People are thinking about what they eat and drink like never before, whether it’s about avoiding alcohol, cutting down on dairy, enjoying fine water, or becoming vegetarian. Happily, thanks to huge advances in technology, it’s now easier than ever to be part of this mindful consumption movement. That’s why Zero is the new hero.
The Zero Percent Shop (https://india.zeropercent.shop) was created with the aim of becoming the “go-to” platform for consumers seeking to adopt a mindful lifestyle. The first of its kind, the shop focuses on a unique selection of curated food and beverage brands in the categories of 0% alcohol, 0% dairy, 0% pesticides, 0% sugar, 0% microplastic, 0% meat and Fine Water to empower the mindful consumption movement by building awareness and making zero per cent brands easily accessible to people who want to consume more responsibly, whilst still enjoying themselves.
How did the idea come about? Aman Gupta, Founder, Zero Percent, shares, “Over the past years, I started making some changes in my consumption habits. I stopped consuming dairy products, then reducing my sugar intake. I did a month long alcohol detox which led me to stop drinking alcohol completely at which point I started looking for alternatives to fulfil my cravings and to fulfil the gap of not having an adult drink while socialising. This led me to discover the emergence of the Zero Alcohol category and the massive growth in the plant-based categories.”
Aman soon realised that there was no one stop shop for these unique zero per cent categories focusing on a mindful lifestyle and that led to the idea of setting up Zero Percent. “The vision of Zero Percent is to represent the leading brands in the categories of 0% alcohol, 0% dairy, 0% pesticides, 0% sugar, 0% gluten, 0% meat, 0% microplastic and fine waters and make these brands easily accessible to consumers in order to consume healthier and be happier,” he says.
Reinventing Zero
Speaking about the initial challenges, Aman informs, “2020 was our first year setting up Zero Percent. As things slowed down due to Covid-19, we used the time to re-invent our business and add what we feel is the right path for a business in the post-Covid world.”
The company sources its products by working with small and medium sized brands and producers where each brand owner is known personally. All the brands follow a philosophy that matches the company’s – of transparency, taking a clean label approach and understanding that this is what consumers want today.
Aman says, “Our first organic product for India is Noughty – a 100% vegan, organic, halal certified sparkling Chardonnay with 0% alcohol content. Noughty is made in Germany and Zero Percent will represent the brand exclusively in India.”
Launched by British entrepreneur Amanda Thomson, Noughty is the first organic, vegan alcohol-free sparkling Chardonnay with almost half the sugar content of traditional alcohol-free sparkling wines and just 14 calories per 100 ml glass.
Pandemic push
Aman feels that the Zero per cent categories are emerging categories in India like they are in Europe and the US. Covid-19 has only made the categories grow faster as more and more consumers are consuming more mindfully, considering their health, their community and the planet.
All the company’s products are shipped via ocean freight and national logistics is done via road. Zero Percent is currently operational in Finland, Germany, Latvia, UAE and India.
As for future plans, Aman outlines, “We hope to expand into further EU markets in the next 3 years. Our future plans are to open our own Zero Percent stores in key markets. The first store is planned for Germany in 2021.”
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