The Kudumbashree mission is set to elevate its food enterprises to the next level by opening at least five Cafe Kudumbashree Premium outlets by March next year.
Kudumbashree already has had experience of running Cafe Kudumbashree outlets and Pink Cafes, but those were mostly small-scale enterprises, functioning as kiosks or small hotels. The Cafe Kudumbashree Premium restaurants will be more expansive in terms of enterprise – both income wise and employment potential; they should have a daily income of ₹50,000 at least and provide employment to around 15-20 women.
Kudumbashree Executive Director Jafar Malik said 10-12 proposals from interested groups, including Kudumbashree auxiliary groups, had been received in response to an Expression of Interest (EoI). The detailed project report submitted by them would be evaluated by a technical committee, and five proposals would be sanctioned this financial year.
The Kudumbashree had earmarked a budget of ₹1 crore for the premium cafes, and would give a maximum of ₹20 lakh as subsidy. The remaining investment would have to be found by the groups through bank loan (Kudumbashree members have access to bank linkage) or self-investment in case they already ran an eatery.
“We prefer groups that have this capacity. There are Kudumbashree groups that want to establish themselves as a brand in the hotel sector, and with support it can happen.”
The locations for the premium cafes included Angamaly, Wayanad, Palakkad, and Thiruvananthapuram. In Guruvayur, a kitchen as part of a city livelihood centre in a municipal building had been converted into a Cafe Kudumbashree Premium on a trial basis. Though it had not been inaugurated, the State Cabinet, except for the Chief Minister, had lunch there in connection with the Navakerala Sadas recently, Mr. Malik said.
Depending on the response to the five pilot cafes, the Kudumbashree would open 20 more premium cafes next financial year. The Thrissur-based Adebha Institute for Food Research and Hospitality Management (AIFRHM) under the Kudumbashree would be responsible for branding and marketing of the cafes and capacity building of the staff. The cafes wouldl have common branding, logo, uniform, and so on. The food would be menu-based, and be competitively priced like in any premium restaurant. The cafes wouldl also have facilities available in hotels such as air-conditioning, parking, and so on.
Mr. Malik said though only a couple of auxiliary groups had submitted proposals at present, Kudumbashree hoped more would come forward since they were keen on good ventures that could bring more income.
He said the National Rural Livelihood Mission had expressed appreciation for the State’s plan to increase Kudumbashree women’s income to ₹25,000 a month through these premium cafes. Also, Minister for Local Self-Government M.B. Rajesh was taking a keen interest in the project.
“He had initiated the idea of premium restaurants at a meeting. He liked the idea of kiosks showcasing premium Kudumbashree products at a couple of locations, and wanted something similar to be done in the hotel sector by selecting some groups and starting premium restaurants.”
