 crores Gross Merchandise Value by march. Just imagine the new heights it will reach after including the latest range of services and products under its wing.

When we look up to big companies like Tesla, Microsoft, or Google to find inspiration for ideas and implementation, this serves as the prime example of how perfect ideas don’t need to come from industry leaders but even small local businesses. Just the lens of viewing it has to be unique.

About Author

Sandeep Hati is a copywriter at Sanket Communications. He is passionate about advertising trends and stories. He aims to explain the many intricacies that run the advertising and marketing world. When he’s not working, you’ll find him buried in a book or watching period cinema or failing gloriously on the same level of video game infinitely.